"Doc! My mother!" I shouted hysterically. I burst into tears when I saw the nurses running to the room where my mother was. I could feel the sudden throbbing of nervousness in my chest. I could see from the mirror what was going on inside. Nurses are in a rush to get the materials what the doctor needs. The hot liquid flow down my cheek. I cried not because of the situation, but I called for my mother's safety; to my mother, who has long struggled with her illness. She has been in the hospital for a year, and she is not recovered from her illness yet. We don't have any money to support what she needs. The cash that I earn in my extra job is not enough to treat her. Arms wrapped around my waist; it was my sister Gwen. I looked at my sister. Her eyes blurred from crying. “Sis, Julia. Do you think they will save mom?" I bent down and wiped the tears from her cheeks. "Yes, they can save the mother. Don't despair, Gwen. They can save our mom. Mom is brave, so I know she is fighting." I couldn't help myself from crying. Gwen hugged me around my neck. I need to tell her that my mother will be okay, even if I am not sure about that. I don't want her to feel despair. Even though there was no certainty in what I told her, I knew mother would pass it. She is brave in everything. She will face it all, even if she has been struggling for a year. Gwen looked up when the doctor suddenly came out from the emergency room and approached us. I stood up and wiped the tears from my cheek. I faced the kind female doctor. She is also old. And I know she is just as old as my mother. Maybe she's in her mid-forties. "D-doc. . . how is our mother?" I asked.
My knees are shaking in fear that she might answer my question. "You can relieve now, Miss Taylor. We saved the patient," she said, which makes me breathe deeply.
Thanks for that.
"Right now, we can save her, but next time, we don't know if we can still conserve her." My knees trembled at what she said. I also felt Gwen cling to my arms. She is too nervous and worried. "Why?" "We need to change her heart, Miss Taylor. Asap. Her heart is weak to respond. And this may be the cause of her death. She needs to operate on as soon as possible," she continued. Tears welled up in my eyes. "How much can I spend on the operation, just in case?" "Maybe it's worth two million, Miss Taylor." When I heard what the doctor said, I don't think I can afford the amount she mentioned. Two million ?! Where can I get that much money? "But don't worry, Miss Taylor. You can pay that little by little. We are not in a hurry. We can start operating for the transplant of the heart of your mother tomorrow so that her situation does not get worse." I nodded. "Thank you, doc." "Ah, all right. I'll leave you first." She was left dumbfounded. My sister came to my side, and her eyes are full of grief. "Sis. . . where will we get the money? Where will we get the two million? We can't afford that," she asked me worriedly. I sobbed and tried to hold back my tears. I hugged Gwen tightly. "I'll find a way, Gwen. Your sister will find a way. I'm the one who is responsible for this, okay?” "But—” I slipped out of her arms and wiped the tears from her cheeks. I tried to smile, to show her that everything would be okay, that she should not worry. "No, Gwen. Listen to me, when you come home, tell father that I will be gone for days, and when I come back, everything will be okay. Watch Mom for me, okay? Promise me." My sister nodded. I hugged her again before I left Mom's room with tears streaming down my face. I picked up a calling card that Bernadette had given me yesterday. I stared at it. Red Rose Society Agent Forces Telephone Number:
6***-0***-***
Cell phone Number: 09********* I picked up my cell phone from my fitted pants pocket and dialled the number on the calling card. "Hello, good evening. About what you told me yesterday, I accepted it."
There's no turning back. This is it.
*** I tightly gripped on my skirt that I was wearing. I never thought this would happen before I could enter my mission. I did not know that this was one of the contracts given to me by the Red Rose Society. Soothing music soared inside the bar. The men shouted when the light came on me. I was on stage, and I was now the beak dancer. I am not a paid woman to do this, but this is the only way for me to do my mission. I would have backed away earlier. But it was too late because I had already signed the contract issued by the Red Rose Society. I stroked my waist and accompanied the melodious music lurking in every corner of the bar. The noise inside was louder and louder. Men are shouting in enjoyment. They are like fleshly demons, searching for its victim. I danced with my eyes closed and swallowed all of the feelings I felt at that moment; despair, shame, and hatred. At these times, I feel like I am a paid woman. But I have to do this for my mother who is in hospital. And my dad and sister depended on me. I need to be strong because I am the breadwinner of my family. The men dumped me money while laughing. I do not hate what he does, but I want to punch him in his face. I tried to run at these times, but I could not because their eyes watched me; eyes were watching my every move. So even though I wanted to leave here, I could not. What I started is what I will end. I am now a member of the Red Rose Society. I was one of them, and I could not just leave. They have stamped my name. "Strip your goddamn dress!" one of the men shouted. Cloth-covered my face when I heard a man shout. I did not listen to him. I continued to dance. They shout until I see a woman signal to me— signs that I will do what the men are calling. I could hear my heart beating so fast as I slowly touched the waistband of my skirt. I should have undressed it when a man unexpectedly shouted. It was the reason why the noise inside suddenly disappeared. I was even frightened by the voice he carried. A man wearing a black mask stood up. His bearing is enticing and frightening. I carried away, and I bite my tongue suddenly because of his presence. His eyes make my knees weakened. He reads my soul like a cloth. The blade of his gaze bites deep into my body. No one was surprised to shout when he approached me and put the coat he was carrying on my shoulder. My eyes widened when I saw and stared closely at his blue eyes. I held my breath when I realised he was so close to me. He pulled me and wrapped his right hand around my waist. My heart pounded even more. I was afraid of his presence. Is this the beginning of my mission? Why do I seem to regret being a member of the Red Rose Society? He stared at all the people inside the bar. His stern and authoritative voice soared inside. "This girl is mine. She sold now; I bought her. And no one, against. Who the one, against with it. You will regret that you will be born in this world." After he said that, he pulled me down the stage. The grip of his hand on my hand tightened. The man parted inside the bar, and they gave us away. He just stopped walking when someone suddenly shouted at him. I stopped too. "I can't let that woman go to you, X. She's mine too." A man with an elegant posture. Handsome and also bearing like the man next to me. But he is not like this scary man. He has no mask, so his whole face is visible. Only now did I notice that the man holding me was the only one wearing a mask inside the bar. The man holding me turned around. And I could see the change in the emotion in his eyes. "I think you will regret now that you will be born in this world," the man next to me said and smiled. When he had said those words, he suddenly pulled out a gun from the back of his waist and shot the man who had shouted at him earlier. My eyes widened when I saw how the man fall and lose his breath. "You deserve it, son of bitch!" the man with a mask said with a gritted teeth. I was still gaping and could not believe what I witnessed. Isn't that what he is saying to himself? "Let's go, wife. We are running out of time."
He pulled me out of the bar.
Where will he take me? Will he kill me too? I don't want to die yet!
