Number 7

"Doctor. Are you ready to perform the procedure?"

"Yes."

Two men stood in an operating room.

The room was nothing more than a grimy ward, devoid of any sense of the word health, and these men who wore beards that were unshaven without even using gloves or masks prepared themselves as they prepared a heavily used operation table.

"Are you... truly ready?"

"I've done this many times before. Though I admit... that this is my first time doing it in these conditions."

"You're trembling."

"Ah."

The man who was known as the doctor looked to his hands, noting that the other man was indeed correct.

He was trembling.

"I'm supposed to be a surgeon here. Surgeons can't have shaky hands... what a disappointment...."

"I wouldn't be any different."

The other man who wore the scrubs of a nurse let out this statement with a sigh, exhaustion apparent in his eyes.

It was then that the doors burst open.

Rolling along on a cart was a woman whose eyes were devoid of any emotion, hopelessness her very essence.

She gazed blankly towards the ceiling as the men lowered her onto the operating table, at which one of the men handed the doctor a pack of freshly bought gloves.

"I picked these up from the store on the way."

"Thanks."

Unwrapping the gloves and snapping them onto his hands, the man known as the doctor let out a heavy sigh as he waves his hands.

"Now everyone get out. We don't need an audience here."

With quick nods, the men all rushed out, leaving only the doctor and the nurse.

"Are you... are you going to take my child?"

The woman looked up to the man, fear creeping across her expression as she gazed into his eyes.

The man gulped, unable to answer such a question.

"Enough questions.", he stated as he held back his own emotions.

Then, with the flip of a switch, the men who had been rushed outside the room watched as a neon light came on.

[Operation in progress]

----

"Give... give her here... please... please..."

Reaching out towards the doctor, the woman grasped towards the air as the screams of the child pierced the air.

"My child... my child.... please... please... let me hold her..."

The woman begged the man, desperation filling her expression as she reached towards the child.

"I can't do that."

Choking up as he said the words, the man known as the doctor handed the child to the one who took the role of the nurse.

"Get the child out of here. I'll take care of the woman."

"MY CHILD!!!"

Stumbling out of the bed, weakened after the procedure, the woman was barely able to even stand as she tripped forwards.

"Stop this."

Grabbing the woman by the shoulders, the Doctor looked the woman in the eyes with a painful expression as he bit his lip.

"What the hell are you doing? Get out of here.", he spit back at the nurse.

"NO!!! MY CHILD!!! DON'T TAKE HER!!! LET ME SEE HER!!!!"

The woman began to struggle, however she was weak.

Far too weak.

So fragile that the man who held her back could let go and she wouldn't even be able to make it to the child.

She would stumble to the ground, unable to do anything.

"Don't make this... any harder than it needs to be.", the doctor choked.

"If you don't let me see my child... then... then... then..."

The woman began to trip on her words, looking to the ground with twitching eyes as she averted the gaze of the doctor.

"Then... I-"

"Enough. Why are you still here?"

Turning back to gaze at the nurse, the doctor met eyes with his partner.

The man stood there, a crying child in his hand, unable to move.

For the guilt had overwhelmed him.

"This... this was the order of the boss. Do you understand what will happen if I report you?", the doctor pressed.

"I... I understand....", the nurse replied, shock evident in his voice. "But... but even so... doing this... it makes me wonder... do... Do you think our children are even still alive?"

Looking to the child in his arms, the nurse spoke with terror in his tone.

"This child... this beautiful child... she is alive. Right here in my arms. I know that for certain. But my daughter... How long has it been since I saw her? Couldn't it just be that she's already dead... and the boss is using us for everything we have?"

"If you're not going to do it then I will."

Shoving the woman to the ground, the man known as the doctor approached the nurse, grabbing the child from him.

"No... don't... don't take her... I... I'm going to let the mother hold her..."

"Give me the child."

"NO!! Why can't we let her be with her... even for a few minutes!?"

"A few minutes will allow an attachment to grow. You know it's best for her... for the child... for EVERYONE. And if the boss finds out-"

"How will he find out unless you tell him?"

At this point, the child had calmed itself.

As if it had sensed the tension in the room, it became silent without question.

"You... if I give into your thinking and we do get caught... then we'll both be punished."

"Then... all we have to do is not get caught... right?"

Closing his eyes, the doctor grit his teeth.

Then, walking towards the exit, the man spoke with a heavy tone.

"Do as you please. I have nothing to do with this."

With a relieved expression, the nurse grinned as he approached the fallen woman, whose expression filled with delight as her child was presented to her.

"Ah, ah, ah. We can't have that."

However as she reached her arms out towards the child, every person in the room froze in their tracks.

"A mother is already attached to her child from far before the child is born. For to carry a life within oneself forms a bond that is undeniable. However from the perspective of the child inside the mother, the mother does not even exist. They live off their mother... and perhaps by intuition feel that another being is sustaining them... however this being is faceless. This is why when a child is first born… when it is first held by the mother... it immediately forms a BOND with the mother."

Looking around, the three did not know where the voice was coming from.

Above? Below? It seemed to fill the entire room.

The voice of their boss.

"And when such a bond is formed... when the face is linked to the mother who provided sustenance and care for the child throughout its time in the womb... this becomes unbreakable. The child becomes completely reliant on the mother, and refuses to rely on anyone else. It becomes stubborn, in a sense. Desiring for the mother to be theirs, and theirs alone. Even the father is perhaps seen as nothing more than a rival for attention. Don't you think it's almost poetic? Even from the time we are completely innocent... devoid of any concept of right or wrong... we are controlled by jealousy and greed."

As the boss spoke, the doctor looked around him, slowly realizing that he had made a grave error.

'There... were cameras... this entire time?'

"Yet if a child, from the moment they are born, is not allowed to make the association with the one known as a MOTHER, then what will happen to such a child?"

It was at that moment that the doors to the operating room burst open.

Stepping into the room was a man.

His blonde hair was slicked back, less chaotic than usual as he elegantly strolled past the doctor.

Pressing his sunglasses up, the man slowly approached as he placed his hand on the shoulder of the nurse, gazing directly into the eyes of the child who he held.

Her hair was a deep blue, so close to black that it was almost such, yet just tinted enough that one could tell the difference.

"Then that child would become deprived of something... crucial."

Reaching over his arms, the man grabbed the child as he lifted her into the air - to which he was met with the smiling and giggling of the little girl.

"My... my baby...."

The mother reached out her hand, to which she was met with a deathly stare.

"Two executions have been scheduled, woman. If you continue to speak... then there will be a third."

As the man spoke these icy words, the heart of the woman shattered as she looked up to her child - who smiled all the while in the hands of the mafioso, laughing without a care.

The man then looked up to the child that he held into the air, and a playful smile came across his expression as if the icy glare which he just wore had never existed in the first place.

"Now then... where was I? Ah... yes. It is true that a child who has never known the face of their mother has lost something crucial... but it is also in losing this crucial piece of humanity... that perhaps one will also lose those wicked desires which make us human."

Placing the child so as to lean on his shoulder, the man exited the room in silence, his steps and the laughter of the child being the only sounds that could be heard.

"Greed and jealousy... these things will cease. Yet vices cannot be eliminated without eliminating the possibility for virtue as well. Therefore... such a child will lose other things. Namely...."

The doors were opened for the man as he was met with a line of henchmen, all bowing to him with the utmost respect.

He walked through the hall, his steps trailing off as the distance between him and the woman ever increased.

"The ability to know the concept... of morality."

Lifting the child up and down vibrantly, the girl laughed and giggled with excitement as the man looked up to her with a smile.

"And that is exactly... what I need."

----

"My... my child... let... let us go!! Let us go!!! Give me my child back and let me go!!!"

Ally found herself brought away, taken into a private room as she stood before the man who pulled the strings on this entire affair.

"Please... please!! My husband already killed himself due to the guilt!!! Even if he... even if he made a deal with you... that deal was to save his own life... was it not!?"

The woman looked to the man desperately, who blocked the door with arms crossed as he stood unphased.

"Listen to me!!!", she said as she grabbed the collar of his shirt. "You let him live, but he died anyway!!! He gave you our child in exchange for his life, but he doesn't even have that anymore!! If you take the child... if you take my child...."

Falling to the ground, tears flowed from the woman's eyes as her voice crackled with desperation.

"Then I'll have nothing left to live for..."

"You will."

"What?"

As the man cut her with this statement, the woman looked to him with confusion, unable to comprehend his words.

"What... Do you mean by that?"

"I'll give you an opportunity."

Shaken at the sly words of the man, the woman felt a pressure overwhelm her unlike anything she had ever experienced.

"What... kind of opportunity?", she quivered.

Leaning back on the door, the man grinned as he looked to the ceiling, as if plotting while he spoke.

"50 children."

"Eh?"

As the man said this single statement, goosebumps formed across the skin of the woman.

"What... Do you mean by that?"

"Gather me 50 children. I have connections with the police, the government, the hospitals, everything. You'll have everything you need to do so. You can walk right in there and take one without being questioned if you show them this."

From his pocket, the man took out a golden badge which had the symbol of a rat on it.

Flipping it over to the woman like a coin, she caught it as she looked down to it with fear.

With a gulp, the woman looked up to the man, clearly disturbed.

"Why... would I do that?"

"You want to see your child, no?"

The man thinned his eyes which were hidden behind those shades, grinning all the more as he turned around.

"If you want to see her again, bring me those children. If not... then you're free to leave and live your life as you wish. But let me ask you."

Turning around, the man stopped in the middle of the doorway as he looked back at the woman.

"Would you really be able to run away now and still live with yourself?"

With a chuckle, the man kept walking as the door slowly shut.

"Think about it. And if you make the right decision... then I'll be waiting."

----

That night, Ally sat on the couch of her living room.

The house was empty.

All the lights were off, and she sat alone - that badge in her hands as she looked down on it.

Holding her stomach, she was reminded of the emptiness within it.

'My... child... she is gone.'

There was nothing Ally could have done.

If she had fought and screamed, it would have ended in no better result than her just leaving.

She knew this.

Yet even so, perhaps the only reason why she left quietly was because she knew deep in her heart that there was only one way to bring her child back to her.

'I... can't do this.'

Gripping the badge, the woman stood up as she opened a window, pulling her arm back to throw it out.

'I shouldn't do such a thing.'

'To rip away other people’s children just as mine was ripped from me...'

The woman told herself to throw the thing away.

'Do it! Get rid of this thing! I need to rethink everything! I can't... I can't accept his deal! If I do that... if I do that... then wouldn't I be saving my daughter at the expense of so many others!?'

However even as she told herself to do so, her fist clung to the badge all the more, unable to let go.

'But...'

The smiling face of the child that she so desperately wanted to see appeared in the mind of the woman as she fell to the ground once more, unable to throw the thing away.

'But if I throw this away... then I really will... lose her.'

'Forever.'

Looking up to the skies, the woman found herself crying out to them.

"What should I do?"

Speaking to a man who had already lost his life, her grievances were heard by none.

"Should I ruin myself to save our child... just as you did?"

"Or should I let her die to save the others... and let your death be in vain?"

Plagued by this horrid decision, the woman grasped her heart as she fell to the ground in tears.

"I... don't know."

----

Ally was unable to get a single wink of sleep that night.

She sat in her bed, alone and terrified at the events which had transpired.

Her husband - dead after throwing himself off a bridge.

The body was unrecoverable, mashed into bits of flesh as a moving truck hit the man while in his freefall.

No funeral was held for the man due to the heavy expenses. Even to put him in a morgue, it required all the extra funds that he had obtained from his negotiations.

She had been left alone with child, no longer able to rely on a man to provide.

And now, even that child had been taken.

Unable to escape the constant watch and pursuit of the men who worked for that mafioso, Ally had been forced into a situation where she was not even allowed to hold her child.

'What... will become of her?'

'What... will become of me?'

That night, Ally thought and thought.

Hatred, sadness, anger, regret, guilt, all of these things welled up inside her mind as she thought and thought, unable to do anything to change her fate.

'Should I have... fought?'

This question lingered on the woman, tearing her apart as she stuffed her face into her pillow.

'Should I have fought to the death... if it was for the sake of my child?'

'What kind of mother am I?'

Wallowing in her own self hatred, the woman bit down as she muffled her own worries.

'Should I do something now?'

'Ah....'

'What should I do?'

Like this, the woman carried on such meaningless thoughts throughout the entire night, unable to come to terms with herself.

'Who is wrong?'

'Who should I hate?'

'My husband for gambling in such a way, and for giving his life up in the end?'

'The man who bailed my husband out of his debt at the cost of our child?'

'The man who put him in such debt in the first place?'

'Or perhaps myself... for being unable to stop such a thing from happening?'

Unable to come to an answer, Ally knew not who she should hate.

----

"Good morning, Mr. Johnson!"

"Ah, wonderful weather out, don't you think?"

"Of course!"

The next morning, Ally forced a smile upon herself as she walked through the neighborhood.

"The flowers certainly are blooming around this time of year."

"Ah, you noticed? My wife and daughter have been tending to the gardens together recently. She's been teaching her so much... they grow up so quickly..."

"Ah. Is that so?"

"Ah, you're expecting soon too, aren't you? And I heard that it was going to be a girl. Congratulations."

"Thank you."

With a quick statement, Ally turned away from the man as she sped up, walking past him.

"In such a hurry... haha... well, I suppose I'll see you around."

The woman left without statement, unable to answer.

'Teaching my daughter...'

Taking in a deep breath, the woman tried to calm herself.

'I shouldn't be thinking about such things... what's done is done... I... I shouldn't be jealous of such people... they... they've done nothing wrong.'

Clutching her heart, the woman shivered as she looked down.

Her stomach was starting to go down, though not enough to the point where one could tell at first glance.

'But...'

Grimacing, the woman glared back at the home.

'Tch... it's as if they're boasting...'

"Ah, Mrs. Palmer! How is the husband doing? On a walk here by yourself?"

A husband and a wife approached the woman, both of them on a morning jog as they ran in place - happiness plastered on their faces.

"Oh, Mr. and Mrs. Reed! It's quite a coincidence seeing you. I suppose I don't usually get out this early, haha! I just felt that I needed some... fresh air."

Gritting her teeth with a smile that felt disgusting to even hold, the woman grinned heavily as she glanced towards the two.

"Well, I suppose that's right! Just don't work yourself too hard! Fresh air is good for the kid, but overexerting yourself will stunt its growth!"

With this statement, the two rushed on, continuing with their morning routine.

'Ah... I'll stunt her growth, will I?'

Glancing back, irritation was evident in the eyes of the woman as she exited the sight lines of the neighbors.

'I suppose that's right, isn't it? I'll stunt her growth if I don't take care to accomodate for my child.'

Walking forth, the woman's fingers clacked, twitching as if she was grasping something.

"Ah, mornin' ma'am! How's it been lately? Everything going fine?"

Another one.

This one was a kid - likely in his early twenties. He was currently on a walk with a small dog that was in the process of relieving itself on someone else's lawn.

"Yes... everything has been fine."

With a smile that was obviously forced, the woman took every measure she could to hide the displeasure that welled up inside her.

"That so? Ah, come on Robbie. Enough of that! Jeez... always shitting and eating... haha... maybe that's what a kid is like?"

Tugging the dog without even picking up its excrement, the boy waved as he left the area.

"Later, ma'am!"

'Are you not even going to clean up the mess of the thing you own? Are you not even going to take responsibility for the shit that it leaves all over everyone else's property?'

Gritting her teeth as she glared down at the feces, the woman thinned her eyes with disgust.

'How can you allow such filth to contaminate the area like this?'

Catching herself, the woman put her hand to her mouth as her eyes widened in shock.

'Ah... what am I thinking?'

'Did I really just think that?'

'I... I must be tired.'

'I should... hurry up and get home.'

Turning around, the woman walked backwards, heading towards her home.

Eventually she came back to where she had started, turning to head onto her property before someone called out.

"Ah, Mrs. Palmer! How are you doing today?"

Looking over, a woman in her early 40's was pushing a stroller - snobbiness filling her expression.

"I'm doing quite well, Mrs. Fera. And yourself?"

Forcing that fake smile, Ally stopped herself from rushing back into the safety of her home as she walked over to the woman.

'Calm down. Calm down. Just deal with one more person... and it's over.'

"I'm doing horrible! Just horrible! Listen to this, Mrs. Palmer. Look at my wonderful child here. Isn't she precious?"

Lifting up the cover, the woman smiled with pride as she gloated, revealing a child that looked to be around two years old.

"She's wonderful, isn't she? Can't you see it in her eyes? She's so intelligent. Watch this. Sherly. In what year was the Restoration Clause of 1536 put into place?"

"Ah! Ah ah ah!"

"Oh, you little thing... I know you can't say the words yet. That's why I'm going to give you some answers. If it's 1535 then look to the right!"

The child looked up to the woman with a confused expression, stopping as it looked towards its mother who stood in front of it.

"So it's not 1535? Well then what about 1537?"

Remaining as she was, the woman looked down on the child with a smile as the child continued to look towards her mother with confusion.

"Oh, I see. Now what about this one."

With a grin, the woman stood up as she made her statement.

"Was it 1536?"

Then, walking around the right side of the child behind the stroller once more, the child followed her mother with its eyes as it turned towards her.

"Correct!! See, isn't she just brilliant?"

"Ah. I suppose she is."

With a dead expression, Ally spoke without emotion, unable to comprehend the idiotic actions of the woman before her.

"Ah, but listen here! I got into an argument with my husband the other day. You won't believe what he was saying. I was telling him that our girl would become a lawyer, but he wants her to become a doctor! What girl becomes a doctor? A lawyer is a much better suit, and I personally believe that a lawyer is a much more respectable profession. Doctors have to spend their lives surrounded by the sick. That is no life for my girl. Absolutely not. She is above such things. But you know what my husband said? He said that a doctor is much more respectable, that she is above becoming a mere lawyer! Unbelievable!"

Glaring at Ally with a snobby smile, the woman looked at her with eyes of self assurance.

"Don't you agree?"

"I don't know about such things."

"Wha... don't know? Are you not pregnant yourself? You too will soon have a child. Have you not even thought about her FUTURE? My my my.... how shameful. How truly pitiful. It is a parent's DUTY to plan out every aspect of a child's future. For if you do not seize control of it from birth... then your child's future will become out of control. They will do things that you do not agree with, persue idiotic dreams and make foolish decisions, and end up as nothing more than a DISAPPOINTMENT. That is why it is so irritating that my husband is so stuck on such a position... does he not understand that I am only thinking about her future? I don't want my child to end up like those OTHER children whose parents don't even think about them."

Crack.

As the woman spouted on, Ally felt something snap inside herself.

'My child's... future?'

"Yes... I suppose you're right... I should care about my child's future... shouldn't I?"

Reaching into her pocket, the woman closed her eyes as she looked to the sky.

Then pulling her hand from her pocket, she took out an item.

A small golden badge.

Flipping it like a coin, the woman watched as a smile drew itself on her face.

'My child's future... or those of idiots like this woman... which one should I weigh more?'

Catching the badge, the woman covered it with her hand as she slowly walked forward.

"You know... I've learned something here today, Mrs. Fera. I really have. Thank you."

'If it's tails... then I leave my child behind... I'll put my tail between my legs and give up.'

Approaching the child, Ally stuck her face into the stroller as she smiled at the girl.

"After all... one's child is so precious. Therefore... a good parent would do anything for the sake of their child, no?"

'If it's heads... then I will put my child at the head of my life... and do everything... for her. Even if it means... taking the heads of others.'

"Of course, of course!! I'm so glad you agree!! I was worried for a moment there that you would become one of those foolish mothers, but you've relieved me. There are some good parents around, aren't there! Not like these young ones these days who just let their children do as they please!"

"Hahaha... of course."

Then, looking down to her hand, the woman uncovered the badge.

'Heh.'

"Mrs. Fera... do you believe that my child could become as successful as yours?"

"Hahaha... oh Mrs. Palmer. Surely you jest. But perhaps if you become a bit more like me... then your child could be almost as exceptional."

"Is that so? Ah... may I hold her? Perhaps her influence will rub off on mine."

"Oh, please do be careful. But I suppose there is no harm..."

Sliding the coin back into her pocket, the woman gripped the child as she lifted the girl into the air.

The child smiled, giggling as she was held up, happily unaware of what was happening around her.

"How precious.", Ally muttered.

"Isn't she?", Mrs. Fera asked with intensity.

"But you know..."

It was at that moment that the smile of Ally deepened, becoming a wretched grin.

"If you're going to argue with your husband over something so petty... then I don't think you have any fucking idea what it means to care about your child's future."

Turning to walk into her own home, the woman flung the child over her shoulder like a sack of grain.

"Gah! Ah! Eee!! Haha!"

"Ah, Mrs. Palmer... where are you going with my-"

Snap!

With the snap of her fingers, a number of men in black suits with shades exited from the home of the woman.

"H-hey! What... What were all those men doing in your home!? Mrs. Palmer, where are you taking my precious child!? Get back here this-"

"That will be enough. The child is now the property of the street rats."

The men surrounded Mrs. Fera, who could do nothing more than grimace in indignation.

"Who the hell do you people think you are!? Get out of my-"

Bang!

A gunshot.

The woman stopped in her tracks as she looked down to see that the sidewalk had a bullet shot through it, just narrowly missing her foot.

And then, a car pulled itself up to the scene - the window open as a man with blonde hair and sunglasses blew the gunpowder from the weapon he held.

"I see that you've made your decision. This makes one."

On seeing the man, Ally turned, stepping forth with the child in hand as a smile deepend itself.

"Ah. So you were truly waiting for me to do this... weren't you?"

"What if I was?"

"YOU ASSHOLES!!! GIVE ME MY PRECIOUS SHELBY BACK!!!! I'LL SUE!!! I'LL SUE EVERY LAST-"

Bang!

A second bullet shot rang through the streets that day, and the dropping of a body filled the ears of all as the men quickly grabbed the woman, cleaning up the mess without a trace.

"Ahem... what was I saying? Ah... right... So what if I planned this all? After all... you were the one who made the decision, not me."

The man reclined in his seat as a henchman opened the backseat, notioning for the woman to enter.

"Ah... but it wasn't me who made the decision.", the woman stated as she grabbed the badge, flipping it up once more as she caught it between her two fingers, flashing it at the man with a smile.

"I suppose... it was fate."

At that moment, Ally decided.

Perhaps she should hate this man.

Perhaps she should want nothing more than to take her revenge on him.

However instead, she decided to direct her hatred elsewhere.

"You wouldn't understand what it means to have your child taken from you... but even so... it irritates me."

As she seated herself in the car, the woman held the child in her lap as she looked down with an almost motherly smile.

"It irritates me... that there are other mothers in this world who take these children for granted. Therefore... if helping you can make them feel the same HOPELESSNESS that I felt in having my child taken... then I suppose it would benefit the world, wouldn't it? After all... there are some parents who don't even deserve to have a child to their name. And there are some children who would be better off... without such parents to hold them down."