One

Puff, huff. A young woman who appears to be in her mind twenties panted heavily, the blaring noise from the cars almost blinding her. She waved frantically at the passing cars but none stopped at the highway to help her out.

Barefooted, hair disheveled, staggering like a drunkard made Camille look like the kind of hitchhiker you want to avoid.

Her vision blurred but the desire to live was stronger than thr pain she felt, half an hour ago, she was tied down like a criminal, ready to be dissected and she barely made it out after fighting for her life.

“Miss, are you okay?” A passerby stopped right by her and asked.

The person looked like a teenager, probably out for a night run.

“Can I borrow your phone? I need to call someone.” She begged, desperately.

Moved with compassion, he lent her his phone. Five minutes later, a car halted in front of them. A man and woman alighted and rushed towards her.

“Camille!” The man called out as he hugged her intimately while the woman looked teary.

Camille collapsed into his arms, sobbing in relief.

“Vincent, Amelia!” Camille sobbed.

Vincent pacified her with a gentle reassuring kiss on the forehead while Amelia thanked the kind Samaritan profusely, Vincent led Camille into the car, he got in and sat with her at the backseat as Amelia offered to drive.

“I was at work when I received the call, coincidentally, Amelia came around to ask of you, what happened?” Vincent probed.

Camille narrated her ordeal and how she narrowly escaped the clutches of death from the so-called doctors whom she went to for a medical check-up. Recently, she's been feeling sick and had scheduled an appointment with the doctor.

Vincent and her were expecting a baby and he had dropped her off at the hospital only for her to realize there were organ traffickers among the doctors.

“Those bastards! I'll kill and make them pay dearly for this!” Vincent thundered, angrily.

Being married to Camille for three years, he's learnt to cherish and worship the ground she walks on, anyone who dares to cross her would answer to him.

“Those bastards! I knew something was suspicious about them!” Amelia cursed loudly and angrily, her grip on the steering wheel getting tighter.

“Call the police Vincent, they'll be jailed for this.” Amelia added.

Camille felt at ease, she was with her husband and best-friend, all worries were now forgotten. As Vincent caressed her hair and called the police on phone, she subconsciously caressed her tummy.z

“You're in safe hands.” Vincent assured her.

She closed her eyes and drifted to sleep, free from worries. The next time her eyes fluttered open, she was awoken by a loud bang, blinding lights shone directly into her eyes and she groaned mildly, feeling dizzy and lightheaded.

“What is happening? Where am I?” She asked no one in particular.

From her blurred vision, she saw what looked like surgeons, dressed in their apparels, a sharp surgical blade in hand, adrenaline kicked in and she struggled against the bonds that tied her down.

“She's awake.” One of the perpetrators informed the others.

“Do what needs to be done.”

A sinking feeling engulfed Camille as she recognized the voice.

“Vincent?”

Vincent snickered and stepped out of the shadows, revealing his presence then patted Camille's hair.

“What are you doing-”

“Shush Camille, don't fight it.” He advised her.

“Let go of me!” Camille yelled in terror as she was been approached with an unknown injection.

“I promise, it won't hurt.”

Futile attempts was all she could do, the die was cast as she was been injected, she felt life seep out of her, her jaws clenching and her bones melting under the excruciating pain.

“Why are you doing this?” She asked, weakly.

“Because you're way past your bedtime.” A feminine voice answered her.

“Amelia?” Camille asked, spotting her best friend.

Amelia stopped right in front of Vincent and kissed him fully on the lips, passionately while Camille could only watch with her heart shredded into pieces.

“How does it feel Camille? To lose everything.” Amelia asked, maliciously.

Camille coughed out a mouthful of blood, the poison gaining more roots in her, with her vital organs going through rapid damage, she could barely speak but her eyes did the asking.

“I know you're wondering, why did this have to happen to me? Is my husband and best-friend betraying me…… yes, you're right.” Amelia started.

“I love Amelia from the onset, I never did love you but you were too blinded by love to see that, you gave me everything I need and so I thought, why not take advantage of that?” Vincent confessed.

“Then you believed all I told you, cut off relations with your family as well, we became your world, bet you never suspected anything.”

“Two months ago, you put all of your properties in my name, trusting me so blindly, how can you be foolish?”

Camille couldn't speak, tears rolled freely down her cheeks, what was she to say? The realization of what was happening wrecked her.

“Now you've given us all we want, so we thought, why keep her alive?” Amelia asked, rhetorically as she took hold of an episiotomy scissors, she slowly advanced towards Camille, a glint of mischievousness evident in her eyes.

“I'm pregnant, I'm with your child, won't you spare tour own flesh and blood?” Camille advocated for her baby's life, it was all she had left.

Vincent's face fell as if he was remorseful and then he laughed manically. “Child? Please, do you really think I don't know about that? Why would I spare him when I have a son already? Manuel.”

“Manuel?” Camille muttered. “But Manuel is…”

“Vincent's son, you really didn't believe I had a night stand with a stranger and got knocked up four years ago?” Amelia mocked Camille. “Fir Manuel to live well, you and your bastard son needs to die, can't you do that for your godson?*

“No, please don't hurt my child, you can take the money, please spare him.” Camille cried.

“Don't worry Camille, Vincent and I would live happily just like you've ever wanted.” Amelia assured her before stabbing her abdomen with that scissors she held, multiple times.

Camille screamed, shrieked and begged with all that was left in her, her blood splattered everywhere and her face was filled with horror. The doctors approached her almost lifeless body, about to harvest her organs.

Dyspneic, she took one last look at the two people whom she trusted the most, a tear slid down her face as she took her last breath, whispering into the universe, a cry for help.

Plop! Bang.

A wave of headache coupled with dizziness hit a lady as she fell off the bed with a thud, she groaned, hungover and staggered to her feet, her disheveled hair and stenchy body repelled even her.

“What the hell am I?” She muttered to herself as she noticed her surrounding, a contrast of her own room.

She took few steps then fell to the ground again, it was evident she wasn't sober yet, her eyes fell on the digital calendar which displayed the time as well as date that hung on the wall.

“Up and active? Impressive!” A masculine voice called out, amusedly.

The lady turned around, clarity seizing her all of a sudden. The man who spoke stood at the entrance to the room, he looked cleanly shaved and tantalizing. “Vincent?” The woman called out, her lips quavering.

“Good morning Camille.” Vincent greeted with a smirk.