For a fraction of a second, the doctor’s face flickered with a raw, unnamable emotion. All the color drained from her cheeks. Her breath hitched. But thirty years of strict medical discipline kicked in, and she quickly composed herself, swallowing the sudden, sharp lump in her throat.
“Listen to me now, Mia,” Barbara said, leaning in close so her voice was the only thing the terrified girl could hear. “Forget everything else in the world. The baby is all that matters right now. His life depends on you. Don’t waste your energy shouting. Just listen to my instructions.”
The mother-to-be swallowed hard and nodded obediently, tears leaking from the corners of her eyes.
Barbara looked down at her. The words ‘woman’ and ‘prisoner’ seemed entirely incompatible with the fragile creature thrashing on the birthing chair. She looked like a child herself, no more than twenty years old, pale and terrified, tethered to the metal rails like a trapped animal. How had she ended up in such grim circumstances? What could a girl like this have possibly done?
Barbara caught herself genuinely sympathizing with the young stranger. A remarkably difficult path lay ahead for both this girl and her unborn child. But this was no time for distractions. Brushing off the swirling, unnecessary thoughts, Barbara snapped on her latex gloves and began her work.
She spoke with absolute clarity and unwavering confidence. She encouraged the laboring girl through every agonizing push, remaining fiercely attentive and professional. Barbara’s voice was a lifeline in the sterile room. It instilled deep trust, helping Mia manage the blinding pain and endure the terrifying process. Women who delivered at this rural hospital always considered themselves incredibly fortunate to end up in Dr. Gibbs’s capable care.
She was like a second mother to them. Her vast expertise and gentle hands had ushered countless squalling infants into the world. Barbara had been working in this very maternity hospital for more than twenty years, ever since she packed up her broken life and returned from the bustling city to work as a humble midwife. She never sought regalia, fancy titles, or shiny medals. She simply did her job exceptionally well, earning nothing but glowing reviews and tearful gratitude.
Yet, beneath her comforting bedside manner, Barbara carried the weight of a tremendously difficult fate—a past very few people in the village knew anything about.
Thirty long years ago, fresh out of medical school and brimming with ambition, a young Barbara had secured a coveted job at a massive city maternity hospital. Life felt full of promise. Soon after, she married a charismatic man named Taylor. When their beautiful daughter, Mia, was born, Barbara felt an immense, overwhelming happiness that seemed entirely unbreakable.
At the time, Taylor was pouring all his energy into developing a serious business venture. It was an incredibly stressful, demanding period, but his relentless drive was paying off. He was succeeding wildly. The young family lived well, enjoying the comforts of sudden wealth, wanting for absolutely nothing.
But money, as the old adage goes, has a terrible habit of spoiling people.
Soon, the once caring and attentive husband changed completely, twisting into someone Barbara barely recognized. Taylor grew impossibly rude. He snapped at her over trivial things, and worse, he began raising his hand against her in sudden, unpredictable fits of rage. He would vanish for days, often not coming home at night, leaving Barbara alone to pace the floors with their infant daughter.
The final, shattering blow came on a crisp afternoon. Barbara was walking downtown when she saw him. Taylor was standing on a busy street corner, openly embracing a striking, sharply dressed blonde woman. They were laughing, wrapped in each other’s arms, kissing passionately right there on the sidewalk.
When Taylor pulled away and noticed his wife standing just a few feet away, frozen in shock, he didn’t even have the decency to look embarrassed. He merely offered a cruel, dismissive smirk.
“What are you looking at?” Taylor sneered, his voice dripping with venom. “Go home. Watch our daughter.”
Barbara couldn’t even muster the breath to scream or make a scene on the crowded street. Her entire body went stiff with a suffocating, paralyzing hurt as hot tears flooded her eyes and blurred the world around her.