Xiomara glanced at the time on her watch and then back at the hammock. She had more than enough time to take a nap before Amelia came by to pick her up. Donut had woken her up way too early this morning. The kid was like a vampire, prowling the waters of her womb at night, only to sleep during the day. After rolling over to get comfortable, she'd lain awake listening to Omar breathe next to her.

Sometime during that episode she had smoothed out his thick eyebrows, loving the feel of the hairs gliding under her fingertips. Omar had really angular features, all chiseled bones and a prominent jaw. His lips were the softest thing about his face. So full and kissable. On any normal day, his deep set eyes were usually hard and steely, but last night something had changed in their depths. He had opened himself up to her and he was genuinely concern about her happiness. Crazy thing was, she wanted him to be happy too.

She had thought about a lot of things in the quiet of their sanctuary. About their future as a couple, and then as individuals. Willem had given her six months maternity leave, but she wasn't sure she wanted to go back to cleaning toilets and making beds. Everyone in the community where she grew up were either cleaners, garbage men, maintenance guys or strippers. So she'd never wanted more. Never thought she could be more. But hanging around people like Omar, Willem and Amelia lit a fire under her. They inspired her.

At the same time, doubt had crept in, foul and ugly. What if she just ended up having another baby and another? Until she was haggard and old with boobs to her feet. Or she'd go back to school, only to find out that she was too dumb to keep up with eighteen-year-old college kids who actually didn't give a damn about anything else except for parties and sex. Not like sex was a bad thing.

A noise from inside the house distracted her from her thoughts. It sounded like something had banged against a window in the kitchen. Maybe a bird? She went to investigate. Halfway down the hall she stopped and checked in on Esme. Her sister was sound asleep, soft snores coming from her mouth. She continued down the hall and found nothing weird or out of place.

On her way back to the patio, she saw the figure of a woman standing in the doorway. Her feet stalled. What the hell? The person turned around.

"Don't even think about running," Natalya said. Liquid eyes the color of brown paper bags swept over Xiomara, hesitating over her belly before moving on. "Do you know, this glass door right here for some reason never sets off the alarm? Omar doesn't know this, because he rarely uses it to get in. I used to sneak out through here at night and he would have no idea. Oh, how I miss those days."

"You're not welcomed here, Natalya." Xiomara kept her voice light, lazy even, as if Natalya's unwanted presence didn't bother her at all.

Natalya laughed, the sound shrill, jarring Xiomara out of her need for sleep. "She knows my name. How wonderful. I guess we can skip the introductions then and get straight to the point."

"And what point might that be? Omar's moved on. Get over it."

Oops. Maybe that wasn't the smartest thing to say to a clearly unstable person. Natalya's entire demeanor changed. Her eyes grew large and the slight tremor of her hands gave the impression of simmering madness. Today Natalya was dressed in large khaki pants paired with heavy boots. The glassy, malicious look in her eyes did nothing to soften her disheveled appearance.

"And that's the problem isn't it?" Natalya leaned against the doorway, her frail body barely capable of supporting her. "I told him that if I couldn't have him then no else would. But Omar being Omar, he never takes me seriously. Not when I told him that I wanted to have a baby, and certainly not when I told him I was going to slit my wrist if he broke up with me. Yet here you are–" She focused her heavy-lidded eyes on Xiomara's belly like a laser. "–bloated with his bastard baby. It isn't fair."

Xiomara snorted. No shit. Nothing in life was ever truly fair. Natalya's words actually stung, calling her baby a bastard. Something dark and protective twisted and came alive in her gut. Her fingers itched to slap the glossy look off of Natalya's face.

"Do you mind if I sit down?" Xiomara eyed the phone on table. She had to call Omar. He would know what to do. "I'm really tired, Natalya. I will listen to everything you have to say. Just let me sit down."

"Do I look stupid? I'm not letting you anywhere near that phone. He won't make it in time to save you. The same way he didn't care enough to save me. I thought he was in love with me, but he only loves himself. I wanted to have a baby to show him just how much I loved him, but he gave me a thousand and three excuses why he didn't want a child. So I took matters into my own hands. I stopped taking my pills. When he found out, he was furious. He didn't believe me when I said that the pills made me sick, although that was partly true."

Natalya twisted a lock of her stringy, matted hair. "I don't know what he told you, but he never wanted kids. He said they were cumbersome and clingy. The only reason he's fucking around with you is because it's the right thing to do. Omar always does the right thing. It's always been so black and white with him."

Xiomara surveyed the other woman. Natalya was scraggly and thin. Her joints and collarbone stood out starkly against her ashy skin. She wasn't sure how dangerous Natalya was. Besides all the dark talk, she didn't seem to have a weapon with her. Xiomara could charge her and take her down. She was bigger and fitter, but she had to be certain Natalya didn't have a weapon. She didn't want to risk Donut gettting hurt. She'd rather die before she let anything happen to him.

"You're wrong about Omar," Xiomara said. "I know him."

"Of course, you would defend him. I would have done the same thing until the day he left me to bleed out on his kitchen floor."

"After you voluntarily slit your own wrist. You wanted to die, right? I mean, why else would anyone do something like that. And you cheated on him in his own house. I don't know why you're here, but if it's pity you're looking for, I don't have any for you."

Natalya leaned away from the doorframe and took two steps toward Xiomara. "It's only a matter of time before you cheat on him too. Don't get me wrong, Omar can get really creative in bed. Best lover I've had to be honest. My only problem was his inability to think outside of the box. I wanted to have drunk and high sex, but he would have none of it. Sober sex is so overrated."

"Then why are you still chasing after him when it's obvious that you're not suited for each other. He can't and will never give you what you want. That's not who he is."

"Oh, he can. He chooses not too. Our relationship would have been perfect if he wasn't so uptight all the time. When was the last time he did something fun with you? I'm talking adrenaline pumping fun, life risking fun. I bet the answer is zero."

"Omar would never do anything that would put our baby in danger. Besides, I don't need life risking fun to be happy."

"That's what you tell yourself, but that's going to change today." Natalya took another step and nudged her shoulders, pushing her farther down the hall. "Let's go."

"Where are you taking me?" Xiomara fisted her hands at her sides, ready to put up a fight. And fight she would. Like a lioness protecting her cub.

"Move it," Natalya said menacingly.

"I'm not going anywhere with you. You tried to kill me once already."

"If I wanted to kill you yesterday you would have been dead. Maybe if you were walking alone I might have really considered it, but your friend saved your life. I'm not very fond of collateral damage. And, I can see that Omar cares about you and I don't want him to know that I took you away from him. He would never want me back then, now would he? Now move."

Xiomara stiffened, her muscles locking down. Her heartbeat catapulted in her chest, her nails biting into the palms of her hand. Her mind race. She had to protect her baby. She couldn't let Natalya take her outside of the house. Everything about that woman screamed unstable. They would have a better chance here than wherever she wanted to take them.

"What part of move it don't you understand?" Natalya struck her hard in the stomach with her elbow, her nose flaring with contempt.

Pain blossomed, dull and intense. Xiomara stumbled into the wall. A dry cough sounded from her throat. Her vision blurred as tears sprang up in her eyes. Natalya was no weakling. Despite the fact that she looked like one of the starving dogs from Xiomara's neighborhood, the blunt force of her elbow was comparable to being struck down by a rhino.

She drew in a large breath, hoping to shove the pain down so she could focus on protecting her baby. No panicking. Just focus, think and breathe. That's what Omar would do. He would tell her to stay strong. For them. For Donut. Why, oh why had she kept seeing Natalya in that cafe a secret? She should have told him, should have trusted him to know what to do, to protect her.

Hands gripped her around the neck and banged her head against the wall. "Don't fuck with me you little slut. Do as I say. I'm sure you listen to him when he tells you to obey, don't you? Like you did this morning when he made you sit on his lap like a good little girl. Disgusting. The sight of you and him together sickens me."

The hands wrapped so tightly around her throat threatened to cut off all air. Adrenaline fired through her body, giving her strength. Xiomara lifted her hand and stabbed her fingers in Natalya's eyes. Natalya yowled like a wild animal and fell back.

Xiomara coughed and ran outside to the patio. She was reaching for the phone when Natalya slammed into her, knocking her flat out across a chair. The table and everything on it scattered across the floor, the clatter of dishes and utensils loud inside the glass encasement.

Something sharp pierced her thigh and she looked down to see that a fork had punctured her flesh. Blood oozed slowly out of the wound. She snatched the fork out, throwing it away from her, not caring about the pain. She was in survival mode. She scooted away just in time to avoid Natalya stepping on her hand. Getting up was harder than she ever imagined. She was heavy, her belly weighing her down.

Natalya kicked her in the abdomen with her heavy boots. "You will not have this baby. It's the only reason he's with you. With the baby gone, you'll be useless to him. Just another whore."

Xiomara heard a sharp intake of breath and looked up toward the hallway. "Esme," she croaked, "get away from here. Go! Please."

Natalya laughed and focused her wicked eyes on Esmeralda. "Wow. You're pretty, but so thin. What are you to Omar? Another one of his orphans? I don't know what he's thinking harboring all these stray hussies."

"Get away from my sister," Esmeralda said.

"Make me, little one. Do not think for a moment I won't hesitate to hurt you. I could snap you in half like a twig." Natalya kicked in front of her, but Xiomara had managed to crawl her belly out of Natalya's kicking range.

The moment Natalya had one foot suspended in the air, Xiomara pushed the leg that was still grounded to the floor with all her strength. She didn't wait to see what happened to Natalya. She heard a disgruntled yelp, but was up on her feet and running. As she navigated the chaos of shattered plates and leftover pancakes on the patio's floor she felt a gush of liquid trickle down her thighs.

She stumbled. Shocked. Oh no. She closed her eyes and prayed it wasn't blood, but no matter what it was, she had to keep moving. The sooner they got out of here, the sooner they could find help. She grabbed Esme's hand and they sprinted down the hallway, took a right and busted through the backdoor and into the small garden Omar had started on Filo's insistence.

The alarm sounded in the condo, loud and innocuous. It would be a long time before security responded in person. Xiomara tightened her hold on Esmeralda and ducked behind a row of hibiscus plants.

"Xio, what's going on? Who's that woman?" Esmeralda's voice was small and faint as she crouched down next to Xiomara in the fertile soil.

"Her name is Natalya. She's a little unstable. She wants to hurt me because Omar and I are in love." Xiomara peered through branches and leaves when the sound of the alarm going off abruptly stopped.

"I don't understand. Is she in love with him too?"

Xiomara touched the wet spot on her leggings and brought it up to her nose. It wasn't blood. She breathed a sigh of relief, although it was still rather early for Donut to get here. Her due date was still six weeks away. "You can say so."

The backdoor slammed and Xiomara immediately placed a finger over Esmeralda's mouth. Her sister's eyes widened in alarm, but she nodded her understanding. Xiomara was so proud of her in that moment. She had remained calm throughout the entire madness so far, and she'd even demanded Natalya to get away from her sister. She was a little Khaleesi in the making.

Xiomara slowly lowered her finger and peeped through the plants again. Natalya's dirty boots were in the doorway. Her heart palpitated in her chest and her mouth went dry. She tasted fear on her tongue. She knew Natalya would be even more dangerous now.

Natalya stepped out into the garden and Xiomara's heart lodged in her throat. She looked around and found a heavy rock covered with dirt. She picked it up. Waiting. The sun was hot now, blazing down on them in a continuous wave of heat. She was highly uncomfortable kneeling in the dirt with amniotic fluid steadily seeping down her thighs. Donut hadn't moved in a long time and she was really worried about him. Just then something twisted in her lower tummy, the muscles of her womb contracting painfully.

Her breath caught in her lungs and she let out a whispery moan. That was all it took for Natalya to turn her shrewd eyes in their direction. Xiomara gripped the rock and tried to breathe over the pain. Next to her Esmeralda also picked up a rock.

"Don't let me find you, bitch," Natalya said. Her hand came down and the glare of what looked like a butcher knife nearly blinded Xiomara. "He's mine and I won't let you have him. We make the perfect team. He needs someone smart like me, not some little street rat. I had big plans for his company. I knew a way that would have made us million of dollars. We would be unstoppable, the number one power couple. I'm an asset to him and he knows it. It never hurts to have a girlfriend who knows a thing or two about the law. I've already set up my defense for when I kill you."

Xiomara glanced at Esmeralda and shook her head, reminding her to be quiet. Another wave of contractions pulled up and expanded over her womb, this one a lot more agonizing than the last. It lasted longer and caused a blanket of sweat to pepper across her forehead and chest area. She squeezed her eyes shut and bit down on her lip.

Esmeralda screamed, and ear piercing shout that caused all the hair on Xiomara's body to rise with dread. She opened her eyes and saw that Natalya had Esmeralda up against her body in a strong hold, her knife cutting into the delicate skin of the girl's neck. Esmeralda whimpered but didn't struggle.

"Drop the rock or she dies."

The rock fell limply from Xiomara's grasp. She stood up on her two feet to face Natalya. "Your problem is with me. Not her. She's just a child and has nothing to do with this."

"Do as I say and I might let her live."

"No, you promise me that you will not harm her."

Esmeralda wiggled and lifted her hand to the arm wrapped so tightly around her shoulder. "Xio, no. She's going to kill us both no matter what she says."

"It's okay, baby," Xiomara soothed. "I won't let anything happen to you."

"You can't promise her that," Natalya sneered. "I'm the one holding a knife to her throat."

"Just tell me what you want me to do."

"I told you what you had to do a long time ago, but you didn't listen to me, did you now?" Natalya pushed the knife deeper into Esmeralda's neck and Xiomara saw her wince. A small droplet of blood dribbled down from the knife and Xiomara had to hold herself back as rage boiled hotly in her veins.

"You want me to leave Omar alone. Is that it? I can do that. I can walk away. I was only using him anyway." She kept her voice cold, like she really didn't give a damn about Omar. "We needed a place to stay and he offered."

Natalya snickered, unimpressed. "And I'm supposed to believe that? Where will you go if I let you walk away?"

"Back home to my family until I find someone else who will take us in."

"No man will want you and your bastard baby. And I know Omar, he won't stop looking for you. He's good at finding people. You would have to disappear forever, and killing you is the only foolproof way to assure that. Or maybe not. I just got a better idea, because to be honest, I really don't want to get my hands dirty."

Xiomara held her breath, waiting to hear Natalya's new brilliant idea. As long as it didn't involve her dying she would find a way to survive. A series of contractions surged up and rippled her over her belly, knocking the breath out of her lungs.

"What's wrong with you?" Natalya demanded.

"I'm in labor, you fool." Xiomara moaned and clenched her teeth.

"Oh, that's wonderful. I was wondering why your leggings were wet, but it's all good. This only makes my new plan that much more exciting. Come on now. We're going for a little walk. You like to walk don't you? I also heard that walking is good for the contractions." She smiled. "See, I'm not all evil."

Natalya led them down a winded path, down the cliff, until they were standing on sand with the ocean in the backdrop. "Look what I have here," she said. "A wooden canoe with no paddles. I know you're pregnant and all, but can you please untie it and get into the water?"

Xiomara fought with the knot tying the canoe to the rack it was attached to. Natalya prodded her on by slicing into Esmeralda's neck with her knife. Sweat poured into her eyes, but she didn't stop. She dragged the narrow canoe to the water's edge. Her back started to hurt and there was a relentless ache in her vaginal area.

"Good girl," Natalya said. "Now hop in, darling."

Xiomara struggled to get into the canoe, but eventually she managed. Her leggings were soaked with seawater and the pulsating pain in her lower back was back twofold now. Her stab wound reacted to the salt, stinging like needles. The waves were rough, and already the canoe was drifting into deeper waters.

Natalya poked Esmeralda in the ribs with the knife and told her to join her sister in the boat. Esmeralda sat down in front of Xiomara and her small shoulders trembled.

"We're going to be okay, Esme. We're both strong swimmers."

Natalya gave the canoe one final push and backed away. "Farewell my friends. It will be a long time before somebody finds you. By then you'll have a very nasty infection as a result of your water breaking, which I tell you, will be fatal both to you and your bastard baby. Or you'll die of dehydration. There's nothing out there for miles."

A single tear slipped down Xiomara's cheek and she was grateful that Esme wasn't looking at her. In a matter of minutes the canoe had wandered into the middle of the ocean, rocking against