There was pain. Pain beyond what anyone had told her about; beyond what she had ever imagined. With each contraction, a loud cry was wrenched from her lips. Beside the bed, her husband clutched her hand and coached her gently as the doctor and nurses were busy at the foot of the bed.

“Come on, Maggie, one more push, you can do this,” his words were a mantra that she clung to. One more push. One more. One. More.

Then came the most beautiful sound in the world; the cry of her newborn child as it entered the world and the pain vanished. It was like it had never happened as she was captivated by the symphony of cries. Tears stung her eyes and she sagged back against the pillows in relief.

“Congratulations, it’s a boy.” The Doctor announced.

She watched as the doctor held up the baby to her line of sight. He was covered in fluids and goo, wailing to the high heavens and she had never seen anything so perfect. Then he was whisked off to get cleaned up and weighed. Charles kissed her forehead.

“We have a son.” His voice was filled with pride.

“What should we name him?”

“Jarod,” her husband declared with a nod, “We should name him Jarod.”

“Jarod,” she agreed with a smile, “perfect.”

The nurse appeared beside the bed, Jarod’s tiny body now swaddled in a blue blanket and a blue cap on his head. Margaret held out her arms and the nurse placed her son into her arms. The tears that had gathered in her eyes fell down her cheeks as she met the eyes of her baby. He was beautiful. A smattering of dark hair covered his head, his little eyes were open and alert. She ran her fingertip down his chubby little cheek and was rewarded with a soft coo.

“Hello, Jarod.” She murmured, “I’m your Mama.”

He blinked at her and she could have sworn he smiled. In that moment her life was forever changed as she looked down at her baby. There was nothing she wouldn’t do for him. She would move heaven and earth just to make him smile. This was a love beyond words; he was a part of her, she had carried him for nine months inside her womb. She had felt him kick, shift, and have the hiccups all from the inside.

Margaret kissed his forehead. “I love you, my darling son, I’ll always keep you safe.” She cuddled him to her chest and kissed his forehead again, “Always.”

**

3 Years Later

He was gone. Kidnapped. Stolen. No matter the word, it felt like her heart had been ripped from her chest. It was like she couldn’t breathe, like someone was stabbing her over and over again. This was beyond any physical pain. Physical pain could heal. This wouldn’t. This couldn’t. Someone had stolen her baby. She had promised to keep him safe. She had broken her promise.

“We’ll get him back, Maggie,” Charles vowed, “I’ll do whatever it takes.”

“ We’ll do whatever it takes.” She met his eyes, cold resolve overtaking the grief that had been housed there since he had been taken, “We’ll get our baby back.”