The Mafia's Precious Nurse

Childbirth

Zeynep

I placed my hand on my belly and felt a deep affection. The birth was near. It had been nine months since I missed my period. My neighbor mentioned it could last up to 42 weeks. I had calculated from my last menstrual period, and my days had come. Some children come within ten days, while others wait. At least I knew this information. She mentioned that the baby's gender was important. Since I had never been to the hospital, I didn't know any of it. All I knew was that I had a child in my belly whom I would love more than life itself.

I was feeling increasingly heavy and easily exhausted. Working under this heat was becoming even more burdensome. I looked at the crate in my hand. We had been shaking apricots and placing them in sulfur since dawn. It was noon, and I could no longer stand up.

As I wondered why I couldn't ignore the pain in my back that I had been neglecting for months, I took another deep breath. When the bucket I was holding fell to the ground, I cast an embarrassed glance at the faces looking at me. My mother-in-law was approaching me.

"What will we tell the sergeant if he comes, you blind fool?"

"Mother, I'm in so much pain," I said.

I had reached an unbearable point. The intervals of the pain had become very frequent. When it came, it lasted longer. My legs locked, and I collapsed onto my knees.

"Shameless girl, aren't you embarrassed to raise your voice among all these men? Even in this state, you're still seeking attention."

I didn't even realize I had raised my voice. I held my belly with my hand.

"Ahhh!"

"Hush, you insolent girl," she said, coming up to me and pinching my arm.

I made a fist with my hand and put it to my mouth. I didn't want to scream, but it felt as if a very intense pain was locking my entire body. I was biting my hand to avoid crying and screaming.

Our neighbor, Aunt Ayşe, came over to us.

"Dear, has your labor started?"

"She's fine. She'll get back to work now."

"Can't you see the girl's condition? The birth has started."

"We all gave birth in a corner of the field. Then we cut our own cords and returned to work. What makes this silly girl any different from us?"

"What a cruel woman you are. Can't you see the girl's condition? What era are we in?"

"Don't interfere in this," said my mother-in-law.

She was a very grumpy woman. In fact, no one would mess with her. Still, I looked at Aunt Ayşe with gratitude.

I felt embarrassed as a warm liquid ran down my legs. Had I wet myself? Moreover, I was starting to feel dizzy. The sun felt like it was scorching me from within.

I wanted to place my hand on my belly. I tried to hold myself together, but my hand got wet too. When I looked down, my skirt was soaked in blood.

"Mother!" I screamed out again.

"Shut up, you shameless girl!"

Their faces turned pale when they saw me.

"Dear, let's get you to the hospital right away," said Aunt Ayşe.

"Hospital? Just let her give birth in the corner. She can't work today anyway. Her daily wage is cut."

"Have some fear of God, woman. Look at the state she's in. What are you saying?"

The foreman came over to us. He started yelling at my mother-in-law too.

"I told you not to bring her here. What will we say to the overseer now?"

As I was struggling, a commotion broke out. A car had stopped there, watching us. The overseer had arrived too. Even though they said to take me to the hospital, my mother-in-law didn't allow it. The overseer was a good man. He took us in his car and brought us home. The middle-aged, bald man with a mustache looked at me with pity. I felt deeply embarrassed. I was still biting my hand to avoid screaming. The pain was increasing and wouldn't stop.

Aunt Ayşe had come along too. I was immensely grateful to her for not leaving me alone. I couldn't walk home. Still, with Aunt Ayşe's help, I got inside.

"Get some hot water and clean cloths," Aunt Ayşe instructed.

"I can't be bothered. Let her give birth in the corner," my mother-in-law said with malice.

"What's all this noise?"

Feyyaz barged in wearing just an undershirt. The single-story adobe house only had two rooms: a living room and a bedroom.

"Your wife has embarrassed us. They sent her home."

"What did you do, damn it?"

"The woman is giving birth," said Aunt Ayşe.

"Fine, let her give birth then. Mother, prepare me a breakfast so I can hold my son after she's done."

"Okay, my son," said my mother-in-law and went to the kitchen. Feyyaz had also come inside.

"Don't make too much noise," he said, closing the door. Tears from my eyes were soaking my hand.

"Oh, my poor girl. Just hold on a little longer." Aunt Ayşe stroked my hair and took off my clothes.

The cushion I was sitting on was soaked in blood. My mother-in-law would make me clean it, but it didn't matter. All I wanted was for this pain to end and to hold my child in my arms. I hoped to hold a son in my arms. If it were a girl, I didn't even want to think about what they would do.

I was getting sleepy, but the pains wouldn't allow it. I was constantly having contractions. Aunt Ayşe had shown me how to push. My mother-in-law walked past me, taking breakfast to her son. I cried even more. If I had a mother, would she worry about me? I always thought she didn't love us because she left us by dying. Oh, dear mother, what suffering you endured to bring us into this world. How can I ever repay you?

"Hang in there a bit longer, my girl. It's almost over."

It felt like I was constantly dying, but I didn't. I continued to push as she said. When my head hit the cushion, I heard someone say it was done.

"Has my grandchild arrived?" said my mother-in-law. She had come into the room. I couldn't lift my head. The only thing I remembered was Feyyaz hitting my belly and Aunt Ayşe pulling something else out.

"Useless, you couldn't even give birth properly."

Aunt Ayşe held back my mother-in-law as she spat on my face. I longed to hear a baby's cry, but it never came. I couldn't open my eyes.

"Don't worry, son, it's just a girl," said my mother-in-law.

I simply said, "My daughter."

"She needs to get to the hospital. She's losing a lot of blood."

"Let her die here. Who's going to bother with an incompetent?"

I couldn't hold on any longer and let myself slip into darkness, ignoring the pain. My body ached, but sleep seemed sweeter. I had a daughter—the one I wanted most, yet feared the most. My precious daughter...

.

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Yusuf Ali

I had a lot of work. Routes for weapons to be sent to the Middle East had to be determined, and since it was apricot season, the shipment activity had also started, but I was dealing with this woman.

As if it wasn't enough that she got pregnant in my bed, she wasn't even nursing the child. It was just born yesterday. My brother kept complaining. We were arguing in the library.

"Say something to this woman. The baby will get jaundice. She needs to breastfeed."

"Should I put a gun to her head to make her do it? Just talk. What do I know about breastfeeding?"

"But you know how to get her pregnant."

"Sibell, stay out of my business."

The door was open. She had already barged in. No one else could do that. A coughing sound came.

"Sir, I heard your voice."

"Come in, Hikmet, take this out too."

"Broooo!"

Hikmet was the steward dealing with the outside affairs. There was also a steward woman who only dealt with household chores. She was his wife. They worked together nicely.

"Sir, I also asked my wife, and if you permit, there's another option."

"I won't give formula to my niece; it's very unhealthy."

"No, sir. We could hire a wet nurse," she suggested.

"That makes sense, but the woman would have to come here, and her child would come too. The house would become even more chaotic."

"I told Sibel to be quiet."

"You're right, sir. Today, a woman in the garden fainted and gave birth. I heard that her baby died, but she still has milk. So I'm thinking, since there's no baby, but the woman has milk, should we hire her? That way, even if the lady doesn't nurse, the baby will still be fed."

It was a very good idea. This way, Beril's nagging and this lunatic's chatter would stop. I wouldn't be caught in the middle of them either.

"Is the woman alright? Why did the baby die?"

"I told her to go ask the woman. She was glaring at me."

"Go fetch the woman immediately. Let her nurse the baby."

"Certainly, sir." The steward left the room.

"This matter is settled. Now, go to your room."

"Aren't you going to see your daughter, brother?"

"Sibel, stop bothering me and go to your room."

"Alright," she said, leaving the room. She knew I was getting angry.

I leaned back. I had work to attend to. I couldn't be bothered with these women's nonsense. The milk issue was resolved, and it made sense to me. If the baby relied on that woman, I could even dismiss Beril. Her presence here was annoying me. No one had ever deceived me until now, but that woman had. I couldn't stand it.

I should inquire more about this wet nurse with the steward. I made a mental note of it. Now, I needed to focus on the arms trade issues at hand. I had worked hard to become the biggest in this world and was determined to maintain it. If a weapon was to be moved in the Middle East, it had to go through us.

The other file contained matters from Georgia. The company we established to launder it wasn't attracting attention. After all, my father was the largest landowner in Malatya, and there were thousands of apricot trees right outside the door.

I rang the bell and leaned back contentedly. We resolved the milk issue, and everything was on track. Let's have a coffee and enjoy ourselves...