Price of a Bounty - By S. L. Wallace Page 0,38

asked her if she was driven by hatred. She’d said no, she said she was making the world a better place. Did she really believe that?

I didn’t hate anyone. I figured everyone just tried to do their best with what they’d been given. I tried my best to fit in, to find my place and a respectable job. Now, with more life experience, I wondered if there was such a thing as a respectable job for a woman, or were we all wearing masks?

At least I still believed there were some men around who knew how to treat women with dignity and respect. The challenge was to find one who wasn’t already taken and who would accept a woman with little money and no status.

-Ashton-

The Resistance

The mower in front of me caught on some weeds. Today, it was not working like a well-oiled machine. I bent down to unclog the blades. When I looked up, I saw something disturbing, though it came as no surprise. I’d been informed about Mr. Beckett’s hobby. It was why I was here today.

I was a Raider with the Resistance, and the Beckett estate had been chosen as our next financial endeavor. The previous nanny had approached a member of the Resistance for help. She needed a place to stay and would need neonatal health care and money to support the baby that Lance Beckett refused to admit was his. She’d been called a whore and worse before she was turned out. It was fitting that Lance Beckett would indeed be paying for the care of his youngest child.

I felt sick to my stomach. It was the maid I’d met a few days ago. She’d been friendly but had shut down immediately when I’d inquired about her boss. Apparently, she was Lance Beckett’s next victim.

I decided to use this opportunity to my advantage. With Beckett’s attention elsewhere, I could remove some more items from the estate. I pushed the mower toward the garage, but then turned and left it next to the porch by the back door. No one was around. The chef had gone to the farmer’s market, the new nanny had left with Mrs. Beckett and the girls about an hour ago, and except for the butler who was likely taking a break, everyone else was accounted for.

I worked in the dining room today. First I took an antique bust from a marble pedestal in a cluttered corner. Then I removed a small Vermeer painting – from the way the lighting was depicted I had a good feeling that it was authentic. Last, I removed a wooden case from the buffet table. Inside was the family’s best silverware. It was all I could carry.

I exited out the back door and used my hip to push the mower toward the garage. It was time to leave. I’d return tomorrow to fix the mower, finish the backyard and continue my operations on the estate. I’d need to finish within the next day or so. Other priorities now required my attention.

***

The next day I began in the garage. I’d brought some of my own tools. First, I removed the blades from the mower. Then I cleaned and sharpened them, one at a time. I’d just replaced the last one when the maid found me.

“Hello,” she said with a shy smile.

I stood. “Good morning, April.” I couldn’t believe the outfit she was required to wear. It was degrading.

“What are you doing?”

“Sharpening the blades. They weren’t working properly yesterday.”

“Oh, is that why you didn’t finish the back lawn?” she asked.

“Yes.” I hesitated and wondered how to bring up such a difficult subject. “I noticed you.”

“You did?” She looked pleased, not what I had expected.

“Yes. He shouldn’t be treating you like that.”

“Oh.” She looked down, and her cheeks flushed. “That’s what you noticed.”

I gently touched her chin and brought her gaze up so it was level with mine. “Don’t be ashamed,” I said. “Be angry. Take control of your life. Fight back. Leave, if that’s what it takes. Then fight back.”

She shook her head and looked down again. “If I fight, I’ll lose, and there’s nowhere better for me to go. Unless…” She looked at me.

“Yes, I can help you.” I nodded. “I know of a job prospect, a few actually. One is really good. It would require some training and time on your part, but it would be well worth it. It would get you out of here and in control of your own life.”

“Training? What kind of