After coming home later that night, beaten and haggard from the whole horrifying experience, Pip was immediately bombarded with questions by both his care takers. Not willing to recap his horrible ordeal, Pip lied to them and told them that he was mugged on the way home. As unfortunate as that would have been, it could never compare to what that man did to him in the ally way earlier that evening.
Given his unfortunate circumstances Joe, Pip's brother in law, had excused him from his daily chores the next day to rest. Grateful, Pip thanked him and ran up to his room where he sleep the rest of the night away.
He woke up early the next day, as he did every morning to help around the house. His back was still sore from last nights hardship. Pip's limbs felt stiff as he laid there in bed. Never had he ever been so grateful in his whole life for a few hours extra for sleep. The only down side to his relaxation is that it gave him time to think about his whole situation. His worried thought at some point drifted to the sack of money.
He had purposely hid it from both his sister and Joe. Not wanting to raise anymore questions, Pip kept it hidden deep in his coat pocket. He now found himself wondering what he will do with it.
Suddenly, Pip heard the front door open from down stairs, then the sound of movement from below. 'It must be Mrs. Joe.' He thought. Joe was usually in town or out working at this time of day. He relaxed back into his thin, raggedy mattress. Trying to make the most of the calm time he had, Pip was sure that his sister will soon be up here, squawking that he should be up and working and not relaxing in bed.
She had no remorse for him. She was always a heartless woman when it came to Pip. Pip felt as though she resented his very existence. 'She hates me,' He thought bitterly. 'Always criticizing, calling me stupid and lazy. Slapping me when ever I make the tiniest of mistakes.' He had to bite his lip to stop himself from frowning disgustedly. He's always detested the way his sister treated him.
'But she would never act that way in front of Joe or some one else.' No, Mrs. Joe acted so loving and innocent in front of other people. She was always concerned about how she looked in public and what people thought of her and her family. So she usually waited until she had Pip all alone with her to scream and punish him.
Pip stiffened at the sound of a voice that didn't belong to his sister. It was a man's voice, he was sure. Pip struggled to hear the muffled whispers of his sister and this mysterious stranger from down stairs. He heard heavy footsteps coming up the stairs then coming towards his bedroom door. His breath hitched. Loud coughing came from right outside his door.
"Silence your coughing!" Mrs. Joe hissed from the hallway. "He might be awake."
'Who is she speaking to?' Pip wondered. He laid there and waited, hoping that they would pass by his door and leave him be. He did not know who was on the other side but he was sure he didn't want to find out. A cold not tied in Pip's stomach as he waited for something to happen. 'Leave.' He silently begged. The not in his stomach tightened from the suspense.'Go away and leave me alone!'
The door swung open and the two slowly and quietly walked in. Pip heard the swishing of Mrs. Joe's long skirts against the floor. He struggled to make his breath slow and even, trying to mimic slumber in hopes that the two will leave. "Good, he's still asleep." Said Pip's sister. Her shrill voice was hushed and whispered. A choking sound was heard. It took Pip a moment to realize it was the man trying not to cough.
'What is happening?' Pip thoughts were panicked. 'Why has she brought this man into my room while I sleep?'
"Are you sure about this?" A man's raspy, hoarse voice asked cautiously. His voice was equally hushed as Mrs. Joe's. "I mean, is he of good working condition?"
'Working condition?' Pip wondered. He had to refrain from making a puzzled facial expression. He tried to maintain a calm, peaceful look as he listened in on there conversation. Somehow he knew it was important that they think he's sleeping.
"But of course I'm certain!" She snapped at the man. Pip could almost feel the vain anger growing in her voice. It almost made him flinch. 'Stay calm,' He told himself. 'Don't move, don't move...' But he could not calm his thoughts of his worry. What was his sister planning? "Don't worry." She added. Pip could hear a bit of pleasure in her tone. "Even this little brat can handle a few household chores."
"Yes, his hard work outside does seem to show." The man observed. Pip spent most of his time working outside with Joe doing manual labor. He always found himself to be on the thin side, though he supposed all that hard work did do something for his muscle build. He wondered why this strange man would be interested in such a thing though. His mind buzzed on all these questions at once.
"I suppose he would be right to care for me and my children." The man affirmed, sounding satisfied. Mrs. Joe grunted in agreement. Cold beats of sweat dabbed Pip's forehead.'What are they talking about?'
"So we're agreed then?" Mrs. Joe asked impatiently. With a laugh and a shifted cough, Pip heard the clink of coins being exchanged from one hand to another. A few more whispers were shared between the two before the 'sleeping' boy heard the sound of Heavy foot steps retreating towards the door.
"Alright ma'am, I'll be back tonight to pick him up. That should give you enough time to arrange everything." Pip heard his sister follow him out the door. Her tiny footsteps were light taps compared to this man's heavy ones. "You should come at mid night." She suggested to the strange man.
"Very well, I'll send my son to collect him then." Pip's bedroom door shut, muffling the rest of their conversation. But he didn't need to hear anymore, Pip knew exactly what was going on. He remained motionless in his bed with his eyes squeezed shut. His heart was pounding so hard in his ribcage he feared it would beat straight through his chest.
He waited to hear the front door slam shut down stairs. Once it did, he bolted up right in bed. Pip looked around his room for a possible way out. He needed to run, get far away from here. His own sister, his only living blood relative, sold him! She sold him to complete strangers with no remorse. He knew that she never really liked him but he never would have guessed that she would be so heartless as to sell him!
Pip threw back his thin blanket and scrambled out of bed. 'Have to get out,' He told himself. 'Have to get out, now!' Mrs. Joe was probably still down stares so he couldn't run out the front door. He would have to escape through the window. Since his bedroom was on the second floor, he would have to climb down the side of the house.
The blond boy slowly, as quietly as he could, crept over to his bedroom window. The hard wood floor felt cold against his bare feet. He carefully parted the dark curtains to peek outside. In the distance, Pip caught a glimpse of a black, horse powered buggy speeding down the dusty road. 'Go! go now!' A panicked voice inside Pip's head screamed at him. Quickly darting around his small room, he grabbed his long cloak.
That's when he realized he only wore his nightgown.
'I don't have time for this!' He thought.'If Mrs. Joe catches me I'm finished!' His heart was beating hard while he pulled on his cloak and squared toed shoes. As he did this, something clattered to the floor. When Pip looked over he saw a small bag on the floor. He felt his heart drop. He had almost forgotten about the money...And what had happened to him.
He shook his head, clomps of blond hair whipping at his face. He ordered himself to stop acting like this. This was no time for him to dwell on last night, no time to fall apart. Pip now new what he was going to do with all that money. He was going to use it to start a new life for himself else where. It was clear that he was not welcome here. Grabbing the bag off the floor and slipping it into his pocket, Pip headed towards the window.
Just in time too. He heard his sisters foot steps coming up the stairs. "Pip!" She called. "What are you doing up?" Quickly, without answering, Pip opened the window. As fast as he could, he climed out onto the sill and down the side of the house. Once on the ground he ran. He ran with all the strength he possessed. He headed for the woods surrounding his village.
"Don't stop, keep going." Pip told himself. Stumbling with weariness, he forced himself to move on. He had been running for what seemed like hours. Sweat rolled down his face, stinging his eyes. This only made it harder for him to see through the thick wood. His long cloak kept snagging on bushes, slowing him down.
It would have been easier to travel on the dirt road dug into the forest. It also would have been faster. But it was too dangerous. Anyone could see him running down that road. Even Mrs. Joe. No doubt she was looking for him. If she didn't have a slave to hand over then she couldn't keep the money. Whoever that man was would surly be furious with her if his new slave turned up missing.
An image of what Mrs. Joe's face would look like when she found out Pip had escaped flashed through his mind. She looked furious. Anger sparking in her cold, black eyes and her lips twisting in disgust. A chill ran up Pip's spine. She has given him that look countless times before and he flinched every time she made that face. It always meant that a beating was coming next.
She hates me, Pip realized. He always knew she disliked him, and he knew that she resented opening up her home to Pip. But he never thought that she hated him and wouldn't mind selling him. After all, they were both siblings. Born from the same womb. But she still sold him.
Pip's thoughts were cut off by a quiet snap. It sounded like a twig under someones foot. Pip stopped and listened. There was a faint rustling sound. 'What was that?' It could have been just the wind blowing through the trees, or perhaps a small animal skippering by. Pip suddenly felt cold. His thin, sweaty clothes not bringing him much warmth. He rubbed his arms, trying to get a little bit warm. Then he continued walking through the woods.
Snap!
There it was again. Pip now worried if someone had followed him. He turned to peer into the shadows behind him. All he saw were tall trees and thick bushes. Nothing. 'Your imagination is getting the best of you,' Pip scolded himself. He turned back around to begin walking again, but he ran into a thick chest. Pip looked up at the man he ran into and let out a loud yelp of surprise.
From within the dark shadows caused by his wide rimmed hat, the man's eyes widened and his thick eyebrows shot up."Excuse me," He said. "Are you alright? Are you lost?" The man, who was about Pip's age, asked him. But before he could answer, the young man reached out and grabbed him by the shoulders, pulling Pip closer so he could inspect him. Pip began to panic.
'What If he knows who I am?' He thought. 'What if he takes me back to my sisters?Then there will be no hope!' Pip's world turned to darkness as the young man wrapped him in his own, thick black cloak. Pip could barley breathe. "Please," He gasped, trying to tear the cloak off him."I can't breathe. Please let me go,sir." Pip felt the boy begin to walk, his strong arm around Pip's shoulder made him follow.
Pip had managed to shove the cloak off his face. He looked up at the taller man. "I'm sorry If I startled you," He said, returning Pip's stare. Though he smiled at the blond, showing sharp canines. Pip's eyes widened at the sight of them. They were pointed, like a vampires and for some reason, they unsettled Pip. The man paused before saying, "I need to get you inside. It's about to rain soon."
Pip was so consumed with trying to get away from his sister that he didn't even realize it was going to rain soon. Looking overhead, between the thick branches, Pip could see dark clouds forming in the sky. He would definitely need to find shelter soon.
"I'd best get you to shelter," He said, smiling warmly at Pip. Pip opened his mouth to answer, but no words came out. So much had happened in the past day and a half. He couldn't take it all in. "You look...very worn out." The man continued.
" 'Worn out'..." Pip repeated to himself as his sore feet moved beneath him. He let himself be guided by this stranger. He was to tired at the moment to care where he took him. As long as it was warm and kept him out of the rain. Worn out was a good description of how Pip was feeling right now. He was so tired. What happened in the ally way last night seemed to have happened weeks ago. But it wasn't even that many hours ago, it was only noon.
Pip tiredly glanced up at him and found the man staring down at him. From behind the dark shadows of his hat, his eyes were warm and friendly. Pip liked the way his long, dark hair fell over his forehead and almost covered his eyes. The man's grip tightened on Pip's shoulder. "We're almost there."
Smiling faintly, Pip glanced around. Then he gasped.'No,' He thought. 'He can't have brought me here!' He had led him up a hill. When they reached the top, they stared out into the open valley. In the valley was a beautiful mansion with tall iron gates. Dark colored, thorny roses climbed up the black bars of the gates.
"Oh no!" Pip exclaimed. The man stopped and looked down at Pip. He was about to ask what was the matter but Pip's shrill cry cut him off. "This...This is Black Rose Manor!" He cried, visibly trembling."This is the home of the Thorn family!"
CLIFF HANGER! Who is this mysterious man? Who are the Thorns and why is Pip so afraid of them? Find out in the next chapter of Reluctant Whore!
Ok I know it's been awhile since I stared this fic and I'm sorry. But you will all be happy to know that I have offically desided on the whole plot, start to finish and I will be working on his fic all of spring break. Why? Cuz I'm a loser thats why! Anyway, thank you to all the kind people that reviewed, it means so much that you care! Love you!
I'll get the next chapter out as soon as possible. You guys deserve it!
R&R plz? :3