The Five-Year Scam

When everyone finally left, I forced myself upright and limped back to the reeking stable that had been my “room” for five years. It was a filthy room where I had spent five long years sleeping beside horse manure.

I was still dizzy when footsteps approached. It was Melissa. She appeared in the doorway with a food box in her hand, then she set it down as if nothing had happened. “Here, leftovers from tonight’s banquet, eat it while it’s still warm.”

The memory of her laughing with Connor earlier twisted in my gut. I turned my face away, but she didn’t notice. She kept talking and explaining how Connor hadn’t meant to punish me, how I’d spoken out of turn, and how I should behave next time.

She frowned when she saw me stay silent. “Doesn’t suit your taste? I can ask the kitchen to make something else.” She started to turn, but I rasped, “No,” and pushed the box back toward her.

“A lowly servant like me doesn’t deserve food this fine… let alone the honor of my lady delivering it herself.” Her expression turned cold. “ You ungrateful wretch.” She kicked the box over, sending its contents spilling across my legs and chest. “Still acting stubborn? Looks like you’re not hungry after all. Get to the front courtyard and serve.”

I got dragged out before I could say a word. The servants changed my clothes, shoved me into the manor’s private quarters, and ordered me to haul bucket after bucket of boiling water for Melissa and Connor’s bath. Everyone had been instructed not to help.

“You filthy servant! Don’t you dare slack off!” Any delay earned a lash across my back.

By the time I finished, my shirt was soaked through with blood. I could hear Melissa and Connor teasing each other in the bath behind the curtain. Their laughter mixed with splashes and breathless moans. She had once made those same sounds with me. However, the memory made bile rise in my throat now.

After a long while, they finally remembered I existed. “We don’t need you anymore,” Melissa called lazily. “Go kneel outside.” I limped to the doorway and sank to my knees while the splashing inside grew louder.

It felt like forever.

My legs were nearly numb when Connor finally emerged with Melissa wrapped in silk at his side. He barely glanced at me. “Stay out here tonight and reflect on your mistakes. Keep kneeling.” And then they left me alone.

It took me a long time before I could stand again. I moved toward a corner of the courtyard to escape the wind, but as I passed the wall behind the bathhouse, a faint horn sounded somewhere beyond the estate caught me…

Something hopeful inside my chest sparked.

I crouched down and pressed my ear to the cold stone. The sound was soft but unmistakably real, it was proof that the outside world wasn’t far at all.

It was proof of the way out.