Iva slowly shook her head as she finished. “Anya, Anya, Anya, that was a foolish thing to do. Running from your troubles never solves anything, you must face them.”
Jessica gripped the handle of the hoe so tightly her knuckles turned white.
Must control rage, must not kill this idiot child! Count to thirty and breathe through nose.
“I’ll… try, Iva,” she said, grinding her jaw.
Iva tugged at her long brunette hair, lost in thought. “Ahhh, good. You keep working, I… I need to do something.”
Jessica’s brow wrinkled.
What on earth is she going on about? Oh, probably some silly childish nonsense.
“Yeah, sure,” she mumbled.
Iva made her way inside, and Jessica tried to look busy, yet do nothing, and also keep from further harming her poor ass. A short time later, Viktor and Iva came outside, and called all the girls over to them. Jessica was confused; they had a stack of papers with them, and Iva looked pained. Jessica wondered what was up with her.
“Girls, I have a little job for you: you’re to put these up all over town. Iva will be in charge. Anya, you’ll stay here and help in the kitchen, understood?”
Jessica swallowed hard. That sounded very definite. The giggling of the girls caught her attention, and she managed to scan the papers, as the girls passed them out. Her jaw dropped. Now she understood why Viktor had taken her picture. He had obviously used some sort of Photoshop program to create a sort of ‘Wanted’ poster of her, and now he was having the girls put them up all over town. The text was in Czech (naturally), but Viktor told her what it said: it identified who she was, where she lived, and said that if she was found wandering the village alone and without a note from Viktor or Misha, any adult should bring her home or call Misha or Viktor. This would effectively trap her in the home, unless she had permission or was with someone.
Oh, that ogre can be a truly cruel man. If it weren’t for how much I loathe him, I’d be offering him a job at Globe-Corp.
As Iva led the girls off on their errand of torment, Jessica noticed something: Iva was walking a bit stiffly, just like Jessica was now. She wondered what had happened to her while she was inside.
“Iva was spanked,” Viktor said simply.
“What the…? B-but how did you know…?”
“By the way you were looking at her.”
“Why, what did she do?”
“She came to me and confessed that she told you where the inn was, and so she felt guilty; she felt she contributed to you getting in trouble.”
“And you spanked her for
that
?” Jessica said, her anger building inside her, which was both foolhardy and dangerous. “How could you? She was totally innocent!”
“Actually, it was
her
wish to be punished, to
share
in
your
discipline. I agree with you, she was blameless, but she insisted that I spank her for it. Just you consider that, Anya; another girl was punished because of your actions. Maybe in the future you’ll think before you act. I also suspect that you’re exploiting the memory of your mother and father to gain sympathy. After your actions at the inn, I’m almost certain. I’ll be watching you very closely from now on, Anya, just you remember that. Now, inside and get to work.”
Jessica realized that she had greatly underestimated her opponents, and now her task was made all the more difficult. She would have to be more careful in the future.
“Yes, sir,” she said, and slowly plodded to the back door.
Jessica ground her teeth.
Damn it, why does that stupid girl have to keep sticking her nose in my business? And why does she have to be so damn nice and noble? She’s an idiot and a distraction. No, from now on, I’ve got to ignore her silly girlish antics. Iva is a child, a hindrance, nothing more.
As it was clear that Kelly was no longer in town, Jessica had to switch to plan B: getting to the train station, getting to Prague, and escaping this hellhole once and for all.
Jessica sadly trod inside, and was put to work peeling potatoes. She longed to sit down and work, as her arms were getting tired, but there was no way she could even try to do that. She winced and rubbed her stinging seat. It had finally cooled enough that she could at least rub a little.
“Anya, you want we get you pillow?” the head cook offered.
Jessica smiled at her. “Thanks, but no. I’m too… I can’t.”
The three sadly nodded their heads. Apparently, Viktor’s talent with various implements was well-known. As Jessica worked, her mind was also working, working out details and plans, and plots to try to escape or at least manipulate Viktor, Misha, and the others. The whole ‘Russian parents’ thing was pretty much dead, at least with the adults; they were on to her. But, she
could
use it in dealing with the girls, and she would.
Right now, she needed money for a train ticket and the schedule for the trains to Prague. Ideally, she’d slip away from the home and get to the station only minutes before the train left, thus insuring Mr. Monster couldn’t catch her. Jessica froze; something just came to her. Viktor had created those posters on a computer! If he had a computer, maybe it had Internet access. If that were the case, she could log into her email account and write home.
“Ah, can I go to the bathroom?” she said to the head cook.
She nodded. “Ya, my dear, go ahead,” she said with a grin.
Jessica headed up the stairs, wincing and groaning in pain with each step. Once upstairs, she bypassed the bathroom and made her way to Viktor’s room at the front, right next to hers. Jessica was a bit surprised; the room was not fancy at all, little more than an adult version of the girls’ rooms. But there was a nice big desk, and it
did
have a computer on it.
Jackpot!
She raced over to it and punched up the main screen.
No password needed, yes, victory.
Jessica scanned the icons on the screen, and her heart sank. They were in Czech. So much for that bright idea. Wait a minute, she should view the glass as half full. At least she now knew where a computer was. This was merely an impetus for her to learn Czech all the quicker. Since the system was Windows, and it had all the standard icons, surely she could find the email and access her online account.
A distant creak and groan from the floor caught her attention, and she zipped over to the door. Down the hall trouble was coming with a capital V. It was too late to run; he’d seen Jessica in his room.
Think fast, Jessica, think fast!
Viktor came down the rest of the way to stand before her. Again, he did
not
look happy.
“Anya, what are you doing in my room? Cook said you went to the bathroom.”
“I was going to go, but then… well, I wanted to talk to you,” she said, and lowered her head contritely. “It was very wrong of me to run away, and I feel
so
very bad about Iva being punished. I wanted to apologize to you, and her.”
Lifting her head, she tried to look remorseful without going overboard; it was clear that Viktor was an expert at seeing through fakery. After dealing with teenage girls for years, of course he was an authority.
“Very good, Anya, it makes me happy to see you accepting responsibility for your actions.”
“Thank you, sir. And I wanted to say, if you feel I need more, I’ll accept whatever punishment you see fit.”
This was a ploy, naturally. Jessica was counting on Viktor’s innate goodness and caring to
not
accept the offer. She’d seen so many of these do-gooders before, and she could read them like a book. They always looked upon such offers as being noble and admitting the person was wrong, and so they never took the person up on it. She was confident that this would win her back some major brownie points.
“That is very good of you, Anya. It takes a very strong and mature little girl to admit that she’s wrong, and be willing to take the consequences. But you’re far too sore to be spanked again, now. We’ll wait a few days, and then I’ll call you to my room, okay?”
Jessica’s jaw dropped. He was taking her up on it. She suddenly realized that she must have a very shocked and surprised look on her face. Closing her mouth, Jessica just sort of slowly nodded, not knowing what else to do.
“I, ahhh, yes, sir,” she finally got out. “I thank you, sir.”
Viktor turned his head slightly toward the windows that looked out over the front yard. “Ah, the girls are back. All right, Anya, you now have free time for the rest of the afternoon. You may do your homework and play until dinner.”
“Ahhh, yes, sir,” Jessica replied, slowly moving toward the front stairs.
He’d taken her up on it, Viktor was going to spank her again. Jessica had just made an appointment to get her ass pounded—again!
How had that…? Wait, now I get it. Of course, Viktor must have had girls make similar offers many times over the years, and he’d gotten to be an expert at reading them, probably through observing body language, facial expressions, and their eyes. Damn it! Once again, I’ve underestimated my opponent. Okay, new plan: from now on, treat Viktor as if he’s as smart as I am. While he might not have the knowledge I’ve got, living in this Podunk town, it’s clear his intellect is a match for mine.
By the time Jessica had reached the ground floor, the girls were streaming in the front door. She groaned and ground her teeth. Their chirpy optimism was enough to make her want to puke. Still, she had a part to play. So, she painted a smile on her face and greeted them warmly. She made a special point of apologizing to Iva, and she really laid it on thick. Iva, ever Miss Perfect-Perky, lapped up her fake sincerity like a thirsty man at a water fountain.
Then started the tutoring. Given Jessica’s intellect and the ease of the subjects, she was able to help the girls with their homework in record time, which was a relief to her, as sitting was impossible. They were all so grateful, they helped Iva with Jessica’s Czech lesson. They were all amazed at how quickly she picked up their language. Jessica grinned; she wasn’t just a genius, she also had quite the flair for languages—she’d mastered French and Spanish in under a year, and at the same time.
“Wow, Anya, you keep this up, and you’ll speak Czech better than me in no time,” Iva said with a smile.
“Oh, I don’t think I’ll ever be that good,” she replied, trying to sound humble.
Then it was time for fun, and they raced outside to play, Iva practically dragging Jessica by the hand the whole way. As they stepped out the front door, they were met by the looming figure of Misha; she had quite the questioning look to her.
“Girls, where are you going?”
“Ah, out to play, ma’am,” Iva said.
“We’re done with our studies,” Bela, one of the other girls, said.
“So soon?” Misha said.
“True, true,” Bela said, nodding. “It was all due to Anya, she was a big help.”
“Really?” Misha said, eying Jessica suspiciously.
Jessica forced a smile on her face, and looked up at her. “Ahhh, yes, ma’am. Just trying to help the girls.”
“Very good, Anya, keep up the good work. Go on, go have fun, girls!”
The girls raced outside. Well, most of them; Jessica was essentially dragged out. She couldn’t help herself, she rolled her eyes to see the girls at play: hopscotch, swings, tag, and several other games.
Sheesh, how can they enjoy such stupid activities?
But, Jessica realized that they were very simple girls, and she had to at least appear to participate. The problem was, what could she do that wouldn’t stretch her poor throbbing ass? She finally hit on something: the swings. While she couldn’t sit on one, she could use a maneuver she’d done as a kid—she could lie on the seat and swing. It wasn’t much, but it did help to pass the time. Iva got behind her and pushed, careful to push the seat and not Jessica’s seat. Lying there, swaying through the air, Jessica momentarily got lost in her own little world.
She actually had fun. Pulling her knees up toward her chest, she held herself in place, despite stretching the skin over her tender behind, and put out her arms in the classic airplane mode. The wind played across her face and fluttered her hair. The sights, the sounds, the scents all combined to soothe Jessica and let her calm down. Her stress levels dropped, and time just slipped along.
“Dinner time, girls,” a cook called out.
“Oh, I’m sorry, Anya,” Iva said. “I lost track of time, and the table needs to be set.”
“True, true,” Bela said, nodding. “But don’t worry, we’ll help you.”
Jessica snapped out of her euphoria, and chided herself.
Damn it, stop lowering your guard! Focus, your interest is in escape, nothing else, especially not ‘fun time’ with these brats. Now, get to it.
Climbing off the swing, she slowly trod toward the back door. The pain in her ass helping to restore her sanity. Starting tomorrow, she’d work out the details of her escape plan.
Once inside, Jessica went to work setting the table. As before, Iva helped her. However, this time Jessica had to put forth a bit more effort because Misha was there watching.
Jessica groaned as they all moved to take their seats. Her chair looked so very hard, and she knew there was no way she was going to be able to sit without major pain. Yet, she also knew better than to ask for mercy, like a pillow. Viktor and Misha were too cruel to allow that.
“Anya, you may pull your chair aside and stand to eat, if you like,” Viktor said.
Jessica couldn’t help it; she literally did a double take. Mr. Ogre was showing her mercy? Something else had to be at play. Still, she wasn’t about to pass on a chance at relief, albeit a minor bit. After all, standing for an entire meal would be tiring. That’s when it came to her.
Ah-ha, that’s what Viktor wants; me standing will be an abject reminder to all the other girls as to what they’ll get if they dared defy the Master of Pain.
“Thank you, sir,” she said, moving her chair.
She almost rolled her eyes. Even standing, her head wasn’t that far above the table. Once grace was over, they started eating, and Jessica was careful
not
to complain about the food. This time, she was ready: she used the delicious bread and butter to augment each mouthful of the powerful meal. After that, it was like before: clean up and get a treat. Tonight it was huge: freshly baked sugar cookies and an equally big glass of milk, and another Disney movie.