A Journey

Chapter One: Normal life shattered

It was morning, and the sun was starting to peek over the horizon when Ava woke to the shrill sound of the town church bells going off down the road. She sat up groggily after stretching her arms out. The seven dings and the position of the soft yellow sun allowed her to know the time in the morning she had woken.

Only after a few moments after the bells had woken her, Mrs. Hammil came up the stairs yelling, "Up, up you lazy girls, come on! We have work to get done today!" Ava groaned along with all the other girls of all different ages, but got up and put on her sheer slip under a simple blue dress. She went into the bathroom after waiting for her turn, which wasn't long this time, thankfully. She quickly brushed out her long wavy hair that came to about mid-back. Only after she wiped her face with a wet cloth, Ava follows the girls down the stairs to begin making a breakfast that consisted of very watered-down porridge. Ava lived in an orphanage at the end of town, and they had work to help pay for the meager things they had. Once breakfast was shoved down the girls' throats, did they begin the meticulous cleaning the Matron made them do every day. Today Ava and another girl that was around five years of age were tasked with cleaning all the windows. Now, Ava was not complaining about her life, as it could have been much worse. She could be forced to lie on her back for small pay and a lot of diseases as she was at the age of seventeen now. The town was tiny, and Ava was almost wholly an adult. She had a decent relationship with the Matron, though, and had not been pushed out since she helped with the other girls. The Matron would have had to hire another girl if it were not for Ava and another female called Isabella, but that did not distract or change the fact that she and Isabella would be eighteen soon. Their birthday was only a month apart, and due to laws, the Matron would have to hire them or kick them to the curb. Ava shook her head, trying not to think about the near future; her birthday was still half a year away, no use thinking about things that would not be changed any time soon.

After Ava finished with her set of the tops of the window, she let the five-year-old girl, Anna, if Ava could remember correctly, finish by herself the bottoms of the windows. There were a total of twenty girls living in the large house that was considered the orphanage. There were five bedrooms, one for the Matron and the rest for the girls. The house was a pale worn-out yellow on the outside and had two stories to it along with a basement that they just used as a storage area. As Ava wondered about she heard hushed voices coming from the back of the house, being curious, she headed over as quietly as she could to listen to what was so 'hush-hush.' "You are a month behind already, Rebecca!"A stern-sounding man could be heard talking to the Matron whose name was Rebecca to any other adult. Ava could just make out that he was tall and thin, with a dark mustache and dark hair that could be black or possibly dark brown. Ava wondered what he was speaking about; the Matron had just received money from the town government for bills.

"I know that, but what am I to do? There are many girls in the house, and I cannot keep up with the water bill and food, let alone the electric, Mr. Reginald." The Matron exclaimed with a soft, almost shy voice. Ava had always thought her to be very outspoken and fierce, it was almost surreal to hear her speak this way, but maybe that was only with women. "This is what happens when you keep girls after the age of fourteen! You should have sent them to the workhouses or kicked them out!"The man named Mr. Reginald spoke with no less harshness. Ava went pale in horror and hoped that the Matron would not do as he said as she, along with Isabella, would be the first to go, being the eldest. "How could you even suggest such a thing, all these girls are too innocent!"The Matron exclaimed with as much horror in her voice as Ava felt. The man just hummed in disapproval and tilted his head, seemingly in thought.

"I have a compromise for you then. You know the town is small, and so are surrounding towns?"The Matron nodded her head. Still, Mr. Reginald continued, "Well, there is this company of sorts, takes girls from low-income families and shows them off to eligible bachelors who have problems finding a wife on there own. They are all checked to make sure they are decent men, I assure," Mr. Reginald said as the Matrons eye widened, and she almost spoke up. That has seemed to satisfy the Matron as she allowed him to continue without interruption. "They give the parents 200 pounds for each marriage contact. I know you love your girls, Rebecca, but I will not tolerate any more late payments. I will give you until the end of the week to show me you have either the money or agree with this plan. I will help, of course, if you choose the second option...Either way, I will have my money," He said almost menacingly and walked off going to the front of the house by using the side pathway. The Matron let out a shaky breath as she sat down on the back steps. Ava, as soon as she knew she would not be heard or spotted, ran to find Isabella. She ended up encountering her in the attic, helping two other teens reorganize the stuff in there. They needed to uncover some old clothes for some of the girls were starting to get bigger.