Katrina went to the door and found that it was locked. She banged on the door, screaming that they should let her go.
She moved to the window, but they were on the third floor, so she could not jump. From this vantage point she could see ships in the harbour, their large white sails beautiful in the wind.
One hour later, the door opened. The man named Dunbar walked in.
“Who are you? What am I doing here? Let me go! I need to get to London.”
He laughed. “London? You are not going anywhere not after what I paid for you.”
“Paid? I am no slave. You do not own me.”
“Yes, I do. You are now an employee of this brothel.”
Katrina gasped in shock. “Brothel! I am no whore, sir!”
“No. You are not. And that is what will make you a very good addition to this brothel. You are fresh, and men will pay well for virgins.”
“No. That will not be happening. You cannot force me to do such a thing.”
“I won't force you, but my customers will.”
“How dare you.”
He laughed and opened the door to his office. A young woman that was very pretty indeed stood outside the door and walked in.
“Adeline. Take this young woman upstairs to Emma’s room. Emma will not be coming back and that room now belongs to this woman. She is a new employee.”
“Yes, sir.”
“I will not. I am leaving this place the first chance I get,” Katrina said as she made her way toward Adeline and into the main room.
She stopped, looking toward the nearest exit. But a strong arm was around her waist in no time at all. She kicked and screamed as Mr. Dunbar carried her up the stairs. She could see the young woman named Adeline following behind her with a sad look upon her face.
He opened the door and threw her into a room. Adeline followed, the door slammed, and she could hear the lock being bolted.
Katrina was beyond angry. But she was not going to stop. This was absolutely absurd, this could not be happening. People simply could not buy other people and tell them what to do, especially not threaten to take their virginity, which she very much had intact.
She stood up and went directly to the window, but was angry to see that she was even higher than she was before. It seemed as though she was in a high attic, very tall, and she thought it was very strange how she felt like a princess trapped in the very high tower of a castle.
She opened the window, and an ocean breeze caressed her face, but there was no way for her to get out. She even looked, hoping there could be a pipe for her to climb her down, for she was very scrappy being raised in the country she climbed trees very often. But there was nothing, only sheer brick.
“If you please, miss, I am Adeline. I do understand your fear and frustration. I, like you, was brought here against my will,” the young woman said.
Katrina turned and looked at her in detail. She seemed to be just as young as Katrina, and perhaps prettier than she. But she had lost something, she seemed defeated and did not have the sparkle that people of their age had; full of joy for the future and hope. This young lady seemed defeated.
“And how long ago was that?”
“It was one year ago that I was brought here. I have been here ever since. It is quite hard, I am not going to lie to you, but it is worse if you struggle. Mr. Dunbar will take a strap to you, I have seen him beat women black and blue, some of which never recover,” She said.
“He cannot get away with such a thing.”
“I am afraid that he does.”
“And what do the authorities have to say about it? Surely they cannot allow him to do such a thing.”
“The authorities, miss, they are customers as well. They are men after all, and willing to turn a blind eye as long as Dunbar treats them very well while they are here. Besides one girl did try to tell the authority and the authority just accused her of lying. Our reputation is taken, and our dignity and innocence. No one believes us,” She said sadly.
“I am very sorry for you then. My name is Katrina,” she said, going to the side of the young woman.
“My name is Adeline, I will tell you the way of things. That way it is not a shock to you when it happens, the way it was for me. Learning how things work around here, that is.”
“I am grateful for your information. But I will get out of here, Adeline. I am not going to stay here, no matter what happens, I don't know how, but I won’t. I definitely will not be with any men either, even if I have to fight them off tooth and nail. Mr. Dunbar can beat me unrecognizable if he wishes, I am strong.”
Adeline smiled. “That is very good to hear Miss, I will help you in any manner that I may.”
* * *
chapter
0 6
* * *
Mr. Mason Byers was very much aware of what the town of Portsmouth had to offer, and after being at sea on a long voyage due to his business of trade, he was very much inclined to indulge. Mr. Byers had been very hard at work since his elder brother Samuel had squandered the family fortune, and now all the family had to go off of was their name. He had his younger sister Miranda to look after who he had sent away to school with a distant cousin in Oxford named Mary Benton.
Byers was a very strong name indeed and had maintained its connections with those in high society, connections that he was putting to good use in order to make a living and boost the fortunes of his family name. With his mother and father long gone, it was only he, his elder brother, and younger sister left. But once his brother used up all the money possible, he left to America to start over, leaving Mason alone without a penny to his name. That was but five years ago and Mason indeed was well on his way to buying back everything that had been sold from his family's heirloom and estate. Indeed his biggest goal was to buy back the Brentwood Manor in Hampshire, England, where he had been raised.
His home was everything to him, and he longed to one day be able to settle there and make a life for himself with a wife and children. It would be as if what his brother did never existed, and it was his relations with high society that was allowing him to quickly gain his wealth back.
But it was taking a lot of work, more work than he had ever thought but he was willing to do it, for he was not one to be idle like his brother, he very much was one to find work quite fulfilling indeed. Therefore he had learned to be the captain of his own ship, cutting cost where may be. He journeyed to the east in order to buy shipments of spices, fabrics, and other goods to bring to London and England, so that they may be bought at high prices. It was turning out to be a very profitable endeavour.
“Go have your fun, lads, but not too much fun. We set sail tomorrow morning to Cornwall. Go and get your fill, but return to the ship by dawn,” Mason said to his crew. They let out an uproar of cheer and then all departed the ship onto the docks of Portsmouth.
Mason himself knew exactly where he would be going. He would indulge at the brothel of Mr. Dunbar and order to see his favourite, Emma. He had a routine himself; he would go and have a nice dinner at the brothel, and then spend the night with her. It was close enough to his ship and he could even see it from her window. It was very convenient indeed.
In his office on his ship, he finished the last of his letters. He was writing to his very good friend Mr. William Dawson of Linwood Manor. He would be visiting him in time, and wanted to give him a word of his arrival in one month's time, after he had his dealings in Cornwall. For he very much indeed enjoyed staying at Linwood Manor, because it was very near his former home of Brentwood Manor, not but three miles away. Even though Brentwood was not his home at the moment and sat empty and on the market, he was able to take a horse from Linwood Manor and ride the grounds of Brentwood Manor as though checking up on his land, even though it currently was not in his name.
After sending his letters by post, he walked into the brothel.
“Mr. Byers, it is very good to see you sir. You have made port,” Mr. Dunbar ran to him immediately, for h
e was a very well-known customer of good name.
“Yes indeed I have, and I am very hungry. May I get a bottle of your best scotch, as well as a meat pie, and some bread and cheese?” He said, sitting at a table.
“Yes sir, absolutely,” Mr. Dunbar moved to the bar and immediately fetched the bottle of whiskey scotch, a glass, and placed the order with the barkeep. He himself poured the first glass for Mason.
“And will you be having dessert sir?” Mr. Dunbar asked, knowing exactly that he meant one of the girls.
“Yes, I would very much indeed like to stay the entire night with Emma, as I have done before, if she is available.”
“I am sorry sir but Emma is no longer in my employ. She left two weeks ago to go back home. I believe she lives in Brighton sir.”
“Is that so? Good for her, I am glad she has returned home, for she spoke of her family quite often and that she missed them.”
“But sir, I have several other girls that might please you,” He said, not wanting to let the profit get away from him.
“I do not know. I have not been with any of your other girls, though I am sure they are fine. Perhaps I might stay this night at the Inn,” Mason said, for he had a connection with Emma that wasn't so easily replaced.
Dunbar was not going to allow his best customer to get away. He simply nodded and made his way directly upstairs, and Mason assumed that he had took his word seriously.
But after he had eaten and was on his third glass of scotch, Dunbar returned, pulling two girls down the stairs with him. He had not seen either one of them before. One was very young indeed with blond hair and very pretty blue eyes. The other also had blond hair with brown eyes, also pretty, but there was something about the one with blue eyes that struck him. It was obvious to him that she did not want to be there. That troubled him greatly.
“If you please sir, these are two of my girls you have not seen before. This one here is Katrina, only arrived today by way of the country, and this is Adeline, she has been here for quite some time but I do not believe she has been with you. Either of them would be delighted to keep your company the entire night as you wish. Katrina here has Emma's old room, with a view of your ship as you like.”
Mason looked at the young Katrina, and knew that if he did not buy her for the night, her first night in the brothel, Dunbar would give her to someone else; someone who would not be as kind as he had planned to be with her. He stood up and walked around both girls as though he had not made a decision yet, even though he had.
“Very well, I will take this one so that I may see my ship from her room. I will pay for the entire night. Please have a roast chicken, cheese, bread, and another bottle brought up to her room in one hour’s time.” He said handing Mr. Dunbar some coin. Then he took Katrina's hand and led her up the stairs. She was very quiet the entire time and very tense as they walked together.
He opened the door to the room and she walked in. He closed it behind him, and when he turned, he saw Katrina with a candlestick in her hand raised above her head, ready to strike him.
“Whoa, whoa, there is no need for that, young girl. I am not going to take you to bed tonight,” He said, as he moved quickly away from her and into the corner of the room.
“What do you mean?” She said, but did not move her hand.
“I mean that I do not wish to sleep with you at all. I will not touch you.”
“That is not what you said downstairs.”
“I was acting a part. As soon as I heard that it was your first night here, I could see that you do not want to be here at all. Therefore I offer to pay for the entire night with you so that no one else will have you. But I do not mean to touch you, miss, I am only going to ask for your conversation and company. For I have been at sea for very long and I do wish to have the company of a woman, just conversation. And in one hour if you would eat with me and drink with me, that is all. It is true I can see my ship from this window, and that is all that I want,” He said as he moved to the window and saw his ship in the harbour.
He noticed that she began to calm, and she placed the candlestick back on the table, but she did not move away from it.
“You only wish to have conversation with me, sir?”
“Yes, exactly as I have said. Now, tell me your name to start with. My name is Mason Byers of Brentwood Manor, though it is no longer my home. And you?
“Katrina Proctor of Hertfordshire, though I no longer have a home their either sir.”
“Then we are both without our homes; fancy us,” he laughed, and pulled the chair out from the table and sat down.
* * *
chapter
0 7
* * *
Katrina was quite startled when Mr. Dunbar brought her and Adeline down the stairs to be shown, the same way that she used to show livestock with her father. It made her absolutely nauseous, but she was startled to see that the man that was buying was not who she thought a client would be. She expected someone that was quite ill looking, but this man was the opposite.
He was possibly the most handsome man she had ever seen before. He was tall, dark, and gorgeous. But no matter, she did not trust him and was preparing herself to fight. As they walked up the stairs to her new room, she knew exactly what she would do, because she had practiced it all day. She had set the candle stick, which was quite heavy indeed, at the table right near the door. As soon as she walked in, she grabbed it and held it over her head, ready to injure her attacker. She would kill him if need be; he was not taking her innocence from her.
“You really do just want to converse then?” She said as the man had told her so, and he sat at the table leaning back with his arms behind his head in the most relaxed manner possible.
“Yes, is that quite so shocking to you? I am a gentleman, miss,” He said.
“A gentleman that visits a brothel, may I remind you,” She said. But still she was coming off her guard just a little, but she did not know this man and he could be lying, acting the part. Sometime in the night he could attack her and press himself upon her. So she had to remain defensive.
“Katrina, how did you come about this brothel?”
“I was on my way to London by way of foot, when I was captured by bandits. They brought me here and sold me against my will. But do not fear; I will escape somehow someway,” she said.
“You are very sure of yourself, aren't you? I can admire that, I am also very sure of myself and my goals,” He said with a very arrogant grin, one that could bring her knees weaker. For she had not seen such a handsome man before in her small village, or the market town of Buntingford. Altogether he had an air that she was not quite accustomed to, and she found it intriguing.
“You are not shocked too then, that I am being held against my will sir? Nor do you offer any assistance?”
“No, I am not shocked. That is the way of this trade, the sex trade that you have been brought into. It is not of my affair. I have many things that I have to do in my own life, Katrina, and I will not be pushed off course by having to save someone that was irresponsible to be walking the road alone. If I were to go through all the trouble of helping you and getting myself into trouble with you, you would probably do me the disservice and walk the road alone, only to be captured once more and be brought back here, or another brothel in another city. So, why would I go through the effort?”
Katrina gasped. “Sir, you are no gentleman!”
He laughed. “Then you have not met many gentleman. Quite selfish, the lot of us. The higher in society, the more selfish indeed. Now, should we play cards? I believe Emma kept a... Yes. Here they are,” he said, as he moved to the shelf and found a stack of cards.
“You have been in this room many times, I see,” she said.
“Yes I have, with more agreeable company, as Emma allowed me between her thighs and it has a view of my ship.”
Katrina was flushed pink. “Do not talk so to me sir.”
“Why? Because you are a virgin?” He said.
Katrina did not answer, for that felt like very private information. Instead she changed the subject, “What shall we play then?”
“How are you at playing hearts, Katrina?”
“I am very good indeed, I dare say that I shall win.” She said.
He laughed, and she was glad that she could at least make him laugh. He did pay for it even if it did astonish her.
“Which one is your ship Sir?” She said looking out the window. He got up from his chair and moved beside her. He was very close indeed, and Katrina noticed that she had let her guard down. His arm pressed against her arm as he pointed out in the harbour.
“Do you see the one flying the white flag with the deer prongs, the horns? That is my family crest. That is my ship,”
“It is very grand indeed. And why deer?”
“There is a herd of deer that runs wild on my family estate, Brentwood Manor; or I should say, former family estate. There has always been so, and therefore it is our family crest; it goes back hundreds of years. I plan to reclaim that estate for myself and my younger sister Miranda.”
“Younger sister? I would very much like a sister. I am sure that she is very kind and not at all like you.”
He laughed. “Indeed she is. Now shall we play?”
He took his seat at the table once more and began to shuffle the cards. Katrina was surprised by this man's demeanour. He really was just going to play cards with her. She sat opposite of him and looked at his dark hair; a lock of it fell over his forehead.
They played for quite some time, until there was a knock at the door. A woman on the other side shouted “Food!”
“Oh yes, I forgot I had ordered that. Though we don't look like we have been up to anything,” Mason said as he stood up. He ruffled his hair, until it was quite messy. Then he unbuttoned his shirt all the way down, exposing a very strong and tanned chest. He unbuttoned his pants, and Katrina was in shock.
An Alone and Destitute Girl (#3, the Winds of Misery Victorian Romance) (A Family Saga Novel) Page 3
