Love, Lies, and Insanity

The Workhouse

"Hey, wake up and get to work before you get beat!" My friend shouted at me, but truly in a workhouse you have no friends. It's everyone for themselves.

Another five o'clock morning in living hell. I wake and immediately try to get a piece of bread before everyone else gets there. Even if I didn't get a slice of bread it wouldn't matter. I would rather starve than live this life of pure misery.

I immediately saw my friend, Kira, as we began to tend to the newborns.

"There is a new baby today" Kira stated with absolutely no emotion in her voice.

"Really?" I asked somewhat excited.

"Kate" She said in a serious tone. I looked up a bit surprised, she is usually a bit cheery. Maybe she has been thinking again. "We get a new baby almost every week. Why does this surprise you?" She asked annoyed at me for being stupid

"It's nice to see that our jobs won't go away anytime soon" I said jokingly. She glared at me then continued her work

"Ladies!" Our supervisor screamed at us. "I trust you have heard of the new child."

"Yes Ma'am." We both said together sounding terrified. If she caught us slacking we would be sent away from the babies and children. We don't want to be split up, we are the closest thing to sisters that you can be when you grew up in a workhouse.

"You two will be responsible for the newest member of our workhouse." The supervisor couldn't have cared less about the child or about how we felt taking care of another baby. I was excited, but showing emotions in the workhouse could get you beat. Especially when your supervisor was as cruel as ours. She continued on, "This is Tobias Ragg. You will not get any special treatment for having to tend to another child. And Miss Kira this is your last warning and your last chance, if you make one more slip up you will be fired and sent to breaking stones, which I'm sure those weak little arms of yours couldn't bear."

"Yes Ma'am" Kira responded looking so terrified that our supervisor walked away cackling. Kira was shaking before she turned to her side to look me dead in the eyes. We stood there for a second silent, just staring at each other.

"That woman is a witch!"Kira said. I let out a little chuckle before looking back at Kira and realizing she was dead serious.

"Let's tend to the child before he starts to whine." I said in a hurried manner. It's not like I had anything better to do, I just thought it was awkward looking at each other.

We walked over to Tobias and began to attempt to feed him and calm him down. I would be stressed out too if I were him, so I did everything to make myself almost a mother to him. I looked into his soft baby blue eyes as I slowly rocked him in my arms. All I could think about was how much torture this baby will go through. Who would leave him here? Toby fell asleep without any fuss, and I laid him back down gently.

We were rushed at lunch. I ate a small salad which was much less than usual, but all I could think about was the child I was holding. Why did I feel so motherly to him and why didn't I feel the same way with all of the children. I reviewed myself to make sure I was still me. 

"Alright" I thought "My name is Kate. I am 16 years old. I live in the workhouse. and my best friend is-

"Hey" Kira rudely interrupted "What's got you thinkin'"

"Oh, just the newborn"

"What did it vomit on you like the last one?" She chuckled.

"No" I said softly. "When I held that baby I felt something.

"Like what it trying to escape your grip?" She said expecting me to laugh.

"I felt like a mother for that child. I felt responsible. I felt that it deserves a better life than working in a crappy old workhouse under the supervision of witches." I started to raise my voice.

"Sit down, you don't want to draw attention to ourselves" Kira said in almost a whispering voice. 

I sat back down, but I felt sick. That child should not have to live through the hell I've lived through here. I have to get that child out of here, but how? Escape is nearly impossible, and even if I did manage to get out, where would I go? 

I returned back to the newborn's once I finished my small salad, or at least ate a piece of lettuce. I saw Toby balling, it hurt me to see him upset, but why? This wasn't my child I have no connection to this boy, and yet I felt he was my child. The moment I picked him up he started to giggle and my heart felt warm for the first time in years. This child is my responsibility, and we are getting the hell out of here the first chance we get.

That night I laid in bed thinking of every way that I could get out until I finally came to one. One that would work even if I had no place to go.