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“Yes, we were punished, hands, the belt, whip, paddles. There are stocks and a cell deep in the ground too, which heats terribly during daytime and freezes at night-time. But they claimed it was for our benefit. I didn’t believe them!” I declared loudly.
Magic nodded. “Alexis, you may be innocent and have no idea about life outside the church. But your gut did you right. What they are doing isn’t normal. It’s abnormal. They’re lying to you and abusing women. Always listen to your gut. Now the question is, what do I do with you? Can’t let you flee. The animals out there will tear your innocence apart, and you can’t work. I bet you don’t have any papers, and you’re too young for the bar,” Magic said as he rose to his feet and began making hot drinks. Moments later, he handed me a dark brown liquid, and I sniffed at it dubiously.
“Yeah, those reactions will set every fuckin’ perv, pimp, and asshole on you. They’ll see you coming a mile away. No education, shit, no idea of how dangerous life is outside,” Magic kept muttering.
Curiously, I sipped the mug, and my eyes widened as I stared in sheer delight at the beverage. What was this? I wanted this daily. Quietly, I sat, waiting for Magic to determine my fate. God had sent me to him, and there was a reason.
“The church is evil, isn’t it? The life we live is wrong. I’m right, aren’t I?” I suddenly blurted out.
Magic turned and shook his head. It was the confirmation I’d craved. I was right.
“Breaks my heart, baby girl. What they made you and other women suffer is called abuse. Yes, what they are doing is terrible and illegal. It’s slavery and rape. What’s the bet half of thosewho started to bleed are girls under sixteen? Having sex with a child is against the law of this country. The motherfuckers can’t legally marry a kid in South Dakota, so fucking kids makes them paedophiles, which are the lowest scum on earth.
“The whole concept of your church is fucked up and ran by evil assholes who need taking out. Honey, real life is nasty, but women are respected out here. They have the right to drive, vote, do the job they want, and marry who they wish, Alexis. You escaped what we on the outside would call a cult, where people are brainwashed into being servants and slaves.”
I sucked in my cheeks at Magic’s words. I had always known deep down something was wrong with the church. Women shouldn’t be treated the way they were, but it had been bred into me. There was no basis for me to argue because I’d had no contact with the outside.
“Is school a real thing?” I asked. A faint memory of a woman talking about school came to me.
“Yes, honey. History, Geography, English, and Maths are all lessons children learn, and so many others. The cult kept you uneducated, so you did not discover you had rights in the real world. The assholes isolated you because they didn’t want you to fight back.”
“Is it too late for me to attend school?”
“To attend, yes. But to get an education, no. There is online learning, and I can hook you up with that.”
“And what do you request as payment? Do you want to copulate with me? Magic, you are better looking than the First Minister and Second Minister. I could couple with you,” I offered, and Magic looked appalled.
“Fuckin’ hell, Alexis. No! No copulation at all. Jesus Christ.” Magic stumbled back, putting a considerable space between us.
Was I wrong to offer Magic my body? The church always said kindness should be repaid and copulating with Magic wouldn’t be too hard. I had nothing else to offer him.
“It would be easy to copulate with you,” I announced, thinking Magic thought I was unsure.
“Alexis, stop that train of thought! That would never happen. Christ, it would make me as guilty as those fuckers! This is what’s happening, Alexis. Upstairs, I have an apartment that you can stay in. I’ll find you some fake documents for identification, and don’t worry; the guy is that good. No one will know they are fakes. They would even pass federal inspection.
“As of tomorrow, you’ll live here, out of sight. No doubt those assholes are searching for you. They’ll want to bring you back, so you can’t tell anyone what is happening. Once I have your documents, I’ll register you for an online school, and you can learn during the day. The apartment has stairs which lead to that hallway.” Magic pointed to a door, and I glanced across. “That also takes you to the kitchen for food; however, keep out of the bar. We don’t want people to see you. I’ll keep you hidden and safe. And you will get an education and behave yourself. Alexis, you can cook me dinner each night as a thank you.
“Then, when you’re old enough, you’ll begin working for me. You could clean during the day when the bar is shut, and I will teach you how to tend the bar. You’ll waitress and bartend and earn good money for it. Now I need to get a laptop and order some fuckin’ clothes. And I bet you’ve got no idea what size you are,” Magic muttered, looking grumpy.
“No. We wear free-flowing gowns. This rag is a wedding gown. When we work in the fields, we have overalls and long-sleeved tops. What are sizes?”
Magic tossed my gown a disgusted look.
“Burning that fucker. Ah, hell. Alexis, I will have to measure you, but it’ll be nothing sexual. And keep your hands to yourself.No ideas about intimate favours as a thank you!” Magic ordered, going red, and I laughed.
???
I stayed still as Magic measured me, amused as he grumbled under his breath. We were standing in the apartment upstairs, which was more space than I’d ever seen for one person. It was nicely decorated and had a huge bed. I’d never realised they could even be that big. At church, I lived in a tiny, grey, concrete cell with a bed and a table and the church’s bible. There was a rack on which I hung my few clothes and nothing else. Once I had turned thirteen, I’d been moved there to prepare for becoming a wife and adulthood. Somehow I’d lasted four years without being touched.
The idea was finally sinking in how wrong my life had been. Seventeen years had been stolen from me that I couldn’t get back. Magic said animals got treated better than me, and while I wouldn’t know, I agreed. Now Magic was measuring my body and writing them down so I could buy clothes and female shit, as Magic called it. I had no idea what that meant, but it sounded interesting.
Magic sat me down in front of something called a laptop. I was amazed at the concept of the internet. Phones had already confounded me. The ability to speak to people miles away or in a different country instantly was beyond belief. Now I was looking at a relatively unexciting black box, which opened into a new world. Magic clicked on several things he called tabs and told me to go nuts. I looked at him blankly. Go nuts with what?
When Magic grasped I had no idea what that meant, he began muttering about handing in his man card as he clicked on the laptop. He showed me pages of women wearing clothes I’d notseen the like of before, and I was overwhelmed and dazzled. It took most of the afternoon, but Magic finally convinced me to purchase clothing named jeans, skirts, shorts, blouses, and tees. I also bought shoes, and Magic had to stop me after ten pairs, laughing as he said he knew what to buy for my birthday and Christmas.
Magic then showed me hair products, bows, ribbons, ties, and clips. My hair was always kept in a bun with pins. When I undid the bun, he saw how long it was, and Magic’s mouth dropped open. My hair fell to my mid-thighs. Touching it gently, Magic asked if it was heavy, and I nodded.
“It gives me headaches,” I responded in answer to his question. Then my eyes lit up. “Can you cut it?”
