Chapter Six

Maverick

I could hear Ivy’s moans and my brother’s grunts through his door as I stood in the kitchen drinking my water last night. I tortured myself by standing there listening to them. I knew he wouldn’t wait. This was his plan the entire time, and Ivy played right into it. I kept replaying the sounds as I lay in bed last night, wishing it was me she was with. Today I’ll prove to her she is better off with me.

I walked into the living area to find Ivy sitting on the couch in her work uniform.

“Why are you dressed in that? I thought we agreed you wouldn’t be working for us.”

“I don’t have any clothes. Work clothes and sleepwear are the only sets of clothing we may own.”

I forgot about that.

“I guess we’ll go shopping for clothes today.”

“I have a doctor’s appointment in a few minutes. Maddox is having the doctor look at my back.”

Of course, he is. He’s trying to butter her up.

“After your appointment, we can do some shopping and grab some lunch.”

“You mean I get to go into the city with you?”

“How else will you shop for clothes?”

She looked down at her hands. “Like I get everything else. Someone purchases for me without my opinion.”

“That’s going to change. You can buy the type of clothes you prefer.”

“Even if they’re pants?”

“You can even buy pants.”

“Thank you.”

Ivy smiled at me and it made me happy because she was excited to spend time with me.

“Come and find me when you’re ready to leave.”

“Ok and umm...have a good morning.”

“You too, Ivy.”

For the first time in a while, I was looking forward to something and I couldn’t wait to start my workday.

“Why are you in such a good mood?” My father asked.

“I’m having a good day.”

Even though I was in a good mood, nothing could prepare me for hearing the appeals that we had to go through.

Part of societal rules states you must file a petition to have three or more children. If your petition is denied, you can appeal to my father. My father bases his decision on how much you contribute to society and if your trade or business can be passed down. If a couple already has two girls, he usually automatically denies them. It’s a barbaric system, and I don’t plan on being as strict as him. In fact, my goal is to overturn this rule and let people procreate the way they want to.

“How many appeals do you have?” I asked.

“Too many to do in one day, which is why I take time every day to go through them. Having you here will help me get through more than I usually do. Before we get started, I want to go over something that I look at, things I think are important to acknowledge when looking at these appeals. If the family owns a business and it is an important contribution to society, I take that into consideration, as well as how many children and daughters they already have. If they have a pattern of having all girls, they are to be denied. If they are doctors, we will approve them based on their specialty and a written affidavit they’ll raise their children to follow in their footsteps. Our goal is to make our society the best.”

“What if they want to have a child because they love children and want a big family?”

“Unfortunately, that’s not allowed. Your mother and I wanted more after you and Maddox were born, but I was afraid we would have girls and our society needs no more girls, so we made sure we couldn’t have more children.”

“Don’t you think your beliefs are unfair? Think of mom. If she wasn’t with you, she would have nothing to her name. She wouldn’t be allowed to go to school without permission. She wouldn’t be allowed to own property or manage her own money. We have set society back so far that it’s going to be hard to be equals again.”

“It has to be this way. Women were taking over everything. They owned our companies, the government. Men were being passed up for opportunities. You wouldn’t be living the way you are if it wasn’t for what we did.”

“Let’s get this over with. Hand me the stack of appeals you want me to go through.”

My father and I spent two hours going through appeals, and my faith in him dropped with everyone we denied. No one should have to live like this.

“I’m done for the day. I have plans with Ivy.”

“Are you and Maddox sharing that girl?”

“I wouldn’t call it sharing. She’s going to choose one of us in the end, and I hope it’s me.”

“Don’t let this girl get between the two of you.”

“You have nothing to worry about.”

It’s not Ivy who is going to tear us apart. It’s going to be his policies that’ll tear us apart.

“Don’t give her too much freedom. We still want her to work if it doesn’t work out for you guys.”

I rolled my eyes at my father and walked away. I am not giving him the satisfaction of responding to him.

Ivy was just finishing with the doctor when I walked in.

“How is she?” I asked.

“She is doing fine, Mr. Ronan. The wounds on her back are still fresh and her clothing has been irritating it. It’s best if she keeps bandages on when she wears a shirt. Can I speak with you in private for a moment?”

“Yes, we can step out into the hallway.”

I looked at Ivy before walking to the door with the doctor. Her facial expression had the look of worry all over it.”

“Is everything alright?”

“She’s underweight. I’m concerned that if she doesn’t gain weight, she won’t heal the way she needs to and she may not carry a child to full term.”

“She not pregnant.”

“She isn’t, but she asked about birth control. Since she isn’t a servant anymore, she may ask to be put on it because she is free to date. Condoms only do so much to prevent pregnancies. It’s best if she is on birth control as well until she gains weight. She needs to eat three meals a day, even if they’re small. I’m concerned that the rest of the servants here are not being taken care of.”

As servants, they’re not allowed to date, get married, or have children, unless someone of high status claims them.

“I’ll get them looked after, and I’ll call you to set up a clinic to have everyone looked at.”

“They may be females, but they’re still human Maverick, and it makes me sick to think your family treats them this way.”

“I agree with you, and I’m hoping to change that.”

“I’ll do whatever you need me to do.”

“I’ll keep that in mind. Have a good day.”

I watched the doctor leave before I went back inside to Ivy.

“Is everything ok?”

I let out a sigh. “The doctor is concerned about your weight. He thinks you’re too thin, and I agree with him. Are you ready to go?”

“Yes, but speaking of food, could we get something to eat first? I wasn’t given breakfast and the last thing I ate was dinner last night.”

Fuck, how did we not bring up food for her?

“I thought Maddox gave you breakfast?”

“He was gone by the time I woke up this morning.”

At least he let her sleep in.

“How about we grab a snack before shopping and a big lunch after?”

“I’m good with what you decide.”

***

Ivy

It had been a while since I saw a doctor. My last doctor’s visit was right before I came here. My mother wanted to make sure I was in good health before leaving me. Most of us spend the rest of our lives without seeing our family again, and it was the last thing we did together.

“What are you thinking about?” Maverick asked.

“I was thinking about my mother.”

“Is she still alive?”

“I don’t know. I haven’t spoken to her in over a year. I’m assuming she is. Our ties to our families get cut off when we become servants.”

It’s why we use our first names only.

“What’s your last name?”

“King.”

“It goes well with your first name.”

“My father thought so, too. He’s the one that named me. He died when I was fifteen.”

“I’m sorry to hear that.”

“I’m going to make changes. I promise you. The first thing I’m going to do is make sure the girls working for us are going to be taken care of. I talked to the doctor and I’m going to set up a time for him to come over and do a complete workup on them. Why didn’t you tell me you were being fed properly?”

“Complaining is against the rules. We get punished for not being grateful.”

“That's stops now. If something is not right, you tell me.”

“The girls need more food and access to medical care after they receive lashings. There were a few spots on my back that needed to be stitched as well as my hand and it took two days for you guys to bring a doctor to me. If I was still with the other girls, I would have never seen a doctor.”

My voice was harsh and loud. I wanted him to know that he hurt me, that he physically and mentally scarred me.

He laid his hand on mine and apologized.

“I’m sorry, Ivy. I had to do it. If I didn’t, my father would have done it and he wouldn’t have stopped at five.”

“I know, but it doesn’t mean I’ve forgiven you.”

I could hear him sigh as he turned toward the window. He kept his hand placed on mine and rubbed it soothingly. I thought about yanking my hand away, but I enjoyed the comfort he was giving me. I don’t know what it is about Maverick and Maddox, but I’m drawn to them. I want to hate them, but I want their comfort. I was only two days in already a complete mess of feelings.