Dark Shadows by Jana Petken

a lady because of where they’d found her and how she’d been dressed. But if this was about ransom money, she would never be returned. Would they punish her or kill her for being useless to them? Her family had not a farthing to give for her safe return.
    She looked around her again and decided there and then that to stay safe, she’d have to try to fit in, both in speech and in the way she walked. Oh God, it seemed a bleedin’ impossible task after a lifetime in the Elephant and Castle!

Chapter Thirteen
     
    Once again, Mercy stood in line in the stable. This time she had clean skin, and her hair, drying, flowed in waves down her back. She was barely clothed. They wore silk shifts with thread-thin straps. The material was almost see-through. Her nipples peeked out just above the plunging neckline, and her rounded bum cheeks were also visible.
    Mercy’s anger and frustration were elevated even further now due to exhaustion and painful muscles. She was no longer afraid. She was angry and starving. She had gone through the most humiliating experience of her life, apart from the time some boys had made fun of her dad for stabbing himself. They had followed her home from school, calling him “a bloody lovesick coward” the entire way. “Sissy daddy, sissy daddy!” they’d taunted her. She had never forgotten that day.
    She decided that she would take it upon herself to look after Julia. This act would help the young girl, but it would also give Mercy something to focus on apart from her own sorry state. She held Julia’s hand in her own.
    Another theory flashed into Mercy’s mind. She stood thinking about it whilst looking at the other girls. She believed because of their attire that they were going to be sold into slavery. Was it possible? she kept asking herself. Slavery? She’d heard that slavery was for black people and those convicted of crimes and sent to Australia on prison ships. She had never seen a black man. Did slavery still exist?
    She was feeling faint, but she would not fall down as a couple of the other girls had. She was determined to stand tall. She was already thinking about escaping. If she got the chance, she would make a run for it to anywhere rather than remain here. She searched her mind for possibilities. There were the stable’s double doors, but they were locked. There was another side door and one behind that, sitting atop two steps that led to God only knew where. There were no windows to slither through. But she would find a way out. What other torture was going to be inflicted upon them now? She shuddered, changing her train of thought completely.
    The clip-clopping sound of heels came from behind them. Mercy had heard the door open and then slam shut again a moment later. She tightened her grip on Julia’s hand and squeezed it, a comforting gesture without words. Julia’s teeth were chattering, and heart-wrenching sobs tore from her mouth every time she exhaled. She was going to pass out if she didn’t start breathing properly.
    No one dared turn to look at the new arrival. Time stopped as the sound of rustling petticoats filled the expanse behind. The three servants in front of the line-up curtsied. A woman came into view and stood before them.
    “Have you had any problems?” the woman asked Parker.
    “None, madam. Everything is in order.”
    “Where are Sam and Eddie? They’re late.”
    “They’re on their way. Jimmy has just been dispatched to get them.”
    Mercy stared at the mysterious woman, who seemed quite at ease giving orders and in a tone of voice that clearly stated she was in charge of everything that went on. Mercy didn’t know whether to be happy or furious that the woman ignored all the captives as though they didn’t exist.
    She was a strange-looking female, Mercy thought. She had thick mannish arms bulging out from the confines of her elbow-length blue puff sleeves. Her figure was rounded, and her corset didn’t do her any favours at all. In fact, if