Of the many changes in my life, I think sleeping in a bed was the strangest. For the longest time, I'd slept on grass, benches, cardboard boxes, and concrete. So, waking up each day on a soft mattress beneath a thick blanket felt wrong, like wearing shoes without socks. I climbed out of bed and stood before the mirror. Sleeping in a bed might have been the strangest change, but it wasn't the most drastic. A month of full meals coupled with continual manual labour had already started to change my body.
My jutting ribs had retreated behind a slowly building layer of muscle. I wasn't muscly by any means. In fact, on most scales, I'd be considered skinny. But, the pendulum had definitely swung from looking freaky to just looking skinny. My mood soured when my eyes flitted over the numerous scars down my front and back. No matter how much I changed, they would always be there, a permanent reminder of a painful past.
Turning away, I pulled on a T-shirt and a pair of shorts. It was Sunday, which meant my weekly lesson with Aida. My relationship with her was a strange one. It changed depending on the type of mood she was in and who was around. The best times were definitely when it was only the two of us, or the two of us and Billie. Then, her harsh exterior softened somewhat and we could
almost
be mistaken as friends. However, throw anyone else into the mix and she turned into the she bitch I'd met in the park.
The absolute worst person for her to be around was Heath. The man was a slimeball of the highest order. Arrogant, selfish, condescending, he was like a nuke to Aida's she bitch personality. Fortunately, I only saw him at the occasional mealtime. He never stayed over and was often away with his multi-million business, as Aida liked to remind me.
My other relationships at the estate developed at a steady rate. Chuck was the hand that steered the ship and was always friendly. I never considered my life interesting but he questioned me endlessly about it and listened sympathetically to my answers. Normally, I wouldn't like talking about my past, but it felt OK with him. He never judged, only listened, seemingly intent to get a better understanding of me as a person.
The other significant person was Sandra. She was the mother I never had. In her fifties, she fitted the mould looks and personality-wise. She was kind, caring, and looked after me around the estate. If I had a problem, she was the first person I'd go to. She also told me that she would come down to the cabin once a month to cut my hair for me.
I sat on the porch with my books. The morning held the promise of another scorching day. The lake's surface was a tranquil mirror, reflecting the sky. A bird swooped down to the surface, its landing sending ripples out behind it.
"Bird watching?"
I turned from the lake. Aida was wearing a light shirt tied beneath her breasts, exposing her slender stomach. A pair of denim hotpants showed a pair of impossibly long and smooth legs. "I like watching birds," I said, forcing myself to maintain eye contact. "If they don't like a place, they get to fly away."
Aida took her usual seat opposite me. "Sounds like running from your problems."
"I think of it more as escaping them."
She smirked. "Is there a difference?"
I didn't find it funny. "Yes, massively."
The lesson went well. It was the one time per week where we were truly with each other. My mind was focussed on learning and hers was focussed on teaching, leaving no space for sarcastic remarks or arguments. Sometimes, she even stayed once we'd finished. After the lesson, I cleared my books and said, "Do you want a coffee or drink of water?"
She tucked her legs underneath her. "I'll take a water."
I fetched two glasses of water and we sat looking out over the lake. My eyes fell on the boat moored to the small jetty. "When's the last time that boat was taken out?" I asked.
Aida looked at it sadly. "Years ago, before my mother passed. We used to take it out every Sunday if the weather permitted. Some of my earliest memories are of taking the boat out into the lake, but after Mum passed, Dad lost the heart for it. Billie's dying to go on it, she was a bit young so hasn't been out."
"Can't you take her out?"
"No, the memories are too sad for me and the only person other than Dad who might be able to drive it is Heath, and he's always too busy."
Her relationship with Heath was a confusing one. As far as I could tell, he was rarely in the house and Aida was at home every night. When they were together, Aida almost hero-worshipped him but that was about the extent of it. Other than the occasional kiss on the cheek, there didn't seem to be much intimacy between them. Of course, things might be different when they were alone.
We never pried into each other's personal lives, so I had no idea why I asked, "What's between you and Heath?"
Aida's lips thinned and I braced myself for a foul-mouthed rant. "That is none of your business."
"OK, OK! I was just wondering. It seems like you're a couple but at the same time, you aren't."
Her voice lowered dangerously. "What's that supposed to mean?"
I sighed. "Forget it."
The following day, I was clearing the weeds at the front of the house when Chuck found me. He had a glass of water in each hand. He passed me one and said, "Thought you might like a drink, it's hot work out here today."
I wiped the sweat from my forehead and squinted up at the sky. It was a rich shade of blue and the sun was a burning orb, blasting the world with unrelenting heat. "Thank you. Yeah, I'm going to have to water the flowerbeds again once the sun goes down."
"Why not do it now?"
"The water can magnify the sunlight and end up burning the leaves. I'll wait until sundown and then make my way around."
"Well, you learn something new every day," he said with a chuckle. "You've certainly taken to the job like a natural. The staff have nothing but good things to say about you."
I shrugged. "I just do the work that needs to be done. I appreciate what they've said, though. Everyone here has treated me very kindly."
Chuck raised an eyebrow. "Everyone?"
"Well, most people." I sipped the ice-cold water and asked something that had been on my mind. "Sir, if you don't mind me asking, why did you and your wife have Aida so late in life?"
"I don't mind you asking at all. We had her late because of me. In my younger years, my thirst for wealth outdid my desire for a family. I came from a rich family, but I wanted to take our wealth even further. I carved a name out for myself in the business world to the detriment of my life with Yvonne. Yes, we were happy and deliriously in love, but I didn't realise until almost too late that it didn't matter how large our bank accounts grew, they were worthless unless left to someone. So, we had Aida. It was only when I first held her, I realised that I was still wrong. In my hands was something worth all the riches in the world. I wish I had learned it earlier, but alas, it was not to be."
I sipped some more of my water, turning his story over in my mind.
"Something on your mind, Jack?"
I frowned. "Well, I was just thinking about what you said and how Aida..."
"Puts value in money over everything else?" he finished for me.
"Yeah, I hope this doesn't offend you, but she seems very much like you when you were younger."
Chuck laughed. "That's because she is, but with the added fire from her mother - it makes for a potent combination. We sent her to the best private schools money could buy and spoiled her rotten. So, she became the pampered princess you've met. The problem is, nothing I can say now will change that." His smile faded. "She thinks I'm going soft in my old age when I'm actually seeing things far clearer than I ever have before."
I studied him. The sun cast the lines on his face into sharp relief, so for the first time, he looked his age. He also looked... worried. He inhaled and let out a long sigh. "I fear for her, you know. I might still be pretty active for my age, but time catches all eventually, no matter how fast we run from it. I've got more summers behind me than in front, and I worry Aida will make the same mistakes I did and learn the lessons too late."
"Is there nothing you can do?" I asked, wishing I had more to offer.
He patted my shoulder. "A few things, whether or not they work I'll only know in time."
We finished our drinks and he left me to continue weeding. I was still working when Billie arrived home. She danced up to me and chattered about her day excitedly, then asked about my day. As we chatted, I remembered something I had done for her earlier.
"Oh, Billie! I just remembered, I've got a surprise for you!"
She clapped excitedly. "What is it!?"
"If I tell you, it wouldn't be a surprise, would it? Follow me."
We walked down to the pond, where I'd left a plastic container in the shade of the bridge. "I remember you saying a while ago that your favourite creature was a butterfly. Well, when I was working earlier, I saw this one!"
I took the container out and showed her the giant butterfly I'd seen fanning its wings on one of the flowers by the pond. It was vivid orange and black, with intricate patterns mirrored on its velvet wings.
"It's the most beautiful thing I've ever seen!" Billie gasped. I held the container out and she watched it in awe. "Thank you, Mister Jack! I love it!"
"It!?" I cried in mock sorrow. "A butterfly this beautiful can't be called it! He deserves a name! What should it be?"
Billie's cute little face scrunched up as she thought hard about it. "I think we should call him Tiggy because he's orange and black like a tiger!"
"That's a wonderful name! Now we've seen Tiggy, shall we let him fly away?"
Billie nodded. I carefully removed the lid and let Billie hold the container up in the air. Tiggy flapped his wings a few times and then took off, floating through the summer air to land on a nearby flower.
"What are you doing down there?" Aida said from the bridge. She was standing beside Heath, dressed in smart clothes that looked unbearably uncomfortable in the hot weather.
"We just set Tiggy free!" Billie explained, pointing to the flower. "Come and look!"
"Uh, I'm not wearing the right footwear, dear. Why don't you come up and we can go in the pool."
Billie's face was disappointed, so I said, "Just take your shoes off, a bit of grass between your toes isn't going to hurt you. Trust me, seeing Tiggy is worth it."
"If we wanted to see a flower, there's a whole garden of them around the back, providing you've looked after them," Heath said with a smirk.
