By sbrooks103x, inspired by Jenny Maitland in "Faithful" by Todd172, with permission.
Thanks to Todd172 for his permission to tell Jenny's story and his advice, Crkcppr for Beta reading, and, as always, blackrandl1958 for her sweet inspiration and editing.
This is a three-part story. All three parts are written and edited, and will be submitted one day apart.
*****
My name is Jenny Lee, nee Maitland.
Yes, I was one of those "Maitland Girls," one of those girls that could be counted on not to be faithful.
Like the other pretty girls in town, not just the Maitland girls, I flitted from boy to boy, never really settling on any one guy, but I always tried to be friendly with everyone, trying to not act too full of myself.
After I graduated high school, I wasn't sure what I was going to do with my life. While I wasn't some Dumb Dora, my grades weren't really good enough to get into a good college and I wasn't really sure what I wanted to do anyway.
Everyone was always telling me how pretty I was, how I should be a model, or in the movies or in the theater, anything other than being stuck in our small town.
Eventually, I decided to go for it, to go to Chicago, to see if I could make a dream come true.
Unfortunately, I had no idea what I was going to face in the city, I wasn't even sure which dream I was going to pursue!
I got off the bus with my small suitcase in hand, looking up at the tall buildings and feeling very, very small. As I stood there, confused by all the hustle and bustle around me, I was approached by an older gentleman - though I was soon to learn that he was no gentleman! - with a suave manner.
"You look lost, young lady," he said, "Is there anything I can help you with?"
"I-I'm not sure," I said, "I just got into town, and I need a job and a place to stay."
"Maybe I can be of some service," he said, "What kind of work are you looking for?"
"Well, people have always told me how pretty I am, so I thought I'd give modeling a try. I'd also love to be in the theater or the movies, but I've never acted before," I said.
"This may be a lucky day for both of us," he said, reaching into his pocket he handed me a card. It read:
Seymour Grant - Talent Scout
R.A.W. Talent Agency
"I'd like to arrange for a test shoot at our studio," Mr. Grant said, "but I'm sure we have several projects that you should be perfect for!"
I was so excited that I was bouncing from foot to foot, but then a dark thought crossed my mind, and I settled down with a frown on my face.
"What is it?" Mr. Grant asked, "You seemed so happy just a moment ago!"
"I just realized that I have no place to stay and not much money. I don't even know where to begin looking!"
"Oh, is that all!" he said with a smile, shocking me with his casual attitude towards my problem. "I believe we can help you there, as well. We maintain some small apartments for our girls, and you can pay us back later! Damn, I'm forgetting my manners! Here I am making all these plans for you, and I don't even know your name!"
"It's Jenny, Jenny Maitland," I said.
"Well, Miss Jenny, Jenny Maitland, why don't we go have a bite to eat, then go check out your apartment!"
With that, he took me to a small diner where we had a pleasant little lunch while I told him all about my life growing up in my little home town; then he hailed a cab and took me to a modest apartment building and up to the apartment that was going to be my new home.
It wasn't much, just a little studio apartment with a small kitchenette, but it was neat and clean. To this day I don't know why I did it; God knows I wasn't at all attracted to him, but I was so grateful that I turned around and gave Seymour a big hug and a kiss on his cheek.
"Thank you so much, Seymour," I said, "I'm so grateful for all your help!"
"Think nothing of it, Jenny," he said, "It gives me great pleasure to help damsels in distress. Besides, I'm sure this will prove profitable for both of us."
Seymour gave me the apartment keys and turned to leave, then hesitated and turned back.
"I almost forgot," he said, "This is just a formality, but I have to ask you to sign this lease.
I didn't even read the lease, foolishly trusting Seymour; why not, he had been nothing but kind to me; but little did I know that I was signing my life away!
There really weren't many movies made in Chicago, but Seymour did get me some work modeling in the larger department stores and small parts in some plays, but these jobs didn't pay well at all, especially after the agency's commission.
I barely made enough to put food on the table, much less pay the rent on my apartment, so I was always falling behind.
Seymour came to me and said, "Jenny, I know you're having a hard time, and I think I have something that might be of some help."
I had no idea what kind of help he might be talking about, but I was getting pretty desperate, so I asked him what it was.
"Well, Jenny," he said, "I sometimes work with a gentlemen's club, and they are looking for some pretty girls to serve drinks, maybe dance with the customers, show them a good time.
"It pays fairly well, plus you can get tips from the customers."
I wasn't really all that naΓ―ve; I had heard some stories about these "gentlemen's" clubs, but as I said I was getting desperate, so I decided to give it a try.
At first it wasn't too bad. The work wasn't terribly hard, and most of customers, if not exactly gentlemen, weren't excessively crude. Once in a while, a customer would get a little free with his hands, but usually pulling his hands off with a stern look, maybe a harsh word, would back them off.
Sometimes, if he was a particularly good customer I would get a stern look from the manager, but there was little that he could do.
Occasionally, I would see some of the other girls go into a back room with a customer, and it didn't take me long to figure out what they were doing, and I promised myself that I would never sink that low.
It all came crashing down one night when there was a police raid, charging the girls with prostitution! I tried to explain that I was just a waitress, that I never did that, but the police officer just said, "Tell it to the Judge!"
We were all bundled into the Paddy Wagons and taken to the city jail. Since we wouldn't see the Judge till the next morning, a half dozen of us had to spend the night in one cell with three cots and one toilet. I thought that things couldn't get any worse until court the next day when despite my protests I was sentenced to two months in jail for prostitution!
When I walked out of the jail two months later, I was a mess! My apartment and all my belongings were gone, I was flat broke and I still owed Seymour back rent.
After walking for what seemed like miles I found myself in front of Seymour's office. I pulled myself together as best I could, gathered what shreds of dignity I had left, and walked in.
His secretary somehow looked me up and down while simultaneously looking down her nose at me.