As Olivia exited the front doors of the hospital, she saw Bogdan standing next to the black town car. He was holding the back door open for her. He briefly nodded at her in acknowledgement as she got in.
As they drove back to Judge Thorsky's house, Olivia could not stop thinking about the deal she had struck with Dr. Brovachik. Would he keep his word and help her escape? How long would it be until Olivia could make her escape? Would she leave Vulmonia before Judge Thorsky could get her pregnant? What exactly would she have to do to raise money? It turned out Olivia would not have to wait too long to learn the answer to that last question.
Olivia's thoughts were suddenly interrupted by a beeping sound that was coming from somewhere near the front of the car. Bogdan reached into his breast pocket and retrieved his smartphone. He answered and began to converse with someone in Vulmonian. Of course Olivia could not understand what he was saying. But he sounded upset and irritated. As they pulled into Judge Thorsky's driveway, he shouted a few more words into the phone, ended the call and then shoved the device back into his front pocket.
Olivia knew it was probably wiser not to ask, but her curiosity got the better of her. "Something wrong?" she tentatively inquired.
"My mother," Bogdan muttered in his thick accent. "She's in the hospital and my family is asking for more money. And they're all mad at me for not coming to visit."
"Oh," Olivia said softly. "That's too bad."
Bogdan raised a skeptical eyebrow. "As if you care."
"Well," Olivia cautiously began, "I have a mother. And I love her. If she was ever unwell, I would be upset. And I'd definitely want to go spend time with her. Why don't you go visit her?"
Maybe if Bogdan went away for a few days, she would have a chance to search the house for her wallet and passport while the judge was at work.
"My whole family lives out in the county side. Their village is a five hour drive from Nulmara City. I only get one day off every other week. And sometimes Judge Thorsky gives me extra work to do on my days off. Do you think I realistically have enough time to go visit?" He slammed his hand against the steering wheel in frustration.
"No, I suppose not," Olivia said, disappointed. "But, at least you can send them money. You know, to help pay for your mother's medical bills."
Bogdan began laughing. But it was not an amused laugh. "Do you actually think the judge gives me a high enough salary so that I could pay for my mother's health care?"
"Well, you're working almost every day. I mean ... why not? You must be making a decent amount of money." Olivia said innocently.
Bogdan rolled his eyes. "You have much to learn about Vulmonia," he said as he parked the car in the garage and turned off the engine. He got out and slammed his door closed. He then opened Olivia's door.
"How much money do you need to pay for your mother's treatment?" Olivia asked as she stepped out of the car.
"Why? Are you going to give me the money?" Bogdan scoffed.
Olivia looked down and frowned. Feeling foolish she said, "No, I guess not. Judge Thorsky won't even give me my wallet. I can't even access my own money."
"Well, don't be expecting to get that back anytime soon," said the butler as he unlocked the door to the house.
As they entered the main part of the home, Bogdan turned to Olivia and said, "You know the rules. Clothes off." He expectantly held out his hand. Presumably waiting for her to hand over her dress.
"Please," Olivia looked at him with wide eyes. "Can't I keep my clothes on? Just for now, at least."
The tall manservant looked down at her with a critical gaze. "I don't know ..."
"I promise, I'll undress before Judge Thorsky gets home. But couldn't you let me keep my clothes while it's just the two of us?"
Bogdan let out a heavy sigh. "Fine," he grumbled. "But the judge is scheduled to get home around six. So I'd strongly recommend you get undressed by five forty-five at the latest. If Judge Thorsky sees that I'm not enforcing his rules, the cheap bastard will force to to work for a week with no pay."
"I understand," Olivia said solemnly. "I promise that at a quarter to six, I'll ... I'll ..."
"Strip naked," Bogdan said with a slight smirk.
Olivia nodded as a bright pink blush overtook her face.
"Alright then," he acquiesced. "Now how about you make yourself useful. There's a bunch of work to do in the kitchen. And I can't get it done all by myself. Come on," he said as he let her toward the back of the house.
When they entered the kitchen, Bogdan retrieved a large box of potatoes from the pantry. "Why don't you get started on peeling these," he said as he handed her a vegetable peeler.
Olivia picked up a large potato and began removing its skin. "Do I have to peel all of these?" she asked looking down at the large box.
"You sure do," Bogdan replied as he brought a large bag of carrots over to the kitchen table.
"There's only three of us in the house. Why do we need so much food?"
"The judge is going to be hosting a dinner party the day after tomorrow. There are going to be many people attending. So we need to start preparing now," the butler explained.
"Oh, I see," Olivia said. She felt a bit nervous. She hoped that she would not be required to attend this dinner party. She remembered the last couple of Vulmonian dinners that she went to with Luke. There was dinner at the sushi restaurant. And then there was the dinner party where the attendees had played Vulmonian darts. Those were experiences that Olivia had no desire to repeat. Hopefully she could remain hidden away in the basement guestroom while Judge Thorsky entertained his guests.
As Bogdan peeled carrot after carrot, he looked over at Olivia fumbling with a large bumpy potato. She was not particularly fast and she missed a few spots. "Do American girls not know how to cook?"
"Well, we do when we have to," Olivia replied. "But I still live at home with my family. So my parents do most of the cooking. But if I ever move out, then I'll have to learn to cook."
Bogdan cocked his head to the side, shrugged and nodded in mild agreement. Then he said, "Why don't we switch. Carrots are easier to peel."
"Oh, okay. Thank you." Olivia was somewhat surprised. She had been in Vulmonia for a little over a week. And during that time, almost no one had shown her any kindness. It seemed that Vulmonians were only interested in taking advantage of her her and using her. Even her own public defender, Mr. Kholod had raped her. And while Bogdan was not being overly generous, he was at least not being cruel.
"If you don't mind my asking, what's wrong with your mother?" Olivia asked as she tossed a peeled carrot into a large bowel.
"She needs a hip replacement," Bogdan replied.
"Is that expensive?"
"Eight-hundred ruettes," replied Bogdan as he grabbed another potato.
Olivia was not exactly sure what the exchange rate was. But then she recalled her experience at Timor's bar where the five customers paid to have sex with her. She remembered that they had paid fifty ruettes each. Gregus told her that fifty ruettes was worth almost two days pay to a lower working class Vulmonian. Which meant that eight-hundred ruettes was more than a month's pay.
"I'm sure that doesn't sound like much money to a spoiled American girl. But it's more money than I can afford," Bogdan said bitterly.
"Can't Judge Thorsky lend you the money for now? And then you can pay him back later? Maybe by working overtime?" Olivia suggested.
"Are you kidding me?" Bogdan exclaimed. "Does Judge Thorsky seem like the kind of man who does favors for people? The judge wouldn't spit on me if I was on fire."
While Olivia did feel somewhat sorry for Bogdan and his mother, she could not help but focus on her own situation. The more she learned more about the judge's character, the more she realized that she needed to get away from him as soon as possible.
Bogdan looked up at the clock on the wall. "That's enough party prep for now. We'd better get started on tonight's dinner," he said. "The judge doesn't like to wait for supper. He wants his meal to be ready and waiting for him on the dining room table when he walks through the door. I need you to make a salad while I prepare the pork."
He led Olivia over to the counter next to the sink and provided her with all of the salad ingredients.
"I know your parents cook for you. But please tell me that you at least know how to make a salad."
"Yes, of course I know how to make a salad," Olivia replied defensively.
"Relax," Bogdan chuckled. "I was just kidding," he said as he pulled some an item wrapped in waxed paper out of the refrigerator.
As they worked side by side at the kitchen counter, Olivia lost herself in her mundane task. For a moment, she almost forget the bizarre situation that she was in. She just enjoyed the feeling of doing something ordinary for once.
However, the normalcy did not last long. Suddenly the peaceful atmosphere was broken by the distinct sound of the garage door opening.
Bogdan angrily growled in Vulmonian. Olivia assumed he had probably uttered an obscenity.
"The judge is home early," he grumbled. "Dinner's not ready yet and you're still dressed. Take your clothes off right now," he urgently ordered.
Olivia frantically pulled off the blue shift dress and handed it over to Bogdan. The butler opened the cabinet under the sink and stuffed it inside. Olivia then removed her sandals and also passed them to the manservant. Bogdan placed them in the cabinet and then hurriedly shut the door.
"Come on, Judge Thorsky will expect us to greet him as he walks in," he said as he led Olivia toward the door that led to the garage.
