Cutler 01 - Dawn

tell me the truth," she said as I approached. She lifted her eyes toward the family suites above. "It was you who cleaned and fixed up Miss Clara Sue's room, right?"
    I hesitated. Would she get me into more trouble now?
    "She never did nothing that good, not that child."
    Mrs. Boston folded her arms under her bosom and peered at me suspiciously. "Now, what she give you to get you to do that, or what she promise you, huh?"
    "Nothing. I just did her a favor," I said, but shifted my eyes too quickly. I was never a very good liar and hated trying.
    "Whatever it is she promised you, you shouldn’t have done it. She's always getting someone to do things for her. Mrs. Cutler is trying to get her more responsibility for herself. That's why she ordered her to fix up her room before dinner."
    "She told me Grandmother Cutler was mad because she was leaving too much for you to do."
    "Well, goodness knows, that's true, too. That makes enough of a mess for two of me. Almost from the day she was born," she said.
    "Mrs. Boston, you were here when I was stolen away, right?" I asked quickly.
    Her eyes grew smaller, and there was a tremble in her lips.
    "Yes."
    "Did you know the woman who had been my nurse for that short time ... Nurse Dalton?"
    "I knew her before and knew her after. She's still living, but she needs a nurse herself these days."
    "Why's that?"
    "She's an invalid, suffering from diabetes. She’s with her daughter just outside of Cutler's Cove." She paused and looked at me askance. "Why are you asking questions? There's no sense dragging up bad times.”
    "But how could my daddy . . . I mean Mr. Longchamp steal me right out from under my nurse’s nose? Don't you remember the details?" I pursued.
    "I don't remember no details. And I don't like bringing up bad times. It happened; it's over and done. Now I got to get going and finish up my work." She started away.
    Puzzled by the way she reacted to my questions, I stood there and watched her walk off.
    How could she forget the details of my kidnapping? If she once knew and still knew Nurse Dalton, she surely knew the way it had happened. Why was she so nervous when I asked her questions? I wondered.
    If anything, it made me want to pursue the answers even harder.
     
    I hurried on to get out of my dirty uniform and clean up. I wanted to take a long, hot shower and wash my hair so it smelled fresh and clean for Jimmy. I'd choose one of the nicer outfits from Clara Sue's hand-me-downs and brush out my hair so it shone the way it used to before all this happened. This could be the last night Jimmy and I spent together for years, I thought. What I wanted to do was bring back happier memories, help him to recall the times when we were all cheerful and hopeful. I needed to bring back the memories as much for myself as for him.
    As soon as I got into my room, I stripped off my uniform and tossed it in the corner. I took off my underthings and my shoes and socks. Then I wrapped a towel around my body and went to the little bathroom.
    . It always took a few minutes to get the water hot, so I turned it on and stood back to wait when all of a sudden the bathroom door was thrust open behind me.
    I gasped and quickly scooped up the towel to wrap around myself again. Philip, smiling coyly, eyes big and bright, stepped in and closed the door behind me.
    "Philip, what are you doing? I'm taking a shower!" I cried.
    "So? Go ahead. I don't mind." He folded his arms across his chest and leaned back against the door provocatively.
    "You get out of here, Philip, before someone comes along and hears you in here."
    "No one's coming along," he said calmly. "Grandmother's busy with guests; Father's in his office, Clara Sue's with her friends, and Mother . . . Mother is debating whether or not she is well enough tonight to come to the dining room. We're safe," he said, smiling again.
    "We're not safe. I don't want you in here. Please . . . go," I begged.
    He continued to gaze at me, his eyes moving from my feet to my head, drinking me in with pleasure. I tightened the towel around my body, but it was too small to be an adequate covering. When I brought it higher to cover my breasts, it came up too far on my thighs, and when I lowered it, most of my bosom was revealed.
    Philip's tongue moved across his lips as if he had just finished eating something delicious. Then he grinned wickedly and took a step toward me. I backed up until I was against the wall.
    "What are you doing, getting all cleaned and