Chapter 3 Job landing on you

" Ouch, " Teresa opened her eyes with a jerk as the second dose of injection, pierced through her vein. She tried pulling her hand away instinctively, but was held down by two nurses.

" What are you doing? Where am I? " Teresa called out in protest.Her mind was still a muddle. She had vague visions from the past where two study men kept her down while a third pushed the string down her spine. The mere thought was enough to choke her and make her claustrophobic. She started throws her hands out in a fit, trying to get those images out. But somebody still kept pushing her where she lay while patting her head to calm her down. It wasn't a man, she could finally say as her eyes cleared up a bit. She blinked a few more times to get a clearer view and finally a warm lady's eye she met.

"Relax child. Relax. You are at the hospital. You have been here for a couple of days now. " One of the nurses told her as the third dose was administered intravenously. " Don't try pulling these. These are your saline bags. You have acute pneumonia. Had a kind lady not brought you in at the right time, it would have been impossible for us to save you. You were in and out of consciousness all these while. We are glad to finally have you back. Try being a good girl for awhile and you will recover in no time. " The nurse smiled at her before leaving and ruffled her hair a bit.

" How long have I been here? Be a good huh! What about the money. I have no money for any treatment. I better sneak out tonight. " Teresa thought out aloud , looking carefully at her saline bag.

" This is a government facility. You don't have to pay anything to them, " A voice from beside her, startled Teresa. " You can enjoy your stay for as long as they allow you. You even get the free food and clothes. " The voice yawned as she stretched herself on the bed beside Teresa.

There was another girl, almost Teresa's age on the next bed with both her legs bandaged.

" Really? " Teresa asked her with enthusiasm, hearing about the free food, " They give food for free? "

" Hhmm" , the voice nodded her head.

Teresa looked at her legs with sympathy and then asked, "What happened? Must be hurting a lot. "

" I jumped from the first floor. It's better than hurting at the Richards', " was the girl's prompt reply.

" You broke your legs on purpose? Why? " Teresa was shocked. What could be so wrong to make somebody hurt themselves.

" You won't understand. There was this place my agency was sending me to work. It's worse than hell, I swear. All my friends who have come back from there, are still recovering from trauma. But my agency wouldn't listen to me when I said I wouldn't go. So I had to do this, " she explained in a matter of fact manner.

" Don't they pay you we'll? " Aske Teresa innocently. She had known the rich to cheat the poor all her life.

" Nah! They do pay. In fact they pay good." she replied.

" Then do they not let you eat? " Teresa was looking for the exact reason behind her extreme decision.

" Not that. They let you eat alright. " The girl answered.

"Then what is the problem? " Teresa couldn't guess anything worse.

" There is this head of maids. He is ruthless. He beats up the maids at the slightest mistakes. Even chains them up. "the girl explained with such expression, expecting horror in Teresa's face. But she looked on at her eagerly. Teresa was still waiting for something more terrible. Being caned and chained didn't seem that bad to her when food and shelter was being provided. That had been the way she had grown up. This place was even paying money to top it up. It looked like a lucrative job for Teresa.

" That's it? Nothing else? " Teresa finally asked when the girl spoke no more, " That's not that bad. How could you break your own legs to avoid that? Isn't it stupid? " She asked.

" Stupid? You say because you haven't seen the horror in the eyes of the survivors. I have., " The girl felt almost offended as Teresa reprimanded her. " Well, if you so say, why don't you take my recommendation letter and go in for a few days. You can have a taste of what it actually feels like first hand. " The girl added with a smirk.

"Really? Will they take me in? " Teresa's eyes opened up sparkling.

" Why not? " the girl felt weird at Teresa's enthusiasm.

" Thank you. Thank you. Thank you sooooooooooooooooo much, " Teresa almost toppled her saline stand trying to give the girl a hug.

" I will give you the letter and I will teach you how to blend in. But you can't blame me if they find out we swapped. It would be all on you. " the girl took her caution.

" Yes. Sure. Sure. All on me. I would never tell on you even if they beat me to death, " Teresa was too happy at a job prospect. It felt like a dream to finally have a roof over her head and four square meals. She couldn't believe her luck.

She went back to lay down on her bed, with a wide smile on her face. This incident in the rain that had brought her here was in fact a lucky one, she thought. For the first time in her life, she felt being sick had it's pros. She couldn't wait to recover and go on her new mission. Life seemed so beautiful all of a sudden.