Bullied Property Read online

  “We’ve received a number of bids,” he explained curtly, straightening to button his suit jacket. “The highest from a pair of brothers who own a horse ranch. It’s a good offer. They are brusque and harsh, but if you have thick skin you’ll do okay.”

  He studied my reaction, and I could tell it was a test. A higher bid meant more money for him, so of course he wanted it to be a match. But I could see something in his eyes that told me this was not a job for just anyone. It was almost as if he’d be willing to accept less money if it didn’t mean sending me out to fail, which would likely just damage his reputation.

  I bucked up, lifting my chin confidently. “I’m sure I can handle it. If the pay is good, I can endure harsh words.”

  “Let’s hope that’s all it is,” he muttered, barely loud enough for me to hear him.

  By the time I made out his words, I wanted to ask more. What did he mean? Beyond cruel words, what would these men do to me? But the door slammed shut again, and I figured it was for the best. Showing too much worry over it would only make him doubt the placement.

  I was left alone, feeling terribly anxious. All I knew was that it seemed these brothers were something to be afraid of, but I didn’t know how much or why. I didn’t even know what would happen next. Would I have to stay here very much longer with the cold, pitiful portions of poorly cooked food? Working with farm animals was hard work, and at this rate, I would be weak and half-starved by the time I reached my destination.

  My mind drifted to my sisters and mother once again. As much as I longed to be with them, I reminded myself that this was all for them. I had to stay strong and keep my wits about me. Life before this hadn’t been easy, and I decided it was all to toughen me up in preparation for what was ahead.

  I took a long hot bath and tried to enjoy my last few moments of peace, quiet, and safety before I went off into the unknown.

  2

  Marco

  “What do you think?” Felix furrowed his brows over the papers in front of us.

  I was only one year his senior, but he still had the good sense to look to me for advice or approval on some things.

  “A vet will be a needed addition,” I nodded, reading through the contract again. “And she has experience with horses, right?”

  “Sí señor,” the frail-looking auctioneer pointed to the listed qualifications.

  It said this Elaina woman had trained horses before, which we needed. And having a vet on the property would help us with our wealthy customers who had been asking about breeding for a while. She could make sure that everything went well with that endeavor.

  “We have a small dwelling near the stables,” I explained as he scribbled down the rest of the terms. “We can provide that as room and board plus a small monthly allowance. And the upfront fee we discuss previously.”

  “A generous offer,” the man smiled, stroking the hair on his chin.

  “Well, let’s just hope we get what we’re paying for. Or I’ll be back here to take it up with you.”

  “I wouldn’t have recommended her if I didn’t think she was a good fit. And if she breaks the contract, I’ll ensure she pays everything back to you plus a fine.”

  I grunted and hoped for his sake that he was good on his word, or rest assured I’d make him pay. And I had no intention of taking it easy on this Elaina woman either. After the hellish things I saw while serving in the Colombian military, I was determined to uphold the legacy of my father’s successful horse ranch.

  I could hear the whispers of the other people that worked for my brother and I. They thought we were both too hard and cruel, never giving them enough of a break. But if I was going to slave away for that ranch and keep it going at all costs, I expected the same from them. I didn’t really care if they liked me or not just so long as the work got done.

  “I’ll go get her then, so you all can sign the agreement.” He stood tall and skinny in his suit and disappeared up a dark stairwell in the corner.

  We had come to the auction house for several workers in the past. It was a good way to get exactly what you needed at a good price without having to dance around any of the niceties in hiring someone the old-fashioned way. Around here all sorts of people would show up begging for work in exchange for an exuberant wage, only to laze about as if they had all the time in the world to deliver on their promises. We didn’t have time for that sort of thing.

  Felix’s eyes flash at me as we watched one woman be escorted out the door. You could tell by the way she dressed and the look in her eye that she was being sold off for a different kind of work. This may have proven to be a reliable way to find farmhands and house staff for us, but we knew there was a darker side to some of its dealings. You could tell that by the seedy set-up of the whole place – a dark hole in the wall behind an unmarked door in the alley, the inside guarded by scary looking men with big guns.

  My brother had asked several times if we should consider getting some of our other needs met here. But I wouldn’t have it. Some of our tendencies may have been unorthodox, but I didn’t believe in buying women for that sort of thing. I wanted willing surrender out of a woman, and you couldn’t get that honestly if she was already bought and paid for. Then she was just doing a job.

  The auctioneer appeared again with a woman on his arm. She had good curves to her body, long black hair, and dark chocolate eyes that flashed with a certain defiance and mystery. You could tell she was tough in a way, at least on the inside. But on the outside, she was petite, and I had some doubts about if she could survive what we expected of her.

  “Señor Perez. This is Elaina Chavez.”

  She bowed her head a little. “Pleased to meet you.”

  “Are you sure this is the woman you promised us?” I asked skeptically, noting her small frame. But the auctioneer nodded as if nothing was wrong.

  I wanted to call the whole thing off. I expected a brute of a woman, not some young, pretty thing like her. But as she looked into my eyes, I saw a hint of something that told me to give her a chance. Besides, she had the best qualifications of anyone available.

  “You’ll be expected to earn your keep, you understand?” I barked, being especially brusque to test her.

  Her face twitched a little, and I could tell she was put off by me. But she was quick to lift her chin as her nostrils flared.

  “Yes, of course, señor.”

  I cut my eyes over to the auctioneer, nodding to let him know we could carry on. He ushered her towards the papers for her to sign.

  “You better be prepared to work hard to earn all that money,” I added once more, that time really getting to her.

  I was being intentionally haughty, knowing it wasn’t near as much as she probably should be paid. But it was a fair offer for the auction house and considering the times. She whipped around after dropping the pen, and I could see she was biting her tongue to keep from lashing out.

  I couldn’t help but smile. Good, I thought. She’d need a spine of steel to handle us and the ranch. It was a good sign that she could stop herself from mouthing off to us, so far.

  3

  Elaina

  Marco Perez seemed intent on putting me in my place, not bothering to show the slightest kindness or consideration for the fact that I was a professional being hired for a job or that I was being carted off to a foreign new place by two strange men who now basically owned me for six months. He treated me more like one of his horses, and I half expected him to pull out a cattle prod as he shuffled me from the auction house into the back of their truck.

  Without saying a word, they carted me off, throwing my small pack in behind me carelessly enough to make some of my things spill out along the truck bed. They didn’t even bother to mind the curves as they drove the long winding roads back to their ranch. I had to clutch onto the back of the truck to keep from being flung around.

  The brothers were no different as they showed me to where I would be staying. They walked so fast and far ahead of me, I swore they
were trying to lose me behind them. But I kept my things together and walked in stride, keeping my head up. I studied them as we walked. The brothers towered over me, each standing over six feet tall. Their eyes were dark and glinting, always with an ominous sort of glare. Marco’s hair was dark and short, while Felix’s hair hung down to his collar. They both seemed as cold as ice.

  The small house they led me to looked like a barn or run-down old shack from the outside. The two of them stood in the doorway while I looked around the small bare rooms.

  It sat right next to the barn, which seemed convenient even if it did once again make me feel like newly purchased livestock. It had two rooms – one with a bed and a tiny kitchenette, the other with a bathroom and only a shower. It made me glad that I enjoyed a bath at the auction house, but I didn’t need anything luxurious to do my job.

  “Three meals a day,” Marco explained briskly. “Dinner is in three hours. You may eat with us, bring your food back here, or in the kitchen with the rest of the staff.”

  I nodded in understanding, but he stared back at my expectantly.

  “Oh, with the staff will be fine. Thank you.”

  “Well, come on then. We don’t have all day. Put down your things and we’ll show you to the horses.”

  I stood in shock for a moment. I had expected a little time to get unpacked and settle in, but I could tell by Marco’s impatient glare that he expected me to toss my things down and get straight to it.

  They were silent again as they showed me to the barn, and I couldn’t help but feel unimpressed. They were no-nonsense kind of guys and both very rude, but it was just as well. I wasn’t there to make friends. I had a job to do and that was that.

  Felix excused himself to tend to other things while Marco stayed behind and bluntly pointed out the necessities. He marched through the tables, pointing to the supplies and stalls with sharp, one-word explanations. I would stop every so often to try and greet the horses as they stuck their heads over the stalls, curiously sniffing me out. But if I held back longer than a second, Marco was barreling off away from me.

  When he was done with the tour, he ordered for me to stay behind and get to know the horses since I would be working closely with them.

  Just before getting back into his truck, he turned around once more to add, “Don’t forget to report to the kitchen for dinner,” he pointed to the house in the distance. “If you’re late, you won’t be getting any leftovers.”

  With that, he hopped in and drove away, leaving me alone in the sprawling fields and stables. The sky was dark, threatening to rain, and aside from the horses stirring, there was an eerie silence in the air.

  I like the horses better anyway, I thought to myself as I walked through the stalls. After walking through once more to get a better grip on where everything was, since Marco had been in such a hurry, I stopped and visited with each horse. They were quiet and a little skittish, wary of me as a stranger. But they seemed to have a certain softness with me that didn’t have when Marco was around.

  That’s what I liked about horses – how sensitive they were to the people around them, emanating their moods and feelings. Even if they were used to the brothers, they would feed off of my own uncertainties and act accordingly. Spending some time gently petting each one of them, trying to gain their trust, were the first moments of true peace and calm I had felt since leaving home.

  As instructed, I reported to the kitchen for dinner, arriving just in time. There was a plump, older woman who I took to be the chef by the way she zipped around the kitchen and served food to myself and the others. Then there were a few younger men and women – farmhands and housekeepers. I noticed the way they made eyes at each other and could tell right away that some of them were probably sleeping with each other, but I resisted thinking about it too much. I didn’t need to get wrapped up in whatever drama went on among them. It was better to focus on work.

  “How you settling in?” the chef asked as she served me soup and bread.

  “Just fine,” I replied through tight lips. “Thank you.”

  I didn’t want to let on to what I really thought about the brothers. I had no idea if these people felt the same way about their employers, and it was better to keep quiet until I learned the dynamics between everyone.

  “Don’t take anything they say personally,” she answered with a knowing smile. Her eyes cut up to me in a skeptical, taunting way – letting me know she could see straight through the strong airs I was doing my best to pull off. “They’ve had rough lives and have forgotten how to be nice.”

  I sipped my soup in silence, feeling even more outraged by her excuses for them. My family and I had rough lives too. My sisters and I never knew our American father, and we watched our mother slave away to support her three daughters alone until she had nearly worked herself to death. That’s when we took over the burden. We never lost our ability to be nice through all of our struggles, and it didn’t seem fair that these Perez brothers could treat everyone however they wanted just because they had a hard time.

  But I couldn’t let myself dwell on it. Harboring resentment would only make things harder on me, and the only thing I needed to focus on was making money for my family.

  Once I finished eating and excused myself, the staff wasted no time to start gossiping the moment I shut the door behind me.

  “She won’t last two weeks,” one of the girls sneered.

  “More like two days.”

  “You’re all being too harsh!” the chef laughed. “She’ll make it two and a half weeks I’m sure.”

  They cackled out, placing their bets. With a sharp breath, I broke into a determined march across the fields. It only made me determined to fight harder to prove them all wrong.

  Back at the house, I was finally able to unpack and get my bearings. I put everything away, showered up, and started a small fire. My heart ached for my home and my family. I knew the nights would be the hardest times to be away from them. I sat all alone, seeing the vast darkness of the property outside my window. Not a soul around for almost a mile, other than the horses. It was a painful contrast to my memories of gathering around the table with my sisters and mother. Even when we were just worrying about how to make ends meet, at least we were together.

  I pulled a pen and paper from my sack and began writing them a letter. Marco had left the initial payment on my dresser, and I was eager to send it to them. That would remind me this was all worth it. If I couldn’t be with them, the least I could do was let them know I was safe and they didn’t need to worry, even if I did have my own doubts about how true that really was.

  I told them the auction house wasn’t nearly as bad as rumors would lead you to believe. That the Perez brothers were kind and had provided very comfortable accommodations. I explained how I expected to have to work very hard, but that the other small kindnesses of the arrangement would make it easier than I anticipated.

  I hated lying to them, but Mother didn’t need the added burden of worrying about me on top of her fragile health. Once it was finished, I pressed my lips to the seal of the envelope, doing my best to imagine how relieved and happy they would be to hear I was relaxed and safe. My heart panged a little, wishing that could be truer. But knowing they would soon believe it almost made it easier to pretend.

  The little house was cold when I woke up, noticing it was still dark outside. But the morning birds were chirping, so I figured it was best to go ahead and get ready for the day since I had no idea what the brothers would expect.

  Sure enough, a loud, relentless banging came to my door at five o’clock sharp. Once I saw the look on his face, I was glad I was already up and ready to go. He didn’t seem the least bit interested in waiting around on me.

  “I want you to come see the horses and their morning feeding,” he barked, nudging his head toward the barn.

  I thought he might go over and tell me to meet him there, but he stood there, leaning in the doorway.

  “Yes, of course. I’m
ready.”

  I followed behind him and caught sight of one of the young men from dinner tending to the horses. His eyes shot straight through me with disdain from the moment we walked up. He made no secret of how much he didn’t want me there with his body language and the way he looked at me, and Marco didn’t seem to care enough to call him out on it.

  As he went through the feeding routine, I caught him grumbling things about how long he had been working with the horses.

  “I don’t need some random woman telling me how to do things,” he huffed, barely bothering to keep me from hearing him.

  I had no interest in cradling his ego, and Marco watched over our shoulders carefully. I knew he wanted my honest opinion. Thankfully the man seemed to be doing everything properly. I didn’t want to know how much more tense things could have gotten if I had to correct him on anything.

  “You’re doing everything perfectly,” I assured him, noticing him ease up a little the moment I said it.

  Of course, he didn’t thank me. But Marco looked pleased.

  “I’ll leave you to it then,” he grunted. “Breakfast is at six.”

  He turned to leave and finally I could breathe a sigh of relief. I jumped into helping the stable hand, which he seemed grateful for even though we worked in silence together.

  By breakfast time, I felt a little lighter. Throwing myself into work helped me to blow off some steam, and I felt better prepared to face the staff again, even though I knew they doubted me. Soon I would prove my worth to everyone and maybe things would be easier.

  4

  Felix

  Riding through the pasture on my afternoon rounds, I decided to stop by and see how the new veterinarian was holding up. Marco didn’t have a bad word to say about her yet, from the few times he had a chance to observe her. But I wanted to have my own say and see for myself.