Page 27 of Mountain Refuge

I sat on the edge of the bed. “I don’t even know where to start.”

“Jack told me some of it. I didn’t know this before, but when I sent you that postcard years ago, he looked you up. He’s protective of those of us who live up on the mountain and he wanted to make sure you were a good person if you tried to contact me.”

I wasn’t sure how I felt about that, but his previous research explained a lot about our first conversation. As well as how Jack was able to jump into action so quickly to help us. Any other situation, I probably would care a lot more than I did right then.I was just grateful Jack had been able to help my kids and me out.

“It started eight years ago, right when you sent the postcard actually. When I received it, I was in the middle of packing. I’d been offered a new job and it included live-in quarters. I’d given up the lease on my apartment.” I shook my head at my own stupidity. “I should have done more research. Or I should have asked more questions. Hindsight is always twenty-twenty though. At the time, I just knew that this millionaire was moving me into his mansion to tutor his fifteen-year-old son. He would pay me to tutor him and pay for advancing my degree.”

“Sebastian Gunther?”

I nodded. “He seemed like your everyday millionaire. Stuck-up, condescending, and did not accept failures. When his son—Trenton is the son’s name—failed a math test, he was furious. Took a crystal vase that probably costs more than my annual salary and smashed it against the wall. The only reason I wasn’t fired within my first month of being there was because Trenton copped to not being the one that took the test at all. He’d ditched class to have sex with another student and had paid yet another student to take the test for him.”

Corbin snorted. “I really want to say something like ‘kids today…’ but we were probably just as stupid at fifteen.”

I couldn’t argue with him. Corbin and I had ditched class more than once too. Mind, neither of us did it to have sex. We weren’t exactly popular with the girls in our school. I’d only managed one kiss before graduation. Sex hadn’t happened for me until I’d gone to college. As far as I knew, Corbin hadn’t had sex before he’d gone to prison—and I certainly wasn’t going to ask him to verify the accuracy of that statement.

“Gunther was so proud of his son for having sex, called him a man, that he didn’t even care about the test. Looking back on it,maybe I should have seen something then, but I was just so thrilled to still have my job that I pushed any concerns I had aside. Gunther instructed me to continue tutoring him, and then added like it was a funny joke that I should also add Sex Ed to my curriculum.

“Less than a month later, it became common knowledge around the mansion that Gunther’smistress, not his wife,” I clarified, “was pregnant. She was one of the maids. There were rumors that this was not the first time he’d gotten one of the staff pregnant. However, the difference this time was that the wife had recently moved out. They were living in separate households in different states. I guess Gunther didn’t care anymore if she knew about his affairs or an illegitimate child.

“He approached me about a change in my job responsibilities and title. Rather than being a tutor for his almost sixteen-year-old son, I would be the sole caretaker and nanny for the baby when he or she was born. Apparently now that the son was sexually active, he didn’t need a tutor anymore.” I shrugged, to this day still not understanding that logic. “I was honestly thrilled. Trenton was a horrible student. As bad as it is for me to admit this, I was happy to be leaving that position.

“I spent a lot of time with Helena, the pregnant mistress. She was excited about the baby and was completely convinced that Gunther was going to divorce his wife to marry her. What she didn’t know, and that I accidentally found out, was that most of Gunther’s business connections came from the wife’s side of the family. He was never going to divorce his wife and risk losing that standing with her family. Helena was so sure, though. She was utterly convinced that Gunther was going to marry her. The last couple of months of her pregnancy, she even started to refer to herself as his fiancée.

“Then Lydia was born, and Gunther didn’t show. When Helena was brought to the hospital, I had called and texted him, but all I got back was a single acknowledgementtext of ‘fine’. Man couldn’t even be bothered to come to his own daughter’s birth.

“A couple of days after we brought Lydia home, I was informed by Gunther that Helena had been dismissed from her services and was no longer welcome in the mansion. It took me by surprise. How could she leave her daughter? I didn’t understand it. I was instructed by Gunther to care for and raise Lydia. He was fine with her being in the house, but he was not to see or hear her. Again, I didn’t understand. The man didn’t want his own daughter either.

“It was Trenton who informed me what had really happened. Surprisingly, he was actually attentive to Lydia. She was his half-sister after all. I was proud of him for showing her affection. Anyway, Trenton told me that Gunther had paid Helena a lot of money to sign away her parental rights to Lydia. She signed another document saying that she would never try to contact Lydia or come near the mansion again. If she did, she would forfeit her monthly stipend.”

Corbin, who had been silent for most of my story, shook his head in disgust. “What sort of mother does something like that?”

“A greedy one, I suppose.”

“What happened next?”

“Not a lot for the next several years. Lydia grew into a beautiful little girl. She is so smart and absolutely loves puzzles. Around her fifth birthday, though, things started to change. Up to that point, Gunther hadn’t paid any attention to Lydia. He would occasionally ask for a status update on her, but he’d never visited her. Lydia didn’t know him as her father. In fact, she called me her father. I corrected her when she was younger, but eventually I stopped. I knew it was wrong of me to call her my own, because I was being paid to care for her, but, Cor, she wasmy daughter. I raised her, I loved her, I taught her, Inamedher. Gunther was nothing more to her than a sperm donor. Shedidn’t even know who he was. She’d never even seen his face. She knew Trenton was her brother, but she knew nothing of her biological father.”

Corbin gave me a sympathetic look. “I get it, man. I’m not a dad, but I know I’d do anything, have done everything, to protect my mom.” I nodded, having been there for the aftermath of that protection. “What happened when she turned five?”

I cleared my throat. “Gunther suddenly started wanting her around. She was to be dressed up and presentable. She was to attend meals with him. It was a complete one-eighty to the first five years of her life. Lydia was confused. She did everything I asked of her, but she didn’t understand it. She would sit at these big meals and parties Gunther was hosting and look for me in the crowd. I wasn’t allowed to sit or talk with her during the parties. I was theservant,” I spat the word, “and could only attend to her from a distance.

“I relied on Trenton a lot during those parties. He was the one allowed to be near her, and she knew him. We coached her on making sure to call Gunther ‘Father’ and to never call me ‘Daddy’ in public. Trenton told me that the change in Gunther’s behavior was from some new investors that Gunther had. He was trying to impress them by presenting himself as being a family man. He always explained his wife’s absence by saying she was ‘shopping in Paris’ or was ‘on a cruise’ with some girlfriends…

“Things went on like this for a couple of months. New investor, new party, and Lydia was dolled up like a piece of art to be shown off. And then…” My voice trailed off as a flash of that horrible night came to the surface.

Corbin came forward, resting his hand on my shoulder. He gave me a reassuring squeeze but didn’t speak. I appreciated him keeping his silence so I could get my thoughts in order.

“We were summoned to Gunther’s office. Trentonwasn’t there. It was Gunther, two bodyguards, and two other men I didn’t recognize. Lydia was to be brought in for a show of sorts. We’d rehearsed it numerous times. It was a skit Gunther put on for the investors. Lydia would barge into his office, run over to Gunther, and hug him. She would say what a great time she had at the park and try to tell him all about it. Gunther would then say that he’s got a friend over and she could tell him all about the park at dinner. In the last couple times we did this, Gunther would evenboopher on the nose for effect. Lydia was to smile, wave to the investor, and then run back to me. I was always by the door. I was not allowed further into the room than the wall by the door.

“I always hated when Lydia had to do this, but we’d done it numerous times by then. I assumed this time would go just as smoothly as the others.” I flinched, the echo of the gunshot still in my head. “I was so wrong. The investor didn’t allow Lydia to run past him to come to me. Instead, he grabbed her by her skirt and brought her towards him. I started forward but Gunther gave me this look that told me I was to stay in my place and…” I had to fight through my shame to admit, “I froze. I stayed where I was told to stay like a good little servant whilemy daughterwas dragged up onto the lap of a stranger.”

Bile rose in my throat. Henry curled up closer to me, as if he sensed I needed his comforting touch.

“The investor started talking aboutstock. I didn’t understand. Gunther was a businessman who dealt in trades. I wasn’t really paying attention to what was being said though because all my attention was on Lydia. She was sitting stiffly, her thumb in her mouth. She was so uncomfortable. And I juststood there.”

I hated myself for that. More than I would ever admit aloud.

“And then the investor put his handunderLydia’s skirt. She wasfive. I started forward again. I didn’t care what Gunther said at that point. I was not going to stand by and watch Lydiabe molested. But then Gunther, who was just sitting calmly behind his desk at this point, casually raised a gun and shot the investor in the head.With Lydia still on the man’s lap.”

---