The Training of Rose Ch. 04

In the six months that have passed since leaving Lord Cumberland's house, Rose has made her way to London and taken up residence at a tavern where she was also able to get a job as a bar maid. Quite surprisingly she has not had to be with a man. The owner of this tavern told her in no uncertain terms that he would not have the women in his employ going after the men that come in. With a decent wage he has made it better for the ladies who work for him. Yes, a quick fondling of the breasts, or being pulled onto the lap of a horny seaman are to be expected, but that is as far as it goes.

There are many days that Rose will walk by the docks and just watch the men as they load or unload the ships. With their strong, well-toned bodies she wonders what it would be like to be fucked by them, but after her first encounter with non-anal sex, she is terrified of finding out. On one of these outings she sees a carriage that looks somewhat familiar but she is not sure where she has seen it before. Before she is able to see who emerges from the carriage she is grabbed from behind and pulled up against a man's body.

"Hey, Lovely Lady, why don't you and I go and enjoy ourselves for a little while?" Since she has gotten use to this treatment she is not scared.

Pulling away a little bit she turns to him and laughs gently up at him. "Milord, I am just out to see what merchandise I can purchase for the tavern that I work in. Please don't make me late getting back there. If I am late, I will be out of a job and a residence. If you are interested, I work at the Top Hat Tavern two streets over." She pulls away a little more. "I really must go now." With a smile and a quick kiss to his cheek she breaks away and leaves him standing there looking after her. Unbeknown to her, the gentleman in the carriage had been watching the interaction with interest.

As she gets back to the tavern she brings her purchases in to her boss and tells him about her encounter. "Well, young lady, you did the right thing. Hopefully he will be coming this evening to see if you are available for some private entertainment." Looking at her again, he shakes his head. He knows that if she would just take a little more interest in herself and keep herself cleaned up she could be a very beautiful lady. Instead, she has allowed her hair to become tangled and ratty, and her skin is dirty, weather beaten and coarse. Underneath all the filth he knows there is a very good-looking young lady because when he hired her she was nowhere near this level of nastiness. "Would you like to have a bath today?" He has asked her this many times, but she has always declined in the past. "I could have Morgan bring the tub to your room, or I could have him stand guard if you would rather."

With a small, sad, smile she declines the offer. "Thank you, but I will wash up to the best of my abilities before coming to work tonight." As always, the sadness is like a cloak around her shoulders that she hides herself away in. "Could I possibly have my time now? I will be behind the bar on time, I promise."

"Eliza, you may take your time. You do not need to ask me all the time. I know that you will be there. You have proven yourself trustworthy since you have been here. I am just concerned that someone will steal you away from me sometime."

"Sir, I have nowhere else to go. No one will steal me away." So saying she walks away toward the nicer areas of the city, but not to the point that she will be yelled at to leave.

Not really paying attention to where she is walking, she bumps into another lady. Thinking that she has bumped into a lady of quality, she immediately looks down and apologizes. She is stunned when the lady reaches out and tips her face up so that it can be seen. Keeping her eyes downcast she doesn't see the recognition that flashes in the other lady's face.

"Rose? That is you, isn't it?" Looking up, she finds herself looking into the friendly eyes of Mari. "Oh, Rose! What has happened to you? Why did you leave like that?" Trying to draw her along, Mari pulls Rose's arm through her own, but Rose refuses.

"I'm sorry, Mum. Ye must have me confused with someone else. Me name is Eliza. Please, Mum, I am so sorry that I bumped inta ya. Please let me go."

Instantly compassion crosses Mari's face. "Where are you now, Rose?"

"Mum, I don't know who this Rose is, but I be Eliza." Looking around in a panic Rose frees herself and hurries away, going back in the direction that she came from. Within minutes she is rushing into the tavern and up to her sleeping area, rushing right past the proprietor in the process. Throwing herself onto her sleeping mat she bursts into tears. Unknown to her, Mari kept up with her and took note of which establishment she went into.

Later that evening, when the tavern is full of rambunctious sailors that haven't seen the shore in much to long, a stranger walks in. Sitting down at a corner table, he surveys the room until his eyes rest on Eliza. With her hair in even more disarray than it was earlier, and her filthy dress slightly askew from dodging the pawing hands of sailors, there is not much that would make one think that she had been brought up as gently as she was. Only this stranger knows for certain when he sees her eyes because the life that had been in them and had drawn him to her all those months ago is gone. Her eyes are dead. Sure, she is laughing and flirting as she refills the mugs, but nothing brings any light into her eyes.

Summoning the tavern's owner over the stranger asks him about her, and what her story is. What the owner tells him breaks his heart a little bit more with every word.

It seems that the tavern owner heard a woman screaming about five months before and went to investigate -- something he otherwise never did. To his dismay he found a woman being brutally raped by numerous men. What had made her scream was when one of them brought out a knife. Thankfully the tavern owner was a very large man and he waded into the melee and saved the woman from any more humiliation. When he brought her inside and up to a room she immediately thought that it was to have sex and so she asked him what he liked, and then she blacked out. Over the next three days she was in and out of consciousness and at one point the doctor had to be called in. When she finally regained her senses she was as she appeared now. She said her name was Eliza and she needed work. Since the only type of work that she was trained in was on her back, she needed to find a place to rent. The tavern owner took pity on her and gave her a job at his bar because he knew that men knew that the girls that worked for him were not for hire.

"Sir, the lady that you call Eliza is known to me as Rose. Her whole name is Mary Elizabeth Rosemary Johnson, and she is from an estate house that is just a short distance from my own. I have been searching for her for six months." Looking at what she looks like now, he knows a great shame, because he realizes that what she is is because of him and what he did to her. "Sir, I would like to talk to her, but I do not know how she will react to me. I mean her no harm. Could I have her serve me a mug of your best ale and whatever you are serving tonight?"

"Milord, I will have her serve you, and I hope that she is, in fact, the lady that you are looking for. She is one that I know does not really belong in this lifestyle and I would love to see her cleaned up and back into her original life."

"I was tipped off of her location, so I brought a friend of hers and some of her clothing as well. Is there any way that, before she serves me she could be washed and clothed as she should be?"

"Sir, I have offered her a bath every day, but she never takes me up on it. Instead she goes to her sleeping area and cries. It would take quite a bit to get her into a bath, I fear.

"Okay, forget that. I do not want her to run again. Just have her serve me and we will go from there."

After a short discussion, Rose walks over to the stranger in the corner with a plate of food and a mug of ale. Without looking at him she places the food in front of him and when he reaches out and gently grips her wrist she lets out a sigh as her whole person seems to sag down.

"I knew that you would be here soon, Milord. What would have of me?"

"Rose, I would have you come home."

"Sire, my home is here. This is where I belong. I am nothing more than a whore now, and I have been lucky to have found a place to work that I do not have to make my money on my back. Please forget that you have found me. The one you knew as Rose is dead. Eliza is who I am now, and I would just ask that you allow Rose to die. Please, just forget about me."

"No! I did this to you, and I am responsible for you! Please, Mari is outside and she is very concerned about you. Please let her help you get cleaned up and we will talk." Just at that minute Mari walks in, accompanied by the owner, and walks up the steps to the rooms that are to rent. Behind her she is surprised to see two men carrying a trunk. After a moment she is again surprised to see the two men come back down the steps and bring up the wooden tub a moment later.

Lord Cumberland gently takes her arm and guides her toward the steps, but before they get there she breaks free and run for the door. Within two steps he has me again. "No! Leave me alone! Please, just leave me. I am who I am, and you can't change that."

Gathering her up as he would carry a baby Lord Cumberland carries her up the steps to the room. Quietly he talks to her the whole way. "Rose, I am so sorry. If I would have known that you would react like you have I would never have sold your virginity as I did. I would have handled everything differently. I am the cause of this change in you. Please let me help you out." When she quits struggling in his arms he looks down at her only to find that she has lost consciousness. By the time that he gets her into the room, Mari has covered her dress and is ready to care for Rose.

"Mari, I am hoping that you will be able to break through to her since she fought me."

"Milord, I will not let you down. She was quite the lady when I met her, and I would love to get to know her."

Gently he puts her down on the bed and starts to take her clothes off until he notices that her eyes are open again. "Rose, we are here to help you and take you back home. Right now, Mari is going to wash you and I will wash your hair. You need to be pampered and we are going to do it for you. I spoke with the owner of the tavern, and he would really like it if you would show him how much you appreciated his protection during these last months."

Suddenly she panics and fights away from Lord Cumberland. Trying to keep her dress up on her shoulders she jumps up from the bed. The look in her eyes is wild and as she backs away from them she looks around and panics again. "No! Leave me alone! I am not worth your time. I never was worth anyone's time. Just leave me alone. I will make my way. I can do it. I just have to lay there and let them use me. It is all I am good for now." Unknown to her one of the men that brought up the trunk is standing behind her. He gently takes her arms and pins them behind her so that she cannot throw the item that is in her hand.

Very gently he takes it out of her hand and holds her for Lord Cumberland to take her clothing off. Once her clothing is off Lord Cumberland has to hold back a groan as he sees the ravages that are showing on her body. She is showing scars that weren't there when she left, and they are not in good places. It shows how hard her life was before she was found by the tavern owner. Also, he sees that she has lost a lot of weight since she left him.

"Rose, please, let me help you into the tub."

"I told you, I am Eliza. Rose is dead."

"Please, let me help you." Mari starts talking to her and Rose turns towards her. "Eliza, I know that when we bumped into each other today you got scared because you thought I was a lady of quality. I am no better than you. If you would like, I could teach you how to attract the right sort of men so that you never have to work like this again. You will be kept in the finest houses and have the finest clothing that you can imagine. You could even, someday, own your own carriage." Talking gently to her, Mari coaxes Eliza over to the tub. "I just need you to help me get you cleaned up. Tonight you will sleep in a real bed with real sheets and a real blanket, but I need to get you cleaned up before that can happen. Will you trust me to help you?" Hesitantly Eliza nods. "Can Lord Cumberland help me? I know that he is not as good as a lady's maid, but he is all that we have available to us. I could have him wash your hair so that I can style it for you in a way that I know that you will like. It may take him a while to wash all the knots and tangles out of your hair, but it will keep his hands busy while I get the rest of you cleaned up. Will you allow us to do this?" Almost in a trance she nods her head and gets in the tub. Gently Mari takes a bucket of warm water and slowly trickles some over Eliza's head. This she does again and again until the hair is thoroughly soaked, then she hands Lord Cumberland some soft soap and a towel to use in case any soap gets into her eyes. Carefully he works the soap through her hair and massages her scalp at the same time. By the time he is ready for the first rinsing he sees that Mari has actually managed to wash her face. Now he knows why she let it become as filthy as it was: there are dark shadows under her eyes and the haunted look that is accentuated by her sunken cheeks tells more of the story that her body was telling earlier. It is obvious that she has not eaten enough since she left the estate.

"Eliza, I need you to get out of the tub so that we can empty it and get some fresh, clean water in here and get the rest of you washed." Wildly she shakes her head. "Okay, we will finish washing you in here, but then you are going to get into another tub to be rinsed, is that clear?" Obvious mistrust is there, but she reluctantly agrees.

"Lord Cumberland, would you be so kind as to see if they have another tub that we can fill to rinse Miss Eliza in?"

"I ain't no Miss, just Eliza. I ain't got no hoity toity airs to put on, and even ifn you does get me cleaned up, Oi knows me place. It be roight 'ere on them docks. Oi ain't worth all this trouble ye be taken over me. I just be a worthless whore."

Lord Cumberland has to leave the room very quickly before he says or does something that will set her off again. By the time that he has tracked down the proprietor he has himself under control again and asks for another tub to be brought up to the room.

"Sire, I would appreciate if you would call me by me name. I be Christopher, Sir. Anyone who would go through all of his for a girl loik Eliza has to be something special. I will have the other tub brought up and Morgan will see to the bringing of the water as well."

"Thank you, Mister Christopher. You will be generously rewarded for this."

"Sire, just knowing that someone is going to help Eliza out is enough of a reward. Me wife and Oi never loiked that she was letting herself go. I tried to get her to eat, but I knows that many a noight she ate nothing. When she would eat, she would get almighty sick and that worried us. Can you really help her?"

"I will do my best." By now Morgan has brought up the second tub and is in the process of bringing up the water to fill it with.

Deciding that it may be better to stay out of there for now Lord Cumberland again sits down at the corner table. What seems to be an eternity later, but in reality is only about a half hour, Mari comes walking down the stairs with another lady with her. Lord Cumberland has to do a double-take before he realizes that the other lady is Rose. It is amazing what a bath and shampoo will do to change a person's appearance.

Walking directly up to Lord Cumberland, Eliza looks him in the eyes and asks a question that makes all his guilt come washing back over him. "I cannot perform to my greatest ability in this dress, but if you will accompany me back upstairs I will show you that I have forgotten nothing that you have taught me. I believe your favorite was..."

"Rose! Please stop." Standing he pulls out a chair for her. "Please, have dinner with me and Mari and we will discuss the immediate future." Slowly she sits down and eyes the plate that is put in front of her warily. Lord Cumberland notices that it is only bread and some cheese, but he says nothing. When she picks it up she takes just a little bit off the bread and a tiny piece of the cheese and she nibbles them down.

"I know that you prefer to be called Eliza, but I am finding it hard to do so. May I please call you Rose?" With a sigh she nods her head. "Thank you. Now, I must say that you have cleaned up extremely well and I am wondering if you are even the same girl that fought me so hard about going into the bath." His smile takes the sting out of his words. "Tonight, let me please bring you to my town house. You can have a good night's sleep and when you awake in the morning we will discuss your future."

"Sire, Oi ain't got no future. Me future be roight 'ere. Oh, you can dress me up loik a doll, but Oi is what Oi is. Oi could never be one of them ladies loik Miss Mari here. She be quality all roight. Me, Oi just be a common whore. You yourself told me that. You called me a whore many times so Oi guess Oi should thank ye, Gov'nor. You made me what Oi am. Oi bet you never expected me to be able to take on a whole room at once though. Oi did it. That first night out after your party. Oi had to pay me way to the city, and Oi didn't want to use my coin, so Oi fucked a whole room full of men. They paid me well. One even brought me the rest of the way to London in his foin carriage. Oi just had to pay for the pleasure of riding with him by riding him. He used me in many ways in that carriage, but Oi was glad to have had the training, for he liked the ass as well. When we gets here he decides that Oi will make him some money and when Oi heard what he had in mind Oi left. Oi didn't know where to go, so Oi came to the docks figuring that sailors were usually looking for a good toime and Oi could accommodate them. Oi was roight. Oi made more in one noight than Oi had before. Now Oi just knows that this is what Oi shall be for the rest of me short loife."

Lord Cumberland tries to hold back the tears that he has never before cried, but he wants to right now. "Rose! I never meant that you were a whore to be used by anyone but me! From the moment that I took you in out of the storm and held you against me I knew that you would be mine. When the time came to auction your virginity, I knew that I couldn't let any of those other men have you. I was the one that took your virginity that night. I hated wearing that mask, but those were the rules of the evening. Please, Rose, let me take you home tonight. If you still feel the same way in the morning I will bring you back here, but that will be after you eat and have a relaxing morning."

"Milord, Oi don't want ye to go outa yer way to accommodate the loiks o' me. I understands that ye be feeling guilty 'bout what's become of me, but Oi knows this be what me brother was feared of when he sent me to the convent. He was feared of the fact that Oi loiks me men. Even back then 'e saw how they looked at me and Oi looked roight back at them. Maybe, if Oi can save enough money Oi will open the house to pleasure. Then Oi can get all the cocks Oi need, and still live in a mite bit o' luxury too."

At this exchange Mari gets up and walks outside. Immediately Rose feels sorry that she said what she did, but she has to keep up the Eliza persona if she is going to survive. She looks across at Lord Cumberland and she rightfully figures out that she has him well and truly fooled into thinking that this is the only life that she can see herself in. She cannot let him know that every time a man uses her she died a little bit inside until there was so little of her left that she came up with Eliza so that Rose could survive.