even moved one iota until a
horn blasted us awake at five-thirty in the morning.
We all sprang up, alarmed and disoriented,
our pulses racing.
The Assistant stood at the doorway, holding
an enormous book up in her hand. She dumped it on the nearest
woman’s bed. It thudded, making a huge indent.
“These are the Rules for this Camp. I
recommend you read up on them in the fifteen minutes you have
before you must be ready for pre-breakfast exercise.” She lingered
at the door. “I suggest you particularly look up Consequences and
Punishments. See you soon.”
“Can anyone even focus enough right now to
read?” asked a very groggy lady, sprawling against her pillow once
the Assistant left.
“I couldn’t give a shit about their rules,”
said another in a weary voice, and there were enough echoes of that
sentiment to satisfy us all.
I sat on my bed, yawning hugely. “We need to
stick together. Don’t let these arseholes separate and divide us
with their stupid rules.”
“I’m with you,” smiled the doctor’s ex-wife
from across the room. “What’s your name? I don’t want to call you
Chunky, because you’re nowhere even close.”
I smiled at her tiredly. “I think I might
adopt you as a second mum soon if you keep being so nice to me. My
name’s Tilly, and I’m not fucking chunky.”
A couple of the ladies applauded me, and then
the others joined in. I was comforted by their reassurance.
The older lady I’d helped yesterday smiled at
me. “Apart from that young lady,” she said, nodding to a very
plain, shy teenager at the far end of the room, who hadn’t said one
word so far and blushed even at the mention of herself, “you’re the
youngest person here. And I think you’re gorgeous. Oh, for your
figure again! And for your self-confidence.”
“Aw, thank you so much. That’s very kind of
you.” I slumped on my bed, staring up at the water-stained,
fire-retardant tiled ceiling. “You know, that’s what we need to do.
We need to support each other to get through this. Let’s not ask
questions or complain to those ‘assistants’. It just leads to more
punishments for all of us. We don’t need that. I don’t know about
you ladies, but I’m supposed to be stuck here for a month. Fuck
that!”
“Dearie,” said the older lady. “I think
you’re gorgeous, but I don’t like your sweary mouth.”
“I’m sorry. My mother wouldn’t either. But
I’m so angry at the moment.”
“So am I,” spoke up the teenager in a soft
voice. We all turned to her in surprise. She blushed more
furiously. “My stepfather hates me. He sent me here. He told me the
sight of me made him sick.” She sat, head down, nervously plucking
at her fingernails.
There was a huge murmuring of support for the
young lady. Mr Doctor’s ex-wife (Ariadne, I learned later) quickly
crossed the room to hug her.
“Don’t listen to him. You are beautiful just
the way you are, darling. Some people are so cruel and judgmental
of others that it virtually robs them of their humanity.”
The young girl, Jessie, looked up at her in
wonder as if that might be the very first time in her life that
anyone had ever given her some encouragement.
“Thank you,” she said so softly, I’m not sure
all heard her.
I jumped to my feet, though I was exhausted.
“Okay, this is what we’re going to do. No matter how much it kills
us, we will be subservient to these fu. . .” I looked over and saw
the disapproving glance of the older lady. I smiled at her. “We will be subservient to these not-nice people and we will support each other. They said we could, so let’s do it.
If you see someone in Bunker One struggling during a physical
exercise, and you have the capability to help them, then help them
to the end.” I looked around at the other women. “No woman left
behind, right?”
I received another nine “rights!” before I
was satisfied and the Assistant barged her way back into the room.
We’d carefully arranged