The wind, like a heavenly shepherd, drove the gloomy clouds across the sky, and the air sharply smelled of rain.
In the yard, on an inconspicuous bench by the flowerbed, sat a young girl who, with her eyes covered by her hands, quietly cried.
It seemed that the approaching rain did not frighten her at all, and she was so immersed in her sorrows that she noticed nothing around her.
The first, heavy drops of rain had already fallen on the asphalt, signaling that a downpour would break out in a minute or two.
Residents of nearby high-rises hurried to get home to avoid being caught off-guard by the bad weather.
No one paid attention to the crying lonely girl except for the janitor Klavdia Nikitichna, who couldn’t just pass by.
“Hey, dear… Why are you crying? It’s about to rain, and you’re sitting under the open sky… Did something happen?” she asked the stranger, touching her sleeve.
“Something happened, auntie…” the girl said through tears, shyly looking at the janitor.
“Well, you can’t help your grief with tears… Especially now that it’s going to pour… Come with me to my storage room, you can tell me everything there,” said Klavdia Nikitichna, leading the tearful girl to the basement where she had a room set up for storing tools.
After closing the door behind her, the janitor first put the kettle on the electric stove and seated her guest in an old armchair in the corner.
At that moment, a real downpour with thunder and lightning slashing through the sky erupted outside.
Meanwhile, the change of scenery benefited the girl, who stopped crying and gratefully looked at Klavdia Nikitichna.
“So, dear… Tell me what happened and who hurt you?” the woman asked, pouring a cup of hot tea for her guest.
Taking a deep breath, the girl sniffled and began her story.
As it turned out, the stranger was named Dasha, and she had come from a remote, godforsaken taiga village.
Daria was an orphan and had recently buried her grandfather, the only family she had.
In search of a better life, she moved to the city, where she got a job as a warehouse worker at a food base.
After working for the required month, she eagerly awaited her salary, but as it turned out, the cunning employers had deceived the provincial orphan, accusing her of a huge shortage.
Thus, the unscrupulous dealers wanted to force the unfortunate girl to work for them for free using the unpaid debts.
Barely escaping from this trap, Dasha left aimlessly, now not knowing what to do next.
Klavdia Nikitichna, without uttering a word, patiently listened to the guest, occasionally shaking her head in dismay at human malice.
Then, coughing, she said:
“Oh dear, such things do happen… But don’t worry, maybe I can be of some help to you…
My daughter works at an agency… They’re hiring staff for hotels and homes of wealthy people… Everything is honest and without deceit… Basically, if you want to work, everything else will fall into place.
So, shall I put in a good word for you?”
Dasha’s eyes lit up when she heard such a good offer for herself:
“Of course, Aunt Klav!!!… I have plenty of desire… Especially since I need to live for something…
“Well, that’s settled then. You’ll stay with me tonight, and tomorrow you’ll go for an interview. In your situation, this is a profitable option, Dashenka…,” Klavdia Nikitichna replied, smiling encouragingly at her guest.
That day, they chatted until late evening, feeling a growing mutual sympathy for each other.
Aunt Klava, as promised, called her daughter and explained the situation.
The next morning, Dasha was already given the address of the house where she was soon to work as a maid.
The house was located in an elite cottage area, where one building was more beautiful than the other.
At first, Dasha felt like she had entered a fairy-tale city where kings and queens lived in beautiful castles.
But when she found the address she needed, she was simply stunned by everything she saw.
The mansion of her future employers turned out to be so large that it stood out even against the palaces of other wealthy citizens of the village.
The homeowners, Adelina Vasilievna and her son German Viktorovich, welcomed Dasha warmly.
Their demands were quite acceptable, so both the worker and the employers were generally satisfied with each other.
But especially, Dasha appealed to German, who from the first day of acquaintance began to show her various signs of attention, literally undressing her with his eyes.
Daria did not understand the young owner’s gaze, as the house was preparing for a wedding at the moment, and according to Adelina Vasilievna’s opinion, the bride came from a very rich and influential family.
“Why would you need me… An orphan, a pauper,” Dasha thought, embarrassed by German’s lustful looks.
The girl did not know that her owner’s passion was women, whose hearts he broke with shocking regularity.
Adelina Vasilievna turned a blind eye to her son’s antics, believing that a man at a young age needed to interact with the opposite sex to gain experience.
Towards German, Dasha behaved pointedly cold and polite, trying not to stand out and not attract attention to herself.
Unfortunately, her appearance did not give the young owner peace, and one evening, in desperation, he decided to go to extremes.
Dasha had just finished her chores and was about to go to sleep in the servant’s quarters.
But German, who had ambushed the maid in the kitchen, grabbed her by the hand and literally dragged her to one of the many guest rooms.
The young rascal was drunk and could no longer restrain his desires.
“German Viktorovich, what are you doing? What do you want from me? I’m going to scream now…” Dasha timidly protested.
“Scream as much as you can… You’ll scream, and tomorrow you’ll be on the street. And also, I’ll write such a review to the agency that they won’t take you as a maid, let alone a cleaner in a barracks…” German said without a trace of embarrassment.
As hard as Dasha tried to resist the brazen owner, she still could not. She liked her job, and German turned out to be very persuasive. The girl cried, kneeling and pleading, but the rich boy did not back down until he got his way.
“Why, German Viktorovich? You’re getting married…” Dasha asked through tears when it all happened.
“Of course, I’m not getting married… What did you think… So what? Keep working and keep quiet. And I’ll throw in a bonus for you,” the wealthy man replied, catching his breath.
Dasha felt so disgusted that she wanted to quit and go wherever her eyes looked.
“But where will I go? Who needs me, an orphan without a penny in my pocket? And I can’t let down Klavdia Nikitichna’s daughter… After all, she vouched for me when they took me without experience and recommendations…” Dasha thought, crying, smearing bitter tears on her face.
Deciding that the encounter with German would be a one-time event, the girl stayed and endured the offense.
It’s worth noting that after everything that happened, the owner behaved as if nothing had happened, evaluatively glancing at the maid.
They say time heals, and Dasha didn’t have much choice, so she preferred to forget about the incident, erasing this unpleasant episode from her memory.
Soon, there was no time to think about the events of that fateful night, as the Wedding Day was approaching, and even the always unflappable German felt inner anxiety about it.
The wedding ceremony and the subsequent three-day celebrations were conducted with special flair and were even covered by reporters from many local newspapers.
After German’s wedding, Dasha breathed a sigh of relief, deciding that now everything was over and the owner would no longer be interested in her.
Partly, this really turned out to be the case. German, portraying a loving husband in front of his influential wife, did not even look her way.
But Dasha didn’t have long to rejoice about it.
One morning, she experienced another bout of nausea and mild nausea, which had been accompanying her for several days.
Trying to dispel anxious thoughts, Dasha took a pregnancy test, the results of which shocked her so much that she lost her speech for a moment.
“God… I’m pregnant… What should I do now? …Such a disgrace… What will people think? Got knocked up by a rich man for money… quite the maid, I must say,” Daria thought, crying and burying her face in the pillow.
Not knowing what to do next, Dasha told German everything, whose fault for what had happened was undeniable.
“Well, you give me news, especially after the wedding… Do you want to ruin my life?
Alright, don’t cry, silly girl. It’s good that you turned to me right away. I’ll call a doctor I know and sign you up for an abortion,” German said, recovering from the initial shock.
“It’s a sin, German Viktorovich… How can you do this?” Dasha tried to object, but the wealthy man waved it off and didn’t want to listen to anything else.
When the owner left, the girl covered her face with her hands and cried loudly, mentally lamenting her own unfair life.
But, as much as Daria wanted to keep the child, on the appointed day, she was already standing in front of the clinic door, where, in a while, her pregnancy was to be terminated.
The girl twice tried to overcome her embarrassment and fear and step inside the medical institution, but each time, something held her back.
The third time, she turned around and, with her head bowed, walked away.
Raised by her grandfather in Christian traditions, Dasha could not commit such an evil act and deprive her unborn child of life.
Recalling the promise given to the owner, the girl took out her phone from her purse and called the wealthy major.
“German Viktorovich, forgive me… Do what you want, I couldn’t do it…” Dasha said, sobbing…
“Well, indeed… She couldn’t do it… You women, only know how to spread your legs… But when it comes to paying up, everyone hides in the bushes… Alright, wait, I’m coming,” German grumbled irritably and hung up.
Dasha waited for him, sitting on a bench near the clinic.
German arrived about twenty minutes later and handed her the keys to a rental apartment and a bag of groceries.
“Here, take this… You’re no longer a maid. Your belly will soon be noticeable, and everything will become clear. Live in the apartment and don’t stick your nose out unnecessarily. Give birth, and then we’ll figure it out…”
Dasha, blushing to the roots of her hair, timidly took the keys and groceries.
“Well, that’s right… Don’t look for me, I’ll find you myself,” the major said as he got into the car and drove off in an unknown direction.
Dasha felt disgusting and sick at heart, but there was no other way out. The girl, who grew up without parents, couldn’t even imagine taking the life of a child.
So, she preferred disgrace and future condemnation to sin.
“Nothing… I’ll give birth, and then… I’ll go back to the backwoods and raise my son or daughter,” Dasha thought, trying to find justification for herself.
Time passed, and throughout the entire term of her pregnancy, German, as promised, visited the former maid, bringing groceries and everything necessary.
Of course, his visits seemed to Dasha like a paltry handout with which the major tried to smooth over his guilt.
Frequent absences of her son aroused suspicions in Adelina Vasilievna, who decided to ask him about everything directly.
Of course, the woman expected to hear anything but this.
“German, are you a complete idiot, brainless? Christina’s father will destroy you… Understand, we’re nothing compared to him… There’s so much money and connections involved that we weren’t even close…
So, while there’s still time, sort things out with the girl…
You made the mess, now learn to clean up after yourself…
Next time, think a hundred times before you jump on the first maid you come across…” Adelina Vasilievna snapped in anger, and slamming the door, she went to her office.
Meanwhile, German, clasping his head with his hands, began to agonizingly think about what to do next.
“Alright, let her give birth… We’ll see what happens. Anyway, she’s now under observation in the maternity hospital,” German thought, pleased with such a sensible decision.
The major seemed to think the situation was under control, and when, a few days later, a happy Dasha called him to report the birth of twins, he already knew what he needed to do.
The babies were born healthy, robust little ones, and to Dasha’s joy, she wasn’t kept in the maternity hospital for long, being discharged a week later.
The young mother’s happiness knew no bounds when she moved into the rental apartment, holding Nastenka and Kiryusha in her arms.
Of course, she didn’t see much joy in German’s eyes, but during her pregnancy, Dasha had become so accustomed to his sorrowful expression that she preferred not to pay any attention to it.
But, as it turned out, Dasha deeply underestimated German’s cunning.
One evening, he arrived cheerful, holding a cake. Pretending to be a caring father, he put Kiryusha and Nastenka to bed, and then sat down in the kitchen to have tea with Dasha.
But no sooner had the girl drunk half a cup when she suddenly experienced severe weakness and dizziness.
Losing consciousness, she noticed how German hid some small vial in his pocket.
Dasha woke up a few hours later in an unfamiliar place. Her head was throbbing painfully, and her vision was blurry.
Gathering her thoughts, the girl realized she was tied up in the back seat of a car she didn’t recognize.
“Where am I going? Where am I?” she asked in a weak voice.
“Quiet, you damned wretch… Look, she’s come to… Don’t fuss, we’ll be there soon,” someone growled at her from the front passenger seat of the car.
Hearing this, Dasha fell back into oblivion and woke up in a hut that looked very much like a forester’s or gamekeeper’s dwelling.
Dasha realized this from the simple field gear and the multitude of various herbs drying above the stove.
The atmosphere in her late grandfather Trofim Petrovich’s watchman’s hut was almost identical to this one, only larger in size.
Dasha’s hands were tied with a rope, and her mouth was sealed with tape.
Listening to the conversation behind the wall, Daria could barely make out snippets of phrases:
“Pity her… Maybe we won’t drown her?” one of her kidnappers rumbled.
“But we got paid, Fed… She gave birth to twins for some rich guy, and they decided to get rid of her…” his partner replied in a nasty falsetto.
Shocked by such news, Dasha looked around, trying to find a way out of the situation.
Suddenly, her gaze stopped on a window, beyond which a forest thicket was visible.
Realizing that this was her only chance to escape, Dasha cautiously turned the latch and flung open the window.
Most likely, her kidnappers had not anticipated such a scenario, thinking that a city girl wouldn’t know how to open the clever locks in country houses.
But Dasha had grown up in a village and had been taught by her grandfather Trofim all the forest’s tricks since childhood.
So, when the kidnappers entered the hut, finally deciding to drown her, the brave girl was already gone.
Dasha ran, making her way through thickets of juniper and wolfberry.
Of course, moving was harder with her hands tied, but having not run even a kilometer, Daria stumbled upon a forest path where a young bearded man with a dog appeared…
Startled, Dasha shrieked and fearfully pressed her back against a tree trunk.
“Don’t be afraid… Trezor won’t bite… It’s a hunting breed, not a fighting one,” the man said quietly, adjusting the cap on his head, its brim cracked with age.
“Please help me… There are bandits… They kidnapped me and wanted to kill me… It’s all because of my poor little ones,” Dasha pleaded, stretching out her bound hands to the guy in protective gear.
The stranger, who turned out to be a local gamekeeper, quickly freed the fugitive from her bonds, and then, without a word, pulled out a radio and contacted the local police officer.
Describing the situation, he gave the approximate coordinates of the criminals’ location.
To Dasha’s surprise, the local law enforcement acted quickly, and soon a search helicopter was circling over the forest.
“Let’s go to the watchman’s hut… I’ll make you some tea… You’re quite beside yourself… My sister just came to visit me…
I thought about not going on patrol today, but Trezor insisted… He probably felt that we would meet you,” the gamekeeper said, smiling and patting the dog on the back.
Dasha, feeling sympathy for this large and strong guy, willingly followed him.
The gamekeeper’s hut turned out to be bright and cozy.
“Oh, Andryush… And who is this with you? Is this your bride?” asked a girl standing in the doorway. From the first glance, her city upbringing and the cheekiness of a metropolis resident were evident.
“No, this is just a girl… you see… She’s in trouble… And I helped… Just pour some tea first… then you can start with the questions,” the guy replied, embarrassed.
Over a cup of fragrant linden tea, calming down, Dasha told her story from beginning to end, just as it really happened, without omissions or understatements.
All this time, the gamekeeper’s sister, Polina, listened attentively to the girl’s story, occasionally making some notes with a pencil in a small notebook.
Answering the unspoken question in Dasha’s eyes, Polina smiled and pulled out a press card from her pocket.
“I came to my brother in the wilderness… To cover the topics of poaching and corruption locally… But your story will be much more important, so rest assured… I won’t let this go, and everyone will know about this case,” the journalist confidently said.
“No, what a scoundrel this rich guy turned out to be… Decided to get rid of his own children’s mother… I would carry them in my arms, but look what he came up with…” Andrei said angrily, secretly liking Dasha deep down.
Soon, the local police officer called the gamekeeper on the radio and informed him that the kidnappers had already been detained and were giving full confessions.
“Well, soon it’ll be this major’s turn… And if it doesn’t reach him, then Polinka with her article will help… She’s known in all the publishing houses… and for such a hot topic, they’ll go all out,” Andrei said, trying to calm the agitated Dasha.
It should be said that the young gamekeeper was right.
Polina’s article was published two days later and caused a real sensation not only among the public but also among the higher echelons of power and law enforcement.
Thanks to the testimonies of the detained kidnappers and Dasha’s story, German was taken into custody.
Due to the wide publicity, the investigation proceeded at a rapid pace, and soon, the wealthy major was sentenced to several years in prison.
Kiryusha and Nastenka, Dasha took from the rental apartment, rejoicing that German had not managed to harm the children.
Adelina Vasilievna, burning with shame, offered the former maid her help, but Daria declined.
The girl decided to leave the city, which had been so unkind to her, and settle in the village, together with the gamekeeper Andrei.
The guy had a difficult past and had already experienced tragic relationships when his wife and daughter died in a car accident.
Therefore, learning about the misfortune that befell Dasha and her children, Andrei gladly accepted them into his home, inherited from his parents.
Of course, initially, Andrei and Daria lived under one roof as friends… But over time, as often happens in life, friendly relations turned into something more, instilling love and feelings in their hearts.
Polina, skilled at understanding people, approved of her brother’s choice and joyfully plays with her nephews, of whom she now has two.
With a mysterious smile, Dasha and Andrei hinted that this was not the limit, and they were considering a third child, who would undoubtedly add a dose of happiness to their solid family life.
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