Chapter 3: The Fox in the Cage

The softest chirping of birds echoed through the tiny window, while the sun shone through the tiny slits in the wood that lit up the musty room. A rusty cot had been placed in the right corner of the room while a table with a stool sat on the left, and next to the cot was a broken nightstand. The contents on top of the nightstand were only a small mirror and a candlestick. A nub remained of a white candle that had burned through the night. Wax coated the smallholder and dripped onto the ground leaving dried wax that seemed to outstretch the candle but would never reach home again. A makeshift rug had been made with strips of fabric that once had been a blanket. The makeshift rug had been placed in the center of the room, a barrier between the freezing stone flooring and one's feet. On top of the table was a small bowl filled with water either for drinking or bathing while a wooden hairbrush sat next to the bowl. Another candle had been placed on this table, the candle far less used than the nub that remained of the other. Towards the table on the right sat on the ground a small chest that contained clothes, toiletries, and any other item the small vixen was able to procure, which was not much. She had scrounged everything she owned, grateful that they now seemed to ignore her unless their anger got the better of them. No longer used as a dog's chew toy she had earned her role. After the brutal death of the previous caretaker, she was granted the role of caretaker of the residence, but to a home that did not want her.

Laverna softly yawned listening to the birds arise as she knew she must too. The soft click of the door could be heard as she got up and out of bed. A shiver ran through her spine as the chilled air graced her bare skin which the dark brown potato sack did not cover. Outstretching her arms she felt her spine crack and purred softly in delight. "It's the small things..." She thinks softly to herself before pushing off the cot. The female was rather small, only standing 5'2 and weighing only 115 pounds. Her long orange hair sat in tangles that fell down her back as the natural waves swayed in her movements as she moved toward her chest. Pulling it open, she smiles softly as the scent of lavender fills her nose. The drying petals were another small thing that seemed to bring her happiness. She carefully drew out another potato sack and pulled her night one off her and put the new one on. The scratchy material irritated her skin leaving small patches of red as she threw on a clean pair of undergarments as well.

Her fingers moved toward her hair before grabbing the hairbrush as she brushed the tangles out and placed her hair into a ponytail. Placing the brush back on the table she scooped up some of the water from the bowl, washed her face from the night, and dried it off with a small slip of fabric she had found.

"We got this."

She mumbles softly before moving away from the table and towards the entrance. She had to quickly get to work otherwise a beating would surely greet the day. Her hand carefully and quietly opens the door, not wanting to wake up any of the residents as she slips out of the room and purrs in delight, feeling the warmth of the rest of the home. Through magic, they were able to keep her space cold like an icebox, and the door locked until she was supposed to start her duties. The same magic kept her a prisoner in the home, unable to escape unless the spell was broken... or the family's eradication.

Her body quickly soaked in the warmth of the home. Her skin loses the tint of blue as undertones of pink greet her skin. She was able to stand the cold, yet, with the constant exposure and malnourishment, her body had to fight the cold to stay at a comfortable body temperature. She had kept 2 blankets hidden under her bed in case the family ever came into her room. They helped provide some comfort while she slept but not much. She knew the risks of thievery and if ever caught would be extremely disciplined for it. Surely a finger would be taken for such an action and having 2 blankets would surely be two fingers or more depending on what family member found the stolen goods. Unfortunately, not one of the family members had a redeeming bone in their body.

The head of the home is Thomas Lichtenstein. A huge 6'5 male with a temper that followed his drinking. Long black hair was always pulled back and tied with a string while his hard blue eyes glared at anyone and everything that displeased him, which was most things besides his Can-Do-No-Wrong Family. His far too greedy wife, Magdalene, was a wispy blonde-haired woman with long arms and legs, high cheekbones, and a higher ego. Her nails were as sharp as her tongue and she enjoys giving both physical and emotional whippings to those she deemed beneath her. Their 3 sons, Ronald, Charles, and Gavin were as dumb as a pile of rocks and as vile as their father. Each of the boys treats women with less respect than the last. Yet, women seemed to flock to them like moths to a flame only to be burned. Then their daughter, Abigail, a child and the youngest of the group. Yet, where her brothers lacked brains she was well versed. The little girl captures creatures and enjoyed seeing how they tick. Even more than that, she enjoyed their howls of pain as she poked and prodded their still-working organs. The other families were similar, yet, they seemed to be vanishing relatively quickly, and could only assume the handy work of Thomas and Magdalene, their greed unmatched by others. When one family vanished, they quickly gathered the items either selling them or keeping them for their own while claiming they knew nothing. A bunch of Lies, they do. Death perfumed the air and was a constant reminder of the hell the manor had become.

The manor itself was rather large with at least 4 remaining families from the 15 that had once been. Thomas had built the home to keep control of the families making it a one giant home instead of separate buildings. Each family had their own apartments that held its living spaces. Mostly bedrooms with bathrooms and seating areas. The open spaces are the kitchen, dining room, games room, library, garden, and a few rooms here and there.

Laverna tended to all rooms including the living spaces. The outside was thankfully tended by the gardeners that the family had meticulously called upon. They had also moved in 2 cooks who created 3 meals and various snacks for the family. They hired the cooks because Laverna's cooking was foul and they couldn't stand one more meal from her. In truth, they feared that she would try to poison them as a previous housekeeper had tried. She remembers the previous housekeeper as a good elven man, but he has changed because of living with the Family. Poor planning had the keeper forced to ingest the poison instead of Thomas and the other heads of the families. The family had watched as the elven man writhed on the ground, gagging on his own vomit and blood, his bloodshot eyes searching for help while half of the family screamed in horror and the other laughed, claiming that he gagged for air like a fish. That was the moment that Laverna realized that she would never leave the family alive. She would die here just like the others behind her.

Despite all the horrors she's seen so far, she couldn't think about such dark things. She wasn't being used for sport or training anymore and as long as she did her job and kept her nose down, she figured she had a few more years until death would come.

Verna carefully slipped through the home, keeping in mind the creaks in the floorboards as she made her way toward the cleaning closet. The families would be up soon and get to their daily activities, which are sleep, fuck, eat, play, and repeat. The halls were covered in stolen artwork, statues, and other odd items. The family had a liking to taking what was never theirs to take. For this reason, she kept a tiger eye necklace given to her by her mother a secret and stowed it away under a broken stone that was placed under her bed. There, she kept the few valuables that she had from her family. Her footsteps were silent as she arrived at the cleaning closet. Another soft click could be heard as the door unlocked indicating that she was given access for the day.

Opening the closet, the shelves lined the walls with various cleaning products, cleaning tools, and other items that she would need to clean the home. She placed all the items for the day on a cart, making it easier to go through the rooms. It used to take almost all day and night to finish the chores, yet, she had gotten it down allowing her at least a little more time for herself. Thankfully once Thomas hired the cooks she rarely had to worry about cleaning the kitchen. The cooks usually made sure to clean the kitchen the way that they liked it. The only thing she needed to do was throw out the garbage and place the scraps for the bait. Once the kitchen was finished, she made her way to each of the public bathrooms: Scrubbing the toilets, sinks, and tubs if there were any. Then she cleaned off the countertops and bowls of water if there were any. She would then sweep and hand scrub the floor, dry then scrub one more time and dry again. She repeated the process in each bathroom including the private bathrooms once the family came out of their apartments. In each apartment, she washed the sheets once a week but made the beds daily sometimes several times a day. She grabbed any laundry and threw it down the chute towards the basement. Once clothes were picked up she grabbed any garbage and threw that away, then decluttered anything that needed to be taken care of. Lastly, she swept and mopped the floor through the entire manor. In each room, she cleans, swept, and mopped, making sure that everything was dusted, put away, and organized, otherwise, the wrath of the lord or the lady of the manor would fall upon her.

Other than cleaning the home, she was also expected to tend to the "bait". She hates going to the cages, the constant reminder that she could be thrown back and forced to run for her life while the screams of others echoed behind her. She had been the remaining survivor of her clan after the other children had been ripped to shreds as if they were nothing but dolls. Their ears and tails were used as accessories, interior decorations, or sold off to the highest bidder. She had the taste of what the hounds could do. Their teeth had sunken into her flesh many times but she refuses to give up, fighting them with everything she had until they were forced to let go and the chase begins once more. After each end of the hunt, a small part of her wished that she had allowed the dogs to kill her. How she clung to the idea of rejoining her family. She wanted nothing more than to be hugged by her mother or told how special she was by her father. Yet, she was stubborn, and giving up was not how her parents had raised her. She fought hard for everything and gave it her all. This couldn't be what her life was supposed to be like. Her fingers trailed over her scarred arms before she pushed open the entrance to the cage doors.

The stench of feces and decayed food filled the cages, and vomit and other bodily fluids seeped into the floor. Unlike her room, the cages were kept heated, making the bait smell up to high heaven. The scent makes it easier for the pups to track their prey. The entire room was filled top to bottom with 5x5 cages. Depending on how the family was feeling, some cages had only one person in them while others were cramped to see how many could fit in them. Fortunately, they just had a chase so most of the cages were empty. The ones who had survived were placed in individual cages, many chewed up from their ordeal. Whimpers filled the room as well as the labored breathing of others. The hunts were brutal and only when one more of the prey was left standing would the victor be allowed to either die by their own choice or be enslaved to the family. Their minds were lost from the horrors they had faced in the hunt. Most chose to die, refusing to be forced into slavery, and decided that death was the better option. Laverna had chosen life.

"Food..."

She says as her stomach grumbled, softly pushing molded pieces of bread through the tiny slits. Most ignored her as they knew she was unable to help. She had tried in the past, yet, the bait had a quick death and a rather brutal beating took place on her as the scars evident on her back from the whipping. She moved through each cage, placing the food and drink for them to take before cleaning out the empty cages. She picked up random items that had been left behind, let it be jewelry, coins, or other odd things. Many had tried to hide them, hoping to come back for them. The hunt's "participants" run naked thus their clothes lay in piles in the cages. She carefully placed the items in the container so the family could go through them before leaving the area. She hadn't realized how quickly her heart had raced until she stepped outside and the stench evaporated from her lungs.

A soft sob escapes her lips before the clicking sound of heels could be heard. Shaking off the tears she looked down watching blonde hair wisp by her before the words "Filthy girl..." escaped Magdalene's tongue. She continued to walk before stopping and snapping her fingers.

"Dog, did you clean the bathrooms?"

Laverna looks up but keeps her eyes down nodding. Magdalene snapped.

"I can't fucking hear you, brat!"

Verna nods again before speaking.

"Yes, Mistress. I cleaned the bathroom as well..."

A harsh 'tsk-tsk' escaped the woman.

"I did not ask you to go on, dog. Go and make sure that my snoopy bear is okay. He had the runs last night."

With that, she continued walking, the clacking of her heels all that remained until it fades, the presence of death no longer there.

Laverna finished her tasks for the day and let out a soft sigh, moving the cart back into the closet. Her body was sore from cleaning the fireplaces but she was grateful that it wouldn't need to be done for another week. Her stomach growled as hunger took root. Moving through the home, she was mindful to stay out of sight of the family members, not wanting any of their wraths, slipping into the kitchen. It was rather large with filled pantries and shelves full of herbs and spices from near and far lands, arranged from cheapest to expensive. The stone flooring had been cleaned to perfection while the walls seemed to be a pristine white. A walk-in freezer was in the back corner and along the wall were tables for prepping meals. A large cauldron sat in the middle over a firepit as a stew boiled filling the room with aromas that made Vern's mouth water.

Eli, one of the cooks was busy chopping onion while Stephen was smoking from a pipe. The men looked at her, then looked away, knowing as instructed that they were not allowed to speak to her. Stephen blew out from his pipe, his long white hair flowing around him like a waterfall as he blows the smoke in the direction of one of the tables. Her eyes follow as a soft smile escapes her lips. On the table was a small piece of bread with an even smaller bowl of stew. He smiled softly at her before moving over and helping Eli with the rest of dinner. The two weren't horrible, but they knew their place as well as hers.

They didn't need to feed her but Stephen had lost his daughter to a freak accident so she put it together. He seemed to be the only one in the house that cared about her. And even that was loose. The man could only do so much. He was employed by the family and if he stepped out of line he would follow the others that had disappointed the family. With that threat, she quickly devoured the meal not wanting to cause any harm to the men before a rather disturbing gasp echoed through the room. Looking at the entrance Abigail stood there with a dead cat in her grasp. She held the feline's throat at her side and grinned, with a smile from ear to ear, full of malice.

"Ooooo I'm telling mama."

She said with a cackle escaping her lips as she bolted towards wherever her mother would be found. Coldness ran through Laverna as she stood up looking at the men in horror. Even food that was given to her would be taken as thievery. Her body tingled with fear as she moved away from the table. She would surely be beaten or worse, she'd be thrown back into the cages. The two men would be punished as well as tears began to form in her eyes.

"I... I..."

She says softly before a loud scream from Magdalene could be heard. The dreaded clicking of her heels echoed closer and closer before the door was slammed open. Magdalene walked into the kitchen, wrinkling her nose and crossing her arms, her scowl full of disdain. Thomas followed suit standing next to her looking unimpressed but a rage boiled in his eyes.

"I have clothed you, housed you, and taken care of you… And you steal from us!"

Magdalene croaks out looking horror-stricken.

"You are a spoiled brat! All you do is take, take, take!"

She glances at Thomas and pretends to sway. Thomas took her hand and pats it.

"Thomas, my love. I don't know what to do with her. She's too much!"

She says gasping while Abigail grins wickedly, her rather uncanny canines sharpened to points as she stands behind her parents, looking at Laverna. The child's eyes grinned at her and if she could, her head probably would have rotated in a full 360.

"I'm so sorry..."

Laverna began to say before she felt something yank her to her feet. A whimper escaped her as Thomas shook his head.

"You do not speak, you ungrateful brat!!! Don't you see what you have done to my love?! You will be punished, this instant!!! BOYS!"

He yells out. Soon after, Ronald, Charles, and Gavin seem to appear in the room looking lazily around.

"Yes, father?"

Ronald asks, being the oldest. He looks at Laverna and wrinkles his nose, looking at her with disgust, then looks back at his parents, returning his face to normal.

"What is she doing here?"

He asks before the other two look at her with the same disgust. Yet, a glimmer of lust shines through Gavin's eyes making her skin crawl. Thomas once again speaks.

"She stole from us, son! You boys take her to the post and do whatever! We have grown tired of her!"

He snapped again while grabbing a handful of Laverna's hair, lifting her, and throwing her to the boys. Gavin catches her, licking his lips, smiling with a disgusting lecherous grin, smelling her as the other boys look at her with disgust. Ronald nodded, walking in the direction of one of the torture rooms. Gavin lifts Laverna like a sack of potatoes, slinging her on his shoulder as the boys take her away. Magdalene commented.

"She did a poor job cleaning anyway."

Magdalene says, grinning while slipping from the room and pulling her husband along with her. Abigail looked at Laverna, smiling, and waved at her goodbye with the dead cat's paw, giggling sweetly, then looks at the two scared cooks in the Kitchen, smiling at them as she left, skipping while swinging the dead cat, holding it by its neck.

She had hoped it will be the last time the Family's wrath came upon her, but she knew deep down that this is an everyday occurrence for them as if it is normal. Pain laced through Laverna's back as the crack of the whip once more dances across her skin. Thankfully, she hadn't lost a finger and had been given to the mercy of the drunken 3. She whimpered as another crack echoed through the hall as the whip once again slid across her skin. Her clothes had been removed as the men enjoyed lash after lash, touching her in her most sensitive areas as the torture continues through the night. Blood trickled down her body and her frame, violating her from head to toe. She had stopped sobbing, and her eyes were no longer able to produce tears due to crying mostly for various reasons. She had passed out a few times but the cold water had been thrown on her before everything started back up. Her vision continued to dance in front of her as her wrists were bruised from being tightly strapped to the post. She quietly whimpered, not wanting them to have any satisfaction. She hoped that they would get bored and move on. To her delight, they eventually did, leaving her broken and battered on the pole in the basement.

Her room not far off she carefully slid up the pole, soft cries escaped her as the wounds of her back reopened with the movements, managing to get her hands up and over the post. She crawled towards her room, grateful that it had been unlocked and unbound by her hands. She crawled into her cot and curled up into a ball.

"Death... please come..."

She whimpered, crying herself to sleep before the darkness consumed her.