strange

A strange feeling of gaze appeared in Esther's mind. She instinctively ran into the alley and huddled behind several trash cans, crazily muttering "Don't find me" in her heart.

The feeling of a barrier appeared on her body again, which made Esther relax and squat quietly. She heard footsteps stopping at the entrance of the alley.

"...It doesn't seem like...going forward?"

"The channel...it has to be you...it's very convenient."

"Not necessarily...keep looking and ask the captain..."

Esther couldn't hear the detailed conversation clearly, but the people at the entrance of the alley left quickly, which made Esther relieved. She squatted in place for a long time before carefully touching the entrance of the alley.

There was no one around, and the dim sunset reflected the exhaustion on her face.

Next to the vegetable market street, Esther went to many stores. Even though Esther's requirements were as low as food and sleeping in the store, no one wanted to look at her appearance, clothes, and age. Let her stay. When Esther walked out of a meat shop with an angry look on her face, the sky was almost completely dark. When she thought of the men dressed as sailors who had teased her in a dirty way and even told her that she could get money while sleeping, Esther felt... The urge to tear their mouths apart.

To be honest, Esther believed that with the "skills" she had shown before, it would be absolutely fine if she wanted to steal for a living, but out of dignity, she was disgusted with doing so.

Esther rubbed the centre of her right eyebrow irritably. She couldn't be the kind of thief who robbed the rich and gave to the poor, right?

"Little guy, why are you standing here alone?"

The old voice came to mind from behind, and Esther, who was in a daze, immediately turned around and saw an old woman with grey and curly hair, wrapped in an apron, standing at the door of a bakery, looking at Esther curiously but without malice. star.

"Hello grandma, I'm sorry, I'm leaving now."

But the old woman waved to Esther: "Don't worry, I think someone told me about you... Fiona! Come out and take a look!"

Esther hesitantly walked closer to the old woman. She didn't understand why the old man would say that someone mentioned her. Did she know anyone in this body? Will there be any conflicts if we get involved?

But seeing the old woman's gentle attitude, Esther did not run away directly. Instead, she stood quietly at the door, waiting for "Fiona" to come out.

"What, Wendy, what are you asking me to see? I still have to wash those trays...ah, it's you!"

The middle-aged woman who came out looked very familiar. Esther remembered in a few seconds that it was the lady who helped her snatch back her wallet in the morning.

The woman stepped forward and held Esther's hand gratefully. Her hands were covered with rough calluses: "Thank you so much for this morning. Thank you so much. Those bullshit thieves deserve to die!"

"No, you're welcome! Really..." Esther blushed. She didn't need to imagine how silly the smile on her face could be. What made her even more embarrassed was that her stomach made a very positive "Gurg~" the sound of.

The old man laughed: "If you don't mind, there are some leftover bread sticks. Come on, I'll thank you on Fiona's behalf."

"Really, is it really possible? I..." Esther gritted her teeth, "Actually, can I work here? I don't need money, as long as I have some food! I can live somewhere else -"

The woman looked at Esther and was stunned for two seconds. Then she grabbed Esther's wrist and pulled her into the bakery without saying anything else: "If you don't say anything else, if you are wandering on the street again at this hour, I will treat you like this." It's too dangerous for a lady. Eat something first."

After swallowing a whole loaf of rye bread with cold water, Esther felt full. Although the bread was dry, hard and not tasty, she was filled with gratitude at this time.

"I'm Fiona Groening, this is Wendy Slim, this 'Slim's Bakery' is her family business, because her son went to work at the railway station, so Mrs Wendy hired me in the shop Help. What about you? What's your name?"

Esther couldn't directly tell her her original name, which was too different from the name here, so she racked her brains to make up a word that wasn't too inconsistent: "Ai, Esther."

"Where's your last name? Do you need us to help you find your family?"

Esther subconsciously clenched her fists. Just when she hesitated to answer, something in her sleeves twisted. Esther felt the meaning of the little insect, and immediately understood and said: "Mon? Esther... Meng, I don't know where my family is…"

The little bug seemed to be angry again. He thought Esther was too stupid and didn't tell him her last name in full.

Wendy shook her head: "Meng? Are you probably not from Tingen? I've been here for so long and I've never heard such a surname before."

Fiona was thoughtful, pulling the corner of Esther's clothes and stroking the fabric of her clothes: "Could it be that you are a trafficked person from the port? Why are you wearing such clothes? After all, this is a standard suit. , it won't be much cheaper."

"I don't know. I wore these clothes when I was awake and passed out in a basement, so I climbed out quickly." After lying, Esther's thinking became much smoother. She She lowered her head and wrung her hands uneasily, hoping that these two kind women would not refuse her request to stay.

Neither Wendy nor Fiona was suspicious of these words, but instead trusted Esther more and more.

Perhaps Esther looked too pitiful, and her current behavior was shy and harmless. Thinking of the girl's kind act of snatching back her wallet in the morning, Fiona felt compassion and patted Wendy on the shoulder: " Let her live in a warehouse like me first? Since she doesn't have to pay wages anyway, it's always good to have more people to help."

Wendy did not agree immediately, but thought about it for more than ten seconds: "Is there really no trouble?"

Fiona turned to Esther: "Esther, we have to make an agreement first. If someone comes to find you, we won't be able to keep you. You can only go back with your family or something."

Esther nodded quickly: "I don't know how I got here. If anyone knows me, I will definitely go with them! I won't trouble you!"

Wendy smiled happily. Her age and experience were enough for her to see the sincerity of Esther's words. She patted the girl on the head: "She is a sensible child. Then help in the store first, winter It's almost here, it's not going to be nice to stay outside."

Esther was so happy that she almost cried. The grievances she had been feeling all day long melted away under Wendy's gentle pat. She nodded desperately with tears in her eyes: "Thank you! Thank you, Ms. Wendy and Ms. Fiona! It's really great." Thank you..."

"But I need to prepare some clothes for you. You need to change into this suit quickly, otherwise it will be too eye-catching."

Fiona took off her suit jacket for Esther, and Esther quickly took out the wallet: "Then the money in this will be given to you! Just treat it as accommodation fee? Tuition fee? I don't know these coins at all... …"

Fiona and Wendy looked at each other, confirming the possibility that Esther had been trafficked. However, her Loen language did not have much of an accent. Considering that some wealthy families let their children learn several languages ​​from a young age, the two could not help but let them know. Women have many associations with Esther's life experience. Thinking about the wild rumors about the missing children from the port, Fiona has a rough idea in her heart.

The two quickly refused: "No need, no need. We don't need your money. Just follow the rules and help in the store."

Fiona waved her hand: "And you must live with us. If something happens, we will also be responsible for you."

Esther felt a warm current flowing through her body, but she was still worried: "But, I... I don't have any skills, I can only do some rough work..."

Wendy smiled: "Don't worry, you can learn slowly, as long as you can learn to read and write, it will be a big help for us. Otherwise, we need to hire someone else to do these things. Isn't it a loss of money?"

"That's right, that's right, there are also pastries and doughnuts, and some are easy to learn!" Fiona took the wallet from Esther's hand and placed it on the table with a smile. "We don't take this money. , I will keep this thing for you."

Esther had no choice but to accept it, and then put on the jacket obediently.

Then, she realized that the clothes were a bit too big, and she had to roll up the sleeves to reveal her thin arms.

The old man laughed heartily: "Haha, it doesn't matter, you will get used to it after a while. You should sleep well today. You are tired."

Esther nodded hard: "Well, I'll get up early tomorrow to help with the work."

"Go upstairs and choose a room by yourself. If there is no one inside, you can go in." Wendy pointed to the wooden staircase leading to the second floor. "But remember, don't run out. You don't know the situation in Tingen. People, there are some bad guys who will rob you of money and kill people at night."

Esther shuddered, but she didn't forget to thank Wendy and Fiona again before turning around and walking towards the stairs.

"Good night, two big sisters, thank you again..."

The old man looked at Esther's thin back and shook his head helplessly: "She looks like a cat that has been blown up by the wind. It's very pitiful. It's not a big deal if she takes a bath."

"That's right, that's right, you still have to cook and wash yourself. Let's see how long she can hold on...but look at her, she doesn't look like the kind of person who has a disease." Wendy watched Esther walk up to the second floor. . "Anyway, let her sleep well today, and we will talk about other things tomorrow."

When Esther returned to her room, she felt like she had lived in this building for decades. Everything around her was so familiar and warm. She touched the clean sheets and smelled the faint fragrance of soap. Esther felt that she had been reborn.

When the door was closed, Esther suddenly felt exhausted. She lay down on the bed and closed her eyes, feeling the long-lost warmth gradually surrounding her.

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