Chapter 50

The final hurdle had been vaulted and Dan had landed safely on the other side. Serena moved her, meagre, possessions into Dan's home and started her new life. Her clothes and other items were put into the spare bedroom to give the impression that she was just the nanny. She did not sleep in that room.

Serena was happy to be with Dan, but their lives were not easy. She was aware of the looks and comments from other people when she was out and about in the local town. They conspired to make her and Dan's love appear sordid and she did her best to ignore them. The ladies of the leadership class were particularly unpleasant. She did however make friends with some of the other maids and nannies.

Many of the ministers and their families lived in and around the town. Serena found herself mixing with girls who worked for civil servants as well as members of the government. Some were tight lipped about their employers, but others were happy to gossip about what they heard within their places of work.

As she learned the names of the government workers who she could get information on, she fed them back to Dan. After conversations with the others Dan said that they were concerned about Howard Cavendish. Serena would focus on his maid and make sure that they became good friends. What she learned through her in the future could be very interesting.

Grace and Alex did not seem overly concerned by the change in the domestic arrangements. Alex was not bothered by anything as a rule. Grace had asked a lot of questions and had been a bit dubious at first, but had soon settled down. Serena managed to instil discipline but remain their friend, quite well. It was a learning curve for her. She had Phyllis to guide her and support her.

Serena wore the black and white livery of a servant when she took the children out. Dan had reminded her that they were undertaking a clandestine campaign against the OWG and she had to stay low key. That meant that for the moment she had to conform. When she was at home she changed into more comfortable clothes. She even wore trousers sometimes.

The more normal life he was leading made Dan content. He was with a woman he loved and with both of his children. When he saw Serena wandering around the house in slacks, as she called them, he could almost imagine that he was back in his old life. He would look at his old mobile phone occasionally as he tried to stay in touch with the man he used to be.

Living in a house in a leadership town was a big change for Serena. Not that she had experienced much that was normal over the last year. Dan was older with young children. He was not handsome, although she found him attractive. He was from the leadership class. He was not the type of man she had imagined herself ending up with. At what point had he become the focus of her heart. She thought about the first time that they met.

The hotel foyer with its wood panelling and tired carpet, had not been a particularly glamorous setting. She was passing some documents to him having been asked to do so by a member of Bertie's rebel group. She had been told to look for a tall man with a big nose. That was not a description which had piqued her interest as far as romance was concerned.

He didn't look her up and down the way men from the leadership class did. He invited her to sit down. He thanked her for taking the risk to come and see him. Each action had revealed him to be a kind likeable man. Thoughts of him had stayed with her for days after. Yes, it had been pretty much love at first sight, or at least, like a lot at first sight.

When his life had been threatened Serena had warned Dan. If Bertie had found out what she had done there would have been big trouble. Maybe it was at this point, imagining a life without Dan in it, which made her realise how much she cared for him. The rescue at the docks had been romantically heroic. Then when they spoke on the phone and her heart had lurched, she knew it was love.

Dan felt the same way about her and had told her. He was open and sincere and it had seemed natural to move to be with him. Serena's parents had questioned her decision, but she had never doubted it for a second. The couple had travelled to see each other a few times before making arrangements for her relocation.

She would be a nanny for the family. Her mother was not happy about this pretend role. Her daughter would get to live in a big house in a leadership town, but was the cost too high. Serena had not changed her status and if this man, Dan, grew tired of her would she be cast aside?

Had she thought about this happening? Serena had led an eventful life. She weighed up the pros and cons and made up her mind. She would rather be with Dan, however uncertain the future, than settle for a life with someone who she didn't love. She explained this to her worried mother and father and they reluctantly let her go.

She said goodbye to her family. Her mother and father were offering her advice as she walked away.

"Be careful. You can come home at any time."

Even her normally taciturn father chipped in. "Telephone us when you arrive. Your mother will be worried."

Her stomach was in knots. Excitement and fear all jumbled up together. She was moving to live with Dan who she loved. She was leaving her family and her job for the unknown. How simple it had all seemed as she sat on the bus travelling to District 31.

Serena was not naïve. She knew that her position within Dan's household was controversial. On her first trip into town with the children she endured the stares from some of the women. As she passed heads came together and the whispering started. It was hard sometimes to focus on Dan, not the gossips.

And then there were the children. Grace was 5 and Alex was nearly 3. She knew kids around where she used to live, but she did not have to care for them. The welfare and amusement of the toddlers was part of her responsibility now. Thank God for Phyllis who was quietly guiding her in the right direction.

There they were. Huddled in the butcher's shop. She heard them mention Daniel Ellis and knew she was the subject under discussion. These women did not know that she was Serena Wilkins. She had been kidnapped, shot at and surrounded by poison gas. She had survived Bertie Crawford and they were pathetic.

"It is annoying. It is sad. It is bewildering. In the big scheme of things, it does not matter."

Serena told Dan about the leadership ladies. He wanted to go and speak to them. He wanted to escort her to town next time she went. He was her hero.

The other servants she met in town made her laugh about the snobs. Their comments were a bit earthy even for her. They lived a different life compared to Serena. She had the title of nanny, but she was part of Dan's family. She did not have to work very hard. Her friends toiled for long hours and earned very little. They moaned about their employers with good cause.

She found out who worked for which minister. Serena listened to the chat about each of the families that they worked for. Fights between husbands and wives. Drunkenness and gluttony. Affairs with the staff. Rudeness, violence and cruelty. It wasn't all bad. There were acts of kindness and friendships.

"He drinks a bottle of wine every night. I can hear him snoring and I'm on the floor above."

"She might be a leadership lady but she swears like a sailor."

"The dress that she gave me was beautiful. I think she had only worn it once."

It was mostly gossip. The girls were letting off steam and getting a bit of revenge with their indiscretions. As they talked and laughed, Serena could forget the attitude of the bitchy leadership ladies. She was sure that they were not having as much fun as her. One might almost feel sorry for them.

She would listen to what was being said and at some point, there might be something that Dan could use to fight the OWG. Serena had wanted to contribute to the campaign against Salter and now she could. And for once it was not a life endangering mission. She had decided to try to avoid guns at all costs.