The Next Day
Lina woke up and quietly made her bed.
Her eyes stared blankly at the wall,
but her mind was elsewhere.
"I wonder... is he awake? Did he eat?"
She whispered to herself:
"He's still so little... Even though I saw you yesterday, I already miss you."
Her thoughts were interrupted by a soft voice at the door.
It was Isabella.
– "Lina, Miss Grace is calling for you."
Lina asked quickly:
– "Why? Is it because I left the punishment room last night?"
Isabella smiled gently, trying to reassure her:
– "I don't think so... Maybe they found you a job."
Lina whispered, shocked:
– "A job...? Me?"
She walked nervously to Miss Grace's office.
Knocked softly on the door:
Knock... knock...
A cold voice replied:
– "Come in."
Lina stepped inside, anxious.
Miss Grace didn't even look up.
– "Listen, Lina. You're new here, but you and your brother have already caused problems. I haven't had the chance to explain the rules."
"At this orphanage, every child over twelve must work. I couldn't find any job suitable for you—except one. At a tavern."
Lina gasped:
– "A tavern?! Are you insane?! You want to send me to a place full of drunkards and lunatics—alone?!"
Miss Grace's eyes sharpened as she said sternly:
– "Lower your voice. Speak respectfully. If you want you and your brother to survive, deal with it."
"Your hours will be from 8 AM to 7 PM. Your job is simple: clean the place, the glasses, and the tables. The tavern's name is 'The Crow's Lantern'. Now leave."
Lina hesitated,
but one look at Miss Grace's cold stare made her turn and leave.
She stepped out of the orphanage and into the loud, messy streets of the city.
Vendors shouted.
Carriages rattled over cobblestone.
Children yelled.
Drunk men laughed.
Somewhere nearby, a violin played.
She approached a man selling apples.
– "Excuse me... Where can I find 'The Crow's Lantern' tavern?"
The man raised his eyebrows and laughed loudly:
– "What's a little girl like you doing in that place? New worker, huh? Want to end up hurt like the one before you?"
Lina swallowed hard,
but another man nudged the first and said sharply:
– "Shut up, idiot."
He turned to Lina and said more gently:
– "Go right. Keep walking. You'll see a worn wooden sign that says 'The Crow's Lantern'."
– "Thank you."
Lina followed the path.
Drunken men stared at her and laughed.
One waved a bottle in her direction.
She clutched her coat and walked faster.
Finally, she reached the tavern.
A broken wooden sign hung above the door, carved with the words:
"The Crow's Lantern"
She pushed the door open slowly.
The thick smell of alcohol and smoke hit her.
Strange men turned to stare—
as if a wild animal had just walked in.
A bald, overweight man with a stained shirt walked up to her.
– "You... skinny girl. Are you the new worker?"
Lina nodded silently.
– "You're late."
She didn't answer.
– "Fine. Come clean the glasses."
She obeyed.
The rest of the day passed uneventfully.
Not as bad as the merchant said...
Or maybe they were just being quiet on her first day.
When her shift ended,
the bald man called her over, surrounded by laughing men:
– "Come here, skinny. Time for your pay."
She walked over.
He held up a small cloth pouch,
but instead of handing it to her,
he threw it to the man across the table.
– "Go on, get it."
Lina hesitated,
but stepped toward the second man.
He didn't give it to her either—he threw it again.
More laughter.
They kept tossing her pay around like a toy.
Mocking her.
Laughing.
She stood still.
Embarrassed.
Humiliated.
Eyes burning with tears...
But she didn't cry.
Finally, one of them groaned, bored.
– "Enough."
He threw the pouch on the floor.
– "Take it."
She bent down, grabbed the pouch,
and left without saying a word.
Outside, the sky was gray.
The ground was wet.
She walked through the streets in silence,
clutching the pouch in one hand—
and her pride in the other.
Back to the orphanage.
Back to silence.
Back to survival.