Born from the Ashes

Born from the Ashes

By Abigail Fero

Copyright 2013 Abigail Fero

Published by Black Shire Publishing

Smashwords Edition, License Notes

This e-book is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This e-book may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return it to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

Table of Contents

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Chapter 22

Chapter 23

Chapter 24

Chapter 25

Chapter 26

Chapter 27

Chapter 28

Chapter 29

Chapter 30

Chapter 31

Excerpt: Born for a Better Life

Chapter 1

Ben sat at the diner counter. His bowl of soup was almost cold but he wasn’t hungry. After they’d moved to Ohio, finding work had been hard. No one trusted a stranger looking for a cash job. Many of the locals struggled to make ends meet and jobs were scarce for everyone. Money was running short and he felt the weight of his failure sitting on his shoulders. It was compounded by the fact that Gloria was due back in a couple weeks and he’d made no progress while she’d been away.

He sighed, leaning on an elbow over his chicken noodle soup. The diner only had four patrons. Three in the afternoon was a dead time. It was only for unemployed people like him. Ben was spending more money than he could afford, just buying the soup, but he’d needed to get out, be around people.

Something wrong? the waiter asked him. The older man, hair peppered while his mustache was black, and the chef in the back were the only two people working at the diner.

Ben looked up, surprised that the man had even spoken to him. But the guy looked bored, leaning back against the off-white cash register, his arms folded over his stained white shirt.

Trouble finding work, Ben said.

The waiter nodded knowingly, a hank of hair escaping its shell of gel to flop onto his forehead. It’s hard times out there just now.

It’s more than that, Ben said, shaking his head. I need a cash job and…there isn’t anything going that I’ve found. He wondered if he should have said anything.

The waiter stared at him, brushing his fingers through the black mustache. He looked to be considering something. Ben took a spoonful of his soup, trying not to grimace at the amount of salt.

You desperate? the man asked in a studiously casual manner. He was now picking his fingernails.

Ben nodded, feeling ashamed of how desperate he was. They were living in an abandoned trailer they’d found buried in one of the swatches of Ohio trees. Though Gloria hadn’t spent much time there, Ben had been forced to. He hated it and spent as much time in the surrounding areas, looking for work. He hadn’t thought it would be so hard but Ohio was nothing like the South.

I know a place… They do cash jobs. If you’re interested, the waiter said.

Ben sat up straighter on the stool and leaned closer. I’m interested.

The older man shuffled a little closer. You might not be once you get there. But there’s an old hotel about fifteen miles away. They hire…all sorts.

What kind of work?

The waiter shrugged. All kinds. You just go and ask. They’ll find a place for you.

Gloria wasn’t due back for another two weeks. Plenty of time to earn enough money that he could buy her the Swiss Miss hot chocolate he knew she missed. It was luxury they could no longer afford.

Where can I find the hotel? Ben asked.

It’s a weird place, the man warned him. His grey eyes were serious under thick brows. His face was trying to tell Ben something but Ben needed the money. He could deal with weird for money.

That’s fine, Ben said. Just give me the address.

The waiter pulled out his pen and pad and scrawled an address down on the paper. Handing it over to Ben, he watched Ben look at it and then fold it and pocket it.

Ben nodded at him. Thanks.

The man shrugged. I don’t know if you’ll be thanking me later. Like I said…weird. Nobody in town works there. Nobody will. So I know they’ll have something for you. You don’t sound local.

Ben tried to smile. No, I’m not local.

After that exchange, the waiter drifted off to deal with one of his other four customers. Ben slurped through the rest of his soup quickly, eager to be off. If he was fast, he could make it to the hotel before dark. If it was a dead end, he didn’t want to waste too much time on it and if it was a job, he wanted to get started right away.

Though he had to detour back to the trailer in order to get a map and figure out his route, within twenty minutes, Ben was back in the car and on the road. Great expanses of Ohio were empty and this is what he drove through. It was a mixture of fields and forests, with the odd building or house sprinkled amongst the vegetation.

But where he was going, there was no nearby town. He’d left that behind him as the expensive, and therefore precious, gas took him further away from civilization. He’d circled the location on his map with a red marker and was steadily making his way towards it.

When he got close enough, Ben could see the hotel stretching up through the trees that surrounded the base of it, struggling to hide the structure. Soon it loomed over him and he found the drive hidden behind a screen of bushes. It was freshly paved and once he was on it, able to see the hotel up closer, he could see that the building was also well cared for. The vines that initially looked as though they strangled the building, suddenly looked purposeful and controlled.

The large parking lot was half-full. Ben pulled into the empty stretch far from the building. Getting out of the old car, he locked it behind him and ventured towards the hotel. The front door wouldn’t open but he found a buzzer on the wall and pressed it. The shiny, silver intercom on his left emitted some static.

Yes? a voice drawled from the machine.

Ben cleared his throat. I was wondering if you were hiring.

There was a moment of silence and Ben wondered if he’d approached this whole thing wrong. But the sudden crackle of the intercom brought him back to the present.

Go around to the back door. Someone will open it for you. I don’t want you at the front door again.

Taken aback, Ben managed to stammer out an affirmative answer before backing away from the front door. He rounded the building until he saw the door he’d been meant to use. There were more cars at the back parking lot and he called himself an idiot for not looking further than the front of the hotel.

The back door didn’t have the awning or the stone steps. None of the elegance of the front. Its intercom was cream, evidence of the white it used to be on the buttons worn from use. Ben paused next to it, unsure as to what he should do next.

A click from the door in front of him solved his dilemma. He pulled on the handle and the door opened under his hand. Stepping into the hotel, Ben wondered what he’d gotten himself into.

Chapter 2

The carpets were mauve. Ben wasn’t sure that was the right color name but he knew they weren’t simply red or purple. And eerily enough, there was no one there behind the door. He stood just inside, the door having closed behind him, wondering what to do next.

A light illuminated the patch of carpet he stood on but little else. He could make out the shadows of doors further down the hallway but little else.

Ben cleared his throat, the sound penetrating only a few feet. Hello? he called.

Tilting forward, he listened to hear if there was any response at all. He was wary of entering the hotel any further but he didn’t want to wait by the door all day either. A shuffling came to his attention and he strained to make out the source.

Out of the darkness of the hallway, a small figure slowly became more and more pronounced. The shuffling turned into discernible footsteps as the figure came into view. The man waddled closer and closer.

I hear you’re looking for a job, the stranger said, getting so close he was almost standing toe-to-toe with Ben.

Ben tried not to stare. As the man stopped, Ben could smell the stench rolling off of him. Struggling to keep his nose from wrinkling, Ben looked down at the man in front of him. He only just came up to Ben’s chest, being even shorter than Gloria. The stranger craned his neck to look up into Ben’s eyes.

Yeah, I’m looking for cash work, Ben replied. He didn’t want there to be any confusion about that. He needed to be paid under the table.

What can you do? the old man asked, stepping back to give Ben a very obvious look over.

Ben shrugged. I’ve done a lot of things. What do you need doing?

We need an oddsbody.

I can do that.

We pay a certain amount for you to keep your mouth shut about what you see. There’re no weekends, no days off, no holidays. Once you leave, you’re gone, and if we hear you’ve talked, we find you. This little speech was delivered with a hard look and a nasty smile. How’s that sound to you?

Ben took a moment to think it over. He wanted the days off that Gloria was back for but it looked like, for now, that wouldn’t be an option. What are the hours?

That earned him another look. Eight to six.

Ben nodded. What’s the pay?

We pay weekly. You don’t show up for one day, you don’t get your money and you don’t get to come back. You get five hundred for the first few weeks, which is more than fair for the work you’ll be doing. We’ll see after that.

Ben was used to earning on a day-to-day basis with Dean but he shouldn’t have expected as much from anywhere or anyone else. Weekly would have to do and he’d just have to stretch the remaining money until he was paid. At least he was being offered a job. So he nodded.

The tiny man looked him over once more, his ratty ponytail of white hair losing a few pieces across his forehead. His eyes were narrowed so that they hid behind the folds of his eyes, the hook of his nose disguising the turn of his lips.

Right. Come on then, I’ll show you around.

The man turned and shuffled back off into the darkness. It took Ben a moment to move his own legs but when he did, it was no trouble to catch up. And as his eyes adjusted to the darkness, he could see that there wasn’t much of interest in the hallway. Just door after door.

The small man pushed through a set of double doors at the end of the hallway, leading them into a large concrete room. Stopping, his guide turned. Ben almost ran him over but stopped just in time.

This is the main hub of your job, the little gremlin-looking man said.

He gestured towards another set of double doors, painted white with small windows on top. The kitchen. He turned to point at a small door painted the same grey as the concrete walls. The janitor’s closet. Another door, blue, was labeled, Laundry. And then he pointed to the elevators. You don’t leave the ground floor unless specifically told to. Never go to the top five floors.

There were a few other doors not mentioned but Ben didn’t ask about them. Instead, he nodded as he digested all he’d been told. It didn’t take much digestion. He had a feeling that until he proved himself capable and obedient, he wouldn’t be seeing much of the hotel. But that was fine with him.

He’d do whatever work he was given. Though he had to admit a level of curiosity about the place, he wanted the money and somewhere he could lay low at. Ben did not want a repeat of Virginia. As long as there was nothing outrageous happening in the hotel, he didn’t care.

Understand?

Ben nodded again.

Quiet type, huh?

Ben nodded.

I like that. Follow me.

He trailed the man into the kitchen. He’d never been in one so big. It was full of shining metal appliances, steel counters, pots, pans and stoves. It was also empty. But they were quickly through it and out the other side into another concrete room similar to the first they’d stood in.

This is where we have the offices, the man told him. You don’t get one. He led Ben up to a door that said ‘Hob’ on it. This one’s mine.

Spinning, he pointed out several others, naming them too quickly for Ben to hold onto the names. But he had a feeling it didn’t matter. The small man soon confirmed that.

You don’t deal with them. You deal with me. I’m Hob. Who’re you?

Ben.

Ok, Ben. Do you cook?

Ben shrugged. A little.

Can you chop?

Sure.

Ok. You’re on onions.

And it was that simple to walk in and get a job. No last names, no references. It wasn’t great work but it was better than he’d found since they moved to Ohio. His eyes streamed as he worked through the bags of onions Hob had left beside him.

As he worked, other people began trickling in. The reactions to his presence ranged from suspicion to interest to complete disinterest. Ben kept his head down and didn’t meet anyone’s eyes. He wanted to do his work and go home. There weren’t as many people in the kitchen as he thought it would take to fill it.

He could identify the head chef with ease. It was the woman barking all the orders. And when he finished the bags of onions, his eyes out of tears, it didn’t take her long to spot that and replace his onions with cucumbers.

His arm was starting to tire by the third hour. And as the kitchen began to fill even more, with food and people taking up the available space, he was given a counter mate. The girl wasn’t even a head shorter than him and was working on tomatoes. It was messy work.

They didn’t speak at first. Ben wasn’t entirely sure what the rules were about that. Hob made is seem like a lot of things were off limits. But when the clock reached one and a bell sounded, his counter mate put down her knife and looked up at him.

I’m Cassy, she said, her blue eyes sparkling under the harsh overhead lights. This your first day?

Ben looked at her warily and nodded.

Did they tell you about meals?

He shook his head.

She smiled up at him, her white teeth crooked on the bottom. Then, let me show you. Another perk of the job.

Cassy led him through the kitchen, though she didn’t need to lead. The whole workforce was streaming through the kitchen and out into another room. It was a cafeteria at least the size of the kitchen, steadily filling with people.

The smell of hot food filled the room and even though there were around thirty people there, there was little chatter, just the clatter of dishes and silverware. Ben followed Cassy to the buffet, helping himself to the burgers and chips.

So, are you gonna be our new kitchen help? Cassy asked as they sat at an empty table.

Ben shook his head. I’m an oddsbody.

Cassy raised her eyebrows. "Wow. I