[Diana Lawrence]

I walked slowly down the long corridor. The one that would surely lead to my death. The guard prodded me with the end of his Stick. They would use the Stick, these guards here. Before, in the place before, they wouldn't. Only Head Mother would. These Sticks hurt, shocked you into submission. These were Sticks.

A door opened. Not just a door, his door. The Master's door. He summoned me into the bed chamber in the room. The guard was gone and the door was sealed. I was alone with the master. Usually The Wife was here as well, unless she had conferences or didn't know I was with him. But he, The Master, had summoned me to his chamber.

They were not supposed to see our faces during The Meeting. We wore masks. They could only see our eyes. The Wives didn't have to wear masks, they had been chosen by The Masters. We had been chosen by The Wives. She had chosen five to give her Born. The Housewives who bore The Born then became their Nursemaids.

He bid me to sit on the sleeping pallet. He pulled my hair out of its tight bun. My hair had become long. At The Home they had cut it all off. It tumbled down my back and onto my chest. He pulled it to the side and kissed my neck. He slipped the the mask off my face and it landed on the floor. His lips found my mouth.

They were rough and forceful. But I wanted them as much as they did me. The white dress I was to wear had been thrown off and his body was against mine. This was against the law, I thought as he put on The Protection. The Protection had been banned since actual meetings between The Wife and The Master had been. But he would never be arrested. I would have been taken to The Church. That is where people were hung.

The Master was in control. I had to do what he wanted. His was up. He was ready for The Meeting. He had chosen me to be Housewife because I had been with child before The Wave. I was Nursemaid to Myra. That is what they called my first-born. I had always called her Leanne. She was to be a Wife not a Housewife.

He laid me down on the pallet. He touched me in places it wasn't allowed. I thought about Jon. He had touched me in those places, in those secret places. He was Leanne's father. My husband. We were split up and he had been disposed of. That's what they had done with all the men. The higher officials, men of then, and such were now masters. The Master was forceful. He didn't need to be. I was relaxed and wouldn't resist him. We had learned at The Home what to do and how to act. He was to be in complete control. They had used other men that had Protection. They showed us how to act when they asked for something. We were to do what they said. No questions. no comments, or even words. We were not to speak. They could tell us to speak. But we were not to speak of our own. The Master was becoming tired. He was soon to sleep. He was still on top of me.

I looked out the window and saw that it was almost noon. At The Home around noon, the Head Mother would call us to lunch and more training. We were shown how to act at lunch so as not to offend The Wife. An hour later I went down to the kitchen and helped cook. When I finished, Leanne was home from school and I had to get her ready for The Receiving and for her dinner.

At The Receiving, The Master and The Wife welcomed her home. Once every seven days they would welcome all The Born home from school. They would then read The Book, which is a book of laws. Then we would dismiss for dinner. We would eat, I would wash Leanne and then we would sleep. I stayed with my first-born until I was too old to bare anymore Born. I would then become an Ancient and be quietly disposed of.

My second-born and third-born stayed with other Housewives. All my Born were female. The second and third-born were soon to go to The House where they would be trained to be Housewives.

After I put Leanne to sleep I went to my own bedchamber and laid down on my own pallet. Before I had fallen to sleep a guard came and said The Wife wanted me. I got up and walked down the corridor. That long corridor to her bedchamber.

She told me to come in. The Wife led me to a chair. The Clasps were on it. She locked them in place. Her voice was hard. She said few words. I am an Ancient!! NO!! I am not old and neither is Leanne. I will be disposed of. Two guards appeared and put tape over my eyes. They flipped a switch. Pain, excruciating pain. A scream and then nothing.