Storm over London continued...

The storm continued to rage outside the smudgy window. The street light had either gone out or been blacked out by the storm. Samantha did not know which, but she continued to stare out the window anyways. The thoughts in her head had taken a turn with the storm towards dark and brooding. Occasionally she glanced back at the room and the little girls behind her. There was one other girl in there that was older than she. A quiet girl who was quite large for a girl. She was very timid and with good reason, the mistress often picked on her for tasks that the other girls could not do, and she was also picked on for her quietness, enduring taunts from the mistress and some of the other girls for being stupid. She would just look down at her feet and not utter a word to defend herself. It angered Samantha to know end to watch such a gentle soul treated so. She was huddled in her bed with 3 of the smaller girls cuddled up to her for warmth. The little ones loved her, but it seemed the ones closer to her age, other than Samantha hardly ever wanted to have anything to do with her. She probably wouldn't be in the house much longer. As soon as the girls turned 16 the mistress shoved them out into the street. Where did they go? Samantha wondered. Most were probably still in the street. Some of the luckier ones probably got jobs as house maids or nannies for the wealthy. The unlucky ones probably became pick pockets and prostitutes. Samantha did not think that poor Hilda, that was the girl's name would be able to survive as such, though she would make a great nanny if someone would have her. She was fantastic with the little ones. Loving and kind, with a patience that Samantha could not begin to fathom as she was a little short on it herself.