Misery by fuuuran via www.deviantart.com

Restitution

Garth felt his phone vibrate in his pocket. He did a quick check of the kitchen where he was washing dishes, no one was around. After quickly drying his hands, he answered the phone in a whisper.

“Hi, Mike.”

“Daddy, when will you be home?”

Garth kept watch on the door to the living room, he didn’t want to be caught not working. “After you’ve gone to bed, Sport, you know that.”

“I want you to tuck me in,” the six year-old whined.

Garth’s heart broke. He had to be here despite his wishes. “I’ve explained this already, Mike. I hit a little boy with my car, I have to pay restitution.”

The kid had come out of nowhere when Garth was checking his rear-view mirror. The guy in the car behind him was talking on his headset and was right on his bumper. Garth was bracing for the impact. “Come on, chump,” he remembered muttering. “I could use a slave for a few months.” When he looked back at the road, there was the kid, Clive, he now knew, running into the street from between two parked cars.

Now he was the slave to Davin and Linda Louis, parents of the now deceased, Clive. His lawyer tried to get him off, pointing out the child was not in a cross walk. It didn’t matter. The new legal system didn’t imprison people anymore. Now you had to pay restitution. Garth paid the Louis’ $100,000 and was sentenced to 21 hours per week of labor to the victim’s family for four years. That came to 4368 hours of labor. It was hard labor.

Garth jumped at Linda’s yell from the living room. “I don’t hear those dishes being washed out there.”

He covered the phone with his hand. “Just finishing up, Ms. Louis.”

“Hurry it up,” she yelled. “Those closets aren’t going to clean themselves.”

“Yes, Ma’am.”

“I’ve got to go, Mike. I have to finish my work.”

“Bye, Daddy.”

“Good night, son.” Garth hung up and tucked the phone back into his pocket and stuck his hands in the dishwater. The Louis’ hadn’t done a dish since he was sentenced over a year ago. They saved them all for him when he arrived at 6pm after working all day. Already tired, he did the dishes, mopped the floors, cleaned closets, the garage, vacuumed, anything the Louis’ told him to do.

Linda came into the kitchen and walked up behind him. She looked into the sink. “You’re goin’ kinda slow tonight, Garth.” She grabbed his left buttock. He jumped. Linda Louis was no prize. Lank, sandy brown hair was going grey and she was about 100 pounds overweight. Garth detested her for the constant groping and leering. Always out of sight of her husband though. Davin Louis was built like a line backer. At 6 foot 3 inches, Garth didn’t want to mess with Davin. He was a construction worker and when he was home, he drank beer like a fish. He was a mean drunk. Both of them hounded Garth from his arrival at 6pm until he was done at 9pm. Saturday’s were worse. By the time he arrived at 9am, Davin was three beers into his day. He watched constantly as he directed Garth to mow, weed, paint, or repair everything around the house and yard. Their house and yard had never looked so good. He was supposed to get water breaks and a half hour lunch but that never happened.

Linda rubbed her hand across his buttocks as Davin yelled into the kitchen, “Where’s my damn beer!”

“Garth will bring it right out,” she yelled back then grinned at Garth with crooked yellow teeth.

Garth dried his hands and got a beer out of the refrigerator. He walked it into the living room and handed Davin the beer.

“Bout time.” Davin took the beer, crushed the empty and threw it at Garth. “Pick that up,” he belched. “Move your ass faster next time or I’ll tell the court you ain’t cooperatin’.”

That was the threat. Time could be added to the sentence if he was reported as uncooperative. Garth nodded and picked up the empty. Back in the kitchen he dropped it in the recycling bin and went back to the sink. Only 3003 hours left to serve, he thought to himself, after I get out of here at nine.

As Linda crept up on him it wasn’t lost on him that he was intending to put the chump in the car behind him in this same situation. Now, he wouldn’t wish this fate on his worst enemy.

“Better get with it, Garth,” Linda whispered as she leaned into his back and ran her hand across his chest. “The closet in my bedroom really needs cleaning.”

His skin crawled as he glanced at the clock. Two more hours to go. The seconds seemed like hours as he braced himself to go to the bedroom to ‘clean her closet’. He just hoped Davin fell asleep in his chair again tonight.

The End

841 Words

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