Chapter Ten

He had to do this every day no matter the weather, in the heat of summer, the pouring rain of autumn and the freezing winter snow. If he dared ask for a break he was placed across Miguel's knee and spanked so hard he could barely stand so he learned fast and kept his tired tears to himself. Every bone in his young body ached and he had blisters on blisters but he bit his lips, clenched his little fists and carried on. He would not let them win, he knew about his family now, his Uncles left no time in telling him he was nothing but a hated ‘bastard’ born out of wedlock and a stain on their family's bloodline. Every chance they got they belittled his efforts and told him he would never be good enough to be a part of their ‘family’ but he truly was his father's Son and he gritted his teeth determined they would not break him. This part of his life would not last forever, one day soon he would be grown up and his time would come. For the time being his young body adjusted and after six months they started letting him attend the other children's lessons too, they wanted him to graduate and when they found that he was a very clever child he was pushed hard in them too. They began his ‘life’ lessons after nine months, he was taught all the ‘Family’ history and it was made very clear to him the disgrace his parents had brought down on the ‘Family’ by his birth. They tried to shame him by nicknaming him.

‘Il bastardo’ [The bastard]

He just lifted his head higher and stared them down with his deep dark blue eyes, they no longer intimidated him and he knew he would never earn their respect so he stopped trying. He learned for his own sake, he knew one day he would grow tall enough and strong enough to revenge his parents. So he let them teach him how to use a gun, a knife and a wire, he stopped fighting his training and embraced it, he shut down his emotions his blue eyes turned almost black. He learned to hate, he learned to be cruel and he learned to kill so that when his Grandfather returned a year later the innocent little boy had disappeared to be replaced by a dead-eyed automaton who followed orders without question and young as he was he killed without mercy.

Juliette grew up by the coast in Cornwall, her adoptive parents were much older than most, more the age of Grandparents really but they adored their pretty boisterous daughter and she was a handful. Juliette knew no fear, from the minute she could walk she roamed the cliffs and beaches near her home with a completely free spirit. Her parents taught her to read and write giving her access to a wonderful library of books so when the weather was bad she would sit in there watching the wild storms pass over the cliffs. Without realising it she taught herself about her world reading every book she could, if she struggled to understand something she asked for their help. It did not cross their minds that the questions she asked were way above what a child so young would ask. They just answered her as best they could, explaining complicated issues that would have stumped teenagers to a three-year-old who promptly asked even more questions.  So at the age of five, they thought she would be ready to go to the local school and mix with other children. She hated it, she did not like being confined in the classroom and at playtime she scrambled over the school gates and raced to her beloved cliffs. They brought her back, and her parents tried to explain that all children had to go to school it was the law but it was like trying to cage a wild animal. She refused to engage with them, standing by the window tears streaming down her face her little hands on the panes. The teachers tried, she was picked up and placed in a chair but instantly returned to the window, they tried enticing her with toys and the look of utter disdain she gave them soon put a stop to that. They tried punishing her telling her she was a very naughty girl and making her sit on the ‘naughty step’ but as soon as their back was turned she returned to the window. She did not engage with the other children, she was so far ahead of them in her development she had nothing in common with them. The school quickly established her intelligence levels were off the scale finding she was so far in front of her little class that it was actually cruel to rein her in and expect her to act like them. The Education Authorities decided to test her encouraging her to sit their Key Stage II SATS tests. In the room with her taking the same tests were a group of the brightest 10/11-year-olds from a nearby private Prep school who the tests were aimed at.

They looked surprised when the pretty little five-year-old girl was led in and helped onto her chair by her adoptive Mother,

‘Do you understand what you have to do Juliette?’

She asked softly and the little girl grinned up at her,

‘Yes Mummy, you want me to answer these questions like the big boys and girls don’t you?’

‘Yes, but remember, you must not talk to anyone, if you need anything you must put your hand up and ask the Teacher quietly. Now here is your pencil case, get out what you need and then listen to the instructions. I will be waiting outside when you have finished.’

Juliette beamed at her Mother she knew she was going to get a reward if she did well and she was looking forward to the challenge, she did not want to go back to that silly Infant school. It had been a horrible experience for her, the shock of being contained in one small room was bad enough but the other children were little more than babies.