The New Maid

"I began making and using cleaning agents from all natural products when my son was quite young, Sir."

"Why is that?"

"He suffered from asthma and the harsh commercial cleaners added to his symptoms."

"I see. And are you now going to tell me that the use of all natural cleaners curing him?"

"Hardly. I think God and age and modern medicine did that, but I do think that by avoiding as many harsh chemicals as possible in the home, he had fewer flare ups."

Vincent nodded, appreciating the honest answer. He'd had enough of housekeepers claiming that this natural regime would cure all ills.

"I am strict and demanding in my standards, you understand. Should you accept this job, you will live upstairs, wear a uniform while on duty and refer to me as Sir or Mr. Vanderson."

"Yes, sir. I expect I will."

"And what of your son now?"

"He is in his third year of college."

Vincent's eyes widened. This woman could be no more than thirty-five years old.

"I won't go too far into your personal life, but will he be expecting to stay with you during breaks from school?"

"No, Sir. We have a two bedroom apartment which I have left to him. He sublets the second bedroom. He goes to school here in town, so I see him often."

Alice was relieved that he had not, indeed, asked too many questions regarding her past. Still, she felt he had a right to know about her history.

"To be brief, Sir, I was quite young when I had Emmit. My family wanted me to abort him, but I refused and so they disowned me. I had been date raped, you see, and no one, including me, knew who the father was, so I was alone with a young child. A neighbor lady, Mrs. Simms, took me in and taught me about the old ways of cleaning. I kept house for her in exchange for food and board. She passed away two years ago and I've been supporting myself and Emmit since then."

"I see. And does Emmit also work?"

"Yes, he is self-supporting now. He has a full ride scholarship to pay for his schooling and works part time at the library to pay for his other expenses."

"Here's my offer. You will be on probably for this week. If all works out well, I will offer you the job. For this week, though, you will stay here and follow all of the rules in this booklet. If you have question, ask me at any time. You salary may seem a bit low, but that will change after this week. Your compensation will also include room, board, health and car insurance, and a 1 month paid vacation.

Alice was stunned by the generosity and quickly accepted. She followed a servant who carried her bag to her room. Actually, it was more of a suite. A small bedroom complete with a queen sized bed, wooden wardrobe, five drawer dresser and vanity with matching cushioned seat. The dark blue curtains matched the bedspread and rub. One door opened to a bathroom complete with tub, shower, stool, cabinet filled with fresh towels and a stainless steel sink. The medicine cabinet contained basic hygiene products along with a fresh toothbrush, comb, hairbrush and blow-dryer. Off to the left of the bedroom was yet another room which contained a loveseat, end table, two chairs, a rug and small writing desk with matching chair. On the end table was an electric kettle, a tea pot, two mugs and a variety of tea choices. A small leather bound book sat on the desktop.

"Mr. Vanderson requests that you spend the afternoon reading your manual. A meal will be sent up to you at six o'clock. When you finish, simply place the tray on the floor outside of your room. You should also try on your uniform and let me know if something does not fit."

Alice leaned against the door once the servant, whose name she did not know, left. She then went to open the wardrobe, fearing what her uniform might look like. She was not anxious to wear something overly provocative, but would do so if it meant keeping this job. To her pleasure, her uniform was a simple, well made and very modest dress consisting of side buttons, a narrow belt and capped sleeves. After trying it on, she noted that it fit perfectly and would be quite easy to move about in, an important feature since she was often bending over and on her hands and knees while cleaning. Next, she fixed herself a cup of tea and sat down to read her employee's manual.

For Maids in the Employ of Mr. Vanderson

The following are expected duties to be completed on a daily basis.

Master bathroom: toilet, shower, bath, sink and counters cleaned and disinfected and the floor mopped. Fresh towels hung by Five o'clock in the evening as I shower after dinner. All soaps, shampoos, lotions and other sundry will be checked and replaced as needed.

First floor carpets cleaned with a push sweeper and hard floors dust mopped.

Magazines and newspapers will be recycled daily and replace with current issues.

Master bedroom: bed made by 6:30 a.m. weekdays and 7:00 a.m. weekends. Carpet swept, clothing folded and put away every evening. Trash disposed of, curtains opened after the bed is made, laundry and dry cleaning replaced in their appropriate places.

Weekly Responsibilities

Maid will set her own schedule but each of the following must be addressed on a weekly basis.

All carpets vacumed.

Linens in all used bedrooms changed.

Hard floors mopped by hand.

All guest bathrooms scrubbed

All furniture polished in all rooms

Ash removed from all fireplaces

walls brushed down

Library straightened and books replaced in their appropriate place

Fresh flowers in master bedroom, dining room and main parlor.

Fresh flowers in guest rooms if guests are expected.

All verandas swept and dusted.

Monthly Responsibilities

All inside windows washed and all outside windows on first floor washed.

Arrangements made for professional window washers for outside upper floors.

All framed artwork cleaned and dusted.

Mattresses on all beds rotated (you may enlist the help of the butler for this)

Other Responsibilities may also include but are not limited to the following upon the request of your employer or if the need arrises.

The purchase of new linens and towels

Professional carpet cleaning

Personal shopping services

Polishing of silver and dinner services

In return for the above services, Mr. Vanderson will provide five uniforms to be worn at all times while on duty, serviceable shoes of the maid's choice so long as they compliment the uniform, all cleaning supplies (maid will provide a list of what is needed every Friday and the materials will be available every Monday morning), a personal suite, three meals a day along with healthy snacks, tea, water, coffee or lemonade as desired by the maid. He will also provide medical insurance coverage and pay for any medical bills of the maid while under his employ. He will pay for a cell phone, car and car insurance.

Should the maid fail in any of her duties, the two will have a meeting to discuss the issue and come to an amiable agreement. Mr. Vanderson has the right to correct the maid's conduct, decorum, or work habits in order to help her meet his expectations. The maid has the right to refuse such correction and will then immediate leave the premises with two weeks salary.

The maid will at all times refer to her employer as Mr. Vanderson or Sir and He, in turn, will refer to her as Miss Alice. (Whoa! He has her name in here already???) or some other respectable term. Should Miss Alice disagree with a particular form of the address, Mr. Vanderson will refrain from the use of such term once he is made aware of the situation.

Miss Alice will have a weekly meeting with Mr. Vanderson every Tuesday afternoon at 3:00 in the library to discuss the week's schedule and other new and old business as needed.

Closing the book, Alice couldn't deny the reasonableness of her new employer but wondered about the consequences of disappointing him. Hearing a quiet knock on her door, she opened it to discover a lovely young woman wearing a similar uniform as hers holding a covered tray.

"Here's you dinner, Miss Alice. Shall I set it down in your parlor?"

"Yes, that would be lovely, er. . "

"Miss Sally. I'm the assistant cook, so we'll be together often in our duties. Now, i hope you enjoy your dinner, but before I go, can I answer any questions?"

"Oh my. I have so many, but the main one is, are you happy working here?" Alice asked anxiously.

Sally's face split into a wide smile and she answered, "Yes, miss. I'm very happy. Mr. Vanderson has high standards and doesn't shirk on reprimanding us if we step out of line, but he's fair and reasonable."

Alice bit her lip and asked, "What do you mean 'reprimanding'?"

"Well, miss, that's something for you and Mr. Vanderson to decide. If that's all, I'll bid you good night," Sally answered quickly. Before shutting the door, though, she added, "But I wouldn't worry about that too much. Mr. Vanderson will never do anything you object to, but he might just surprise you a bit."

Her mind full of questions, Alice looked over her manual again while she ate her dinner of grilled chicken, a light salad and glazed carrots. When she finished the deliciously simple meal, she placed the tray outside of her door and prepared a bath for herself. According to the manual, she needed to be in the kitchen for breakfast no later than 6:00 a.m., so she thought she'd have an early night.

"Miss Alice, do you have questions?"

I stood in front of Mr. Vanderson's desk in the library. I had risen at 5:00 that morning, dressed in my uniform and Keds tennis shoes, gone to the kitchen for breakfast and attended to the duties listed for the Master bedroom and bathroom. It was now 8:00 a.m. and I was feeling pretty good about myself.

"I do, Sir."

He waited.

"Well, first of all, who will be my direct supervisor?"

"I will."

This surprised me. I had assumed it would be the Butler, Mr. Morris.

"And has my work been satisfactory so far this morning?"

"The work has, yes."

Again, not quite the answer I was expecting, but moving on.

"The manual mentioned possible reprimands for work not meeting your satisfaction. I'd like more details on that, Sir."

He smiled. "Yes, I assume you would. First of all, you could be reprimanded for not only your work but also for your decorum and dress."

"I see."

"No, I don't think you do. For example. You neglected to use the word 'Sir' or 'Mr. Vanderson' just now. That would normally warrant a reprimand, but since this is still your training week, you are forgiven."

I felt my eyes widen as I began to understand just how formal and strict Mr. Vanderson intended to be.

"Yes, Sir. I understand. May I ask if I have broken any other expectations?"

"Certainly, Miss Alice." He stood and walked around me. Slowly.

"Lift your dress, please," he stated.

I jumped, startled, and asked, "Why, Sir?"

He laughed a bit and said, "I'm happy to hear the title added. Because, Miss Alice, you were instructed to wear your uniform, which you have, and shoes of your choice, which you have, and which compliment the uniform, which they do. However, you were not instructed to wear any other garments and I see an outline of both bra and panty lines. Now, please do as I asked."

I gulped. Did I really want to do this? I could walk away, after all. I thought about the assistant cook and my conversation with her both last night and this morning. She too wore a uniform - sans panty lines - and seemed quite happy, not mistreated at all. Besides, I couldn't deny my curiosity about Mr. Vanderson.

Slowly, I lifted the skirt of my dress to my waist, my white cotton panties fully exposed.

"I see. This would certainly be grounds for a reprimand, Miss Alice."

Making a sudden decision, I removed the offending garment. I walked to the trash can and deposited them into it.

"Mr. Vanderson, I'd like begin as we plan to go on. When you excuse me from this room, I promise you I will go directly to my room and remove the bra. I'd do so now, but that would involve removing my entire uniform and I'm simply not comfortable with that quite yet. I want you to know I appreciate this week long trial, but I'd prefer to know exactly what a reprimand will be since I have no doubt that I will make other mistakes in the future," I answered, my voice shaking a bit toward the end.

He stared at me for a moment and then nodded.

"Very well, Miss Alice. I must say your spirit pleases me greatly as does your common sense. It is good to know exactly what one has agreed to before committing."

He sat back on his chair and pushed it away from the desk.

"If you will place yourself over my lap and keep your dress pushed up Miss Alice, I will demonstrate a light reprimand."

I gulped. Waited a moment, then did as he said. In for a penny, in for a pound, right?

A pound was lightly putting it. After what could have been no more than five minutes, I was squirming and kicking. Mr. Vanderson held me tightly in place with one arm around my waist while he continued to pound away on my bare bottom. I bit my lip and tried not to cry out, but that was impossible. Both the humiliation and the pain overcame me and I began to cry quietly. He must have sensed this because a moment later he gently rubbed my throbbing bottom and turned me over so that I was sitting on his lap. He held my hands and looked at me very directly.

"I know that was uncomfortable for you, Miss Alice, but you need to know what to expect from any further misdemeanors. All of my employees expect the same treatment and so you should have no shame if they hear you cry or even see the markings. Is this clear"

I sniffed and answered, "Yes, Mr. Vanderson, quite clear."

"And now do you wish to end our agreement and collect your two weeks salary?"

"Absolutely not, Sir," I answered unhesitantly. "I rather prefer your form of reprimand that worrying over something I may or may not have done wrong. Am I to assume that once you have corrected my errors and I make amends that the incident is over"

Mr. Vanderson smiled, "Yes, Miss Alice, that is precisely the case. However, I must warn you, I do have unorthodox tastes, but great respect for my staff. So if I were to suggest something you were not comfortable with, you are welcome to give a counter appeal with no fear of disappointment."

"I understand, Sir. And thank you. Now, if it pleases you, I'd like to adjust my wardrobe to your specification then carry on with my work."