<div style="text-align: justify;">Melinda was starting to get used to how things worked at the East End. Not that she had any choice but, right? She kept to herself, and had very little dealings with the people around, but there was no escaping all contact. There was always a girl who wanted to share a story - or wanted her to write a letter - or a man who wanted to proposition her. Or even some of the street girls suggesting that she could engage in their business. "You are a cute one. Blokes like this 'family girl' look", she had heard, and cringed. The words "I will starve before I make my living by lying on my back" always burned her lips, but remained unsaid. It was for the best, after all.<br/><br/>Of all the men around, Thomas Crossingham was one of the most feared in the boarding house where Melinda slept her nights. She knew quite well what he was, and who he was, as well as the other girls. They all knew he wasn't just your regular bully. He was a pimp, and always had a look out for any girl who had yet to be taken under someone else's wing. Of course, some of the girls would welcome the opportunity to work under him. At least he would protect them. But that was not Melinda's business, and it would never be.<br/><br/>As if on cue, Thomas appeared right in front of her from a doorway. Melinda stopped on her tracks and grabbed the handle on her basket nervously. Her fingers were white with the strength she was putting on her grip, and the girl was surprised the handle had not snapped. The way the man looked at her, almost as if he was thinking of a price to put on her body, made Melinda take a deep breath. Her legs shook a little when Tommy said she was going to the Blue Coat with him.<br/><br/>Melinda had never been inside the Blue Coat - she had neither the time nor the inclination for such places - but she knew quite well what kind of a place it was. Many of the girls who slept in the same boarding house used to go there to offer their services to the men. Every word Tommy said made Melinda's heart race. A feeling of panic filled the girl when he seemed to present her with two options, either of them terrible. Taking a step back, Melinda shook her head vehemently.<br/><br/>"I'd go to the fiery pits of Hell before I went to the Blue Coat with you", she spat out coldly. It had been a mistake. She knew it. She could feel it in her bones, in the racing of her heart and the shaking of her legs. But now it was too late. The words had already been said, and she could not call them back and erase them. The only thing left was to wait for her fate.</div>