Maddie twisted her handkerchief in a ball as she sat in the uncomfortable chair across from her new landlord and boss. He didn't ask too many questions about her personal life; she was thankful for that. He seemed relatively uninterested in anything aside from when she could start.

"I can start as soon as we get settled in, sir," Maddie stuttered as he ushered her out of the room.

"Oh, right. You have a little one. Be sure that she doesn't get in the way of your work." He snipped as he waved Maddie away from his office door. "You can find the keys to your apartment at the front desk. Tell the receptionist that you are the new errand girl."

Maddie sighed with relief as he closed the door. She somehow landed herself a job on such short notice. Not only that, but she also secured a place for Mari and her to live. The apartment was in relatively good condition if you didn't look too closely. If her gaze lingered on something too long, she always found something odd about everything in the building.

There was no turning down a place to live with cheap rent and a steady income, so Maddie also didn't want to ask too many questions. When she got to the front desk, it dawned on her that she had no idea what time of work she would be doing. The ad she answered said that no prior work experience was required, there would be room and board, and they held open interviews for anyone interested.

Maddie thought it sounded slightly suspicious, but she was desperate for work and a place to stay. She didn't care what type of work it was if it put a roof over their heads and food on the table. She grabbed the keys from the front desk and asked where her apartment was. The receptionist gestured vaguely to his left. He seemed too absorbed in whatever he was reading to give her a better answer. She looked at the key tag, hoping it would give her a better idea of where she was going. The text was worn down from what looked like decades of use, but she thought it said Room 106.

The first floor wasn't her first choice, but beggars could not be choosers. The hallway that the man at the front desk gestured at was long and dimly lit. It was the middle of the day, but you couldn't tell how dark and creepy it was inside the building. The eerie feeling that Maddie had tried to suppress was finally sinking in. Now that she had the "too good to be true" job, was it just that? Was her intuition trying to tell her that she should look elsewhere?

She snapped back to reality when she almost passed room 106. Maddie looked around awkwardly and embarrassed, even though nobody was there to see her mistake. She fumbled with the key a bit before finally pushing it into the keyhole. She tried the handle, but it didn't work.

"Shoot." She thought. "Now I have to go back and talk to that receptionist guy. I don't think he will be happy if I interrupt him and his book again."

Maddie pulled the key out of the doorknob, and it slowly turned. The hair on her neck stood up, and she froze in horror as the door slowly opened.

"May I help you?" An older woman's voice said from behind the large wooden door creaks.

"I am so sorry. I thought this was my apartment." Maddie explained in her most apologetic tone. "The key I got from the front desk said that my apartment is room 106."

"Why, that is impossible," her new neighbor said as she opened the door further. "I have lived in this apartment for the last fifty years, and I am quite sure this is mine."

The woman held out her hand, but Maddie was unsure what she wanted. A handshake was a proper introduction, so she extended her free hand.

"Not that. Give me the key," the older woman barked.

Maddie felt so bad for disturbing her that she handed the key over without hesitation. The older woman looked it over and rubbed the tag between her fingers a few times before informing Maddie that her new apartment was actually in room 108.

"Thank you. I am sorry for the trouble." Maddie said as she hurried away from the woman's door.

Something about her made Maddie even more uncomfortable than the apartment. Her neighbor stared at her silently as she opened the right door next to the old woman's. She rushed inside and tried not to slam the door as she escaped the awkward tension of the woman's gaze. The inside of the apartment was almost normal compared to the rest of the building. The interior was modern, and even the appliances seemed new.

"That was weird," Maddie grumbled to herself. "I hope I don't run into her often."

Maddie walked around the apartment to get a feel for the place. It looked too furnished for her liking like someone still lived there. But since she and Mari only had the clothes on their backs, it was more than they could ask for. She checked all the rooms to ensure no one was living there before she picked Mari up from the library. It had been hours since she dropped her off, and she knew it would probably turn into another fight.

Maddie was doing her best to support the two of them. Still, it was difficult since no one would hire or rent to them because of her nonexistent work experience. This apartment was the answer to their prayers, even though it did seem a little weird. There were two bedrooms. One was decorated and furnished for a child; the other was the main bedroom.

"If only the fridge and cupboards were furnished, too." Maddie chuckled as she began to nose around the kitchen.

She opened the cupboard to find it fully stocked with dishes and other kitchen implements. In another cabinet, she found unopened packages of staple foods. She looked at them in astonishment before remembering that the listing said room and board were included.

"This must be the board part," she whispered to herself as she closed the wooden cupboard.

She didn't want to make Mari wait any longer, but she checked inside the fridge, too. It was also packed with what looked to be about a week's worth of fresh food for two people. There was milk, eggs, meat, cheese, and fresh fruits and vegetables. On the top shelf of the fridge, there was a yellowed envelope with her name written on it in cursive.

Maddie opened the envelope and pulled out a card made of thick paper. It said, "Welcome Home" in the same beautiful script that was on the envelope, but the letters were embossed and gilded. She opened the card, and it read, "Please nourish you and your family with fruits and vegetables from our garden." The card was signed "Management," so she figured it was part of her employment benefits from her contract. Well, the contract she would sign tomorrow when she started. Since Maddie had never had a job before, she didn't have a Crimson Pact. It was a ritual everyone did when they first started working, but no one wanted to hire her if she didn't already have one.

The landlord of this apartment was the first person that didn't turn her away for not having one. He even agreed to conduct the ritual on her behalf. He seemed desperate for anyone to start as soon as possible. Maddie was scared because she knew it involved bloodletting, and the sight of her blood or anyone else's made her feel queasy.

She tried to shake the idea from her mind as she speedily walked to the library. She knew Mari would be furious with her when she picked her up. Maddie looked at her watch and realized the library had closed half an hour ago. Maddie ran as fast as she could until she reached the stone steps, where she saw Mari sitting with her arms crossed and a frown on her face. An older woman, who looked like she was in her forties, was standing right behind her.

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"Is this your mother?" the woman said as she gently patted Mari's back, motioning for her to get up.

"Yes," Mari hissed in reply.

"I am so sorry. My interview ran longer than I expected," Maddie said to both the lady and Mari.

"It is no bother, dear. I didn't want anything bad to happen to this cutie pie," the woman replied cheerily.

"Thanks for forgetting me, Mom," Mari snapped as she rolled her eyes.

Maddie reached out to shake the woman's hand and said, "I am Mari's mom, Maddie. Thank you so much for watching over her. The interview was very important."

The woman shook Maddie's hand gently and replied, "Oh, my. There is quite a resemblance. Did you make her by yourself?" She laughed to herself as she adjusted her glasses. "My name is Mrs. Dawn, head librarian. It is a pleasure to meet both of you."

Maddie nodded politely, as she didn't know what to say. Mrs. Dawn smiled and gestured for Mari to join her mother.

"Mari is such a sweet child. It was no trouble at all watching over her." The woman continued. "She is welcome to come by and see me any time she likes."

Maddie thanked Mrs. Dawn again and bid her farewell. She held Mari's hand as they walked in silence to the apartment. When they arrived, Maddie turned to Mari and said, "Welcome home!"

"Really?" Mari said as her eyes lit up. "We have a home?"

"Yes. And we are here," Maddie said in a boastful tone.

Mari punched Maddie's arm and grumbled, "Why didn't you tell me sooner?"

"I figured you didn't want me talking to you since you were giving me the silent treatment," Maddie joked as they walked into the lobby.

The apartment didn't seem as spooky with Mari by her side. They play-fought and giggled as they walked down the hall to their new home, trying their best not to disturb their new neighbors. As they approached their elderly neighbor's door, Maddie raised her finger to her lips and gave Mari a serious look as she shushed her. Mari could tell she wasn't kidding around, and they tiptoed the rest of the way to their door.

Maddie gave Mari a tour of their new apartment and showed her all the food in their fridge and cupboard. Mari's eyes began to water as she looked around at their new home.

"You did it." Mari's voice quivered. "I knew you could do it."

"I did it for you," Maddie said as she started to pull eggs out of the fridge. "Do you want breakfast for dinner?"

"I haven't eaten anything today." Mari whimpered. "So that sounds like a good idea."

Maddie asked Mari to set the table for them, and she happily obliged. Everything felt like a dream. They finally had a home to call their own and more food than they had seen in months. Maddie made a full breakfast of scrambled eggs, a tower of pancakes, and an entire package of sausages. They both couldn't resist drowning their pancakes in tons of maple syrup that got all over their eggs and sausage. It made them taste even better. The food was so delicious; they ate every speck.

By the time they finished cleaning the kitchen, it was time for bed. They knew they should shower but didn't have clothes to change into. Maddie decided to search the closets for anything they could use in the meantime. To her surprise, she found a fully stocked supply hall closet of bathroom essentials. There were towels, soaps, lotions, and almost everything you could imagine someone would need.

"All of this is ours?" Mari questioned Maddie as she looked at the assortment of toiletries. "Does room and board always mean they give you toothbrushes and robes?"

"I am not sure," Maddie answered as she gathered their necessities. "Maybe this manager is really generous."

"What else did he give us?" Mari quizzed in an increasingly puzzled tone. "Did he say this was part of the payment?"

"He didn't say too much," Maddie replied, trying to sound as calm as possible. "Just that this was our apartment, and I start work tomorrow."

"Oh," said Mari. "That means your Crimson Pact is tomorrow."

Mari knew that she should probably change the subject, so she walked over to the small room furnished for a child.

"This is my room, right?" Mari beamed.

"I think so." Maddie laughed. "I think I am too big for the bed."

Mari inspected the room with a stern look on her face. Almost like she was surveying an archaeological site before she gave Maddie, who was standing in the doorway, a thumbs up. Mari noticed a closet on the far end of the room. It was the same color as the walls, so she overlooked it the first time.

"If I had any clothes or toys, I would put them here," she said as she opened the door.

She gasped as she looked inside. There were clothes, books, and toys that all were the right size and age range for Mari. She gasped as she started pulling them out of the closet.

"Did you get these for me?" Mari squealed in amazement.

The blood drained from Maddie's face as she watched Mari fawn over the things in the closet. The things that she did not put there. There was a lump in her throat. She didn't know what to say. Mari was so excited to have anything after they lost everything. She didn't know how those things could be for Mari as the manager barely knew that she had a "little one," as he put it.

Mari danced around the room with her new things. She opened the dresser drawers and found they were stocked with socks, pajamas, and underthings.

"You thought of everything!" She beamed.

"It was management," Maddie finally croaked. "They arranged this all for you."

"Well, I am changing into these after my shower," Mari said as she held up a navy blue nightdress with white stars on them. "I call first dibs."

Mari skipped to the bathroom with glee with an armful of clothes. When Maddie heard the water turn on, she walked to her bedroom and opened the closet. Sure enough, it was filled with clothes that looked about her size. The dresser's drawers in her room were also stocked with the same things Mari's had but in larger sizes. She gulped, and her mind raced as she tried to reason with herself that it was perfectly normal for a furnished home to have everything someone would need.

She sat on the bed holding the clothes she picked out for herself. She found a night dress that matched Mari's, so she decided to wear that. She tried to tally up everything they had used in the apartment since getting there in case there was an extra charge for the things they used. She wasn't sure if the manager would be mad if they used too many things, and she didn't want to get fired on her first day on the job tomorrow.

Mari finished her shower and sat on the bed beside her. She cuddled her side, and Maddie could feel the warmth radiating off her arm, which was snuggled up against her. They hadn't had a hot shower since leaving home, and it reminded her of their nightly routine before leaving.

"Thanks for everything," Mari said sleepily. "I am sorry for being so angry at you earlier. I thought you left me there for good."

"I could never leave you anywhere," Maddie reassured her.

"It is your turn for a shower now," Mari said. "You smell bad."

Mari left the room and wished her a good night. Maddie took a shower and put on the strange new clothes. She didn't know if they were hers to use, but she figured there was no harm in borrowing them for a night. She would sort everything else in the morning when she started work.