Benworden by Neal Davies Read Free Book Online Page B

captive until you’d indulged on the aromas’ source. Later you felt like doing nothing because you’d eaten so much you could barely move. As you can imagine, Bonnie’s father was somewhat overweight, but who wouldn’t be, given the same circumstances. His name was Edward, or Ted as he was affectionately called by Mrs Bartlett. Ted traced his family tree back to one of the first known convicts who had been brought to Australia from England for stealing a loaf of bread. Like Anna, he was proud of his heritage and saw himself as a true blue Aussie.
    The family didn’t have a lot of money. Mr Bartlett worked as a bricklayer while Mrs Bartlett had her hands full keeping the house running like a well-oiled machine. Money wasn’t an issue when it came to getting by though: their home was built on happiness, encouragement and love and I don’t think I have ever seen a family with so much warmth. All of the kids were treated as individuals and given every opportunity to excel wherever their interests lay.
    Anna and Ted attended school functions and sports days, while sometimes going without and helping their kids any way they could to find their path in life. Through this sort of encouragement the kids felt comfortable applying themselves to their work because they wanted to, not because they were pushed to do so.
    Bonnie was an exceptional student and her grades were flawless. Her parents applied to Benworden for a scholarship and it was given without hesitation. Bonnie specialised in computers and in year 10 there was very little she couldn’t do with one. She was often asked to hack into Mr Gowdy’s emailsto see what devious plans he had in store for the school or the club at any given moment.
    Isabel Snippiton was one of the biggest concerns for our club. She was not only a student at the school but also a boarder and was always snooping around trying to get others in trouble. Isabel came from a very wealthy family. Her father was on the board of three very well-known organisations and her mother held charity fund-raisers which included afternoon teas with high-flyers and socialites. Isabel loved to put on airs and graces, and anyone who wasn’t from what she called the “properly connected families” was viewed as an outcast in her eyes.
    I’d heard that as her parents couldn’t give her the time and love she so often longed for, they tried to make up for it with an allowance that would equal an average worker’s weekly wage before expenses. June Snippiton, her mother, or “Mummy” as Isabel called her, told Isabel that she should earn her allowance. Her father, Jarvis Snippiton, (who was always flaunting his money but never spending any of it), didn’t seem to care less about this as long as June left him alone. Apparently he just wanted to go his merry way being oblivious to everyone’s needs except his own.
    Mrs Snippiton was a tall blonde woman (Isabel told one of her friends she couldn’t work out why because she had auburn hair and her father’s hair was as black as night). June had an absolute passion for cats and her three very beautiful Siamese had won many prizes at the Royal Melbourne Show. Isabel detested the cats and always believed Mummy gave them more time and love than she gave her.
    It was easy for Mrs Snippiton to see that her only child despised her treasures. She thought that if she got her daughterto understand the cats then she too would connect with them. One day she told Isabel that if she wanted her allowance she needed to earn it by looking after her cats on the weekends when she was home from boarding. This would include grooming, walking and feeding them. She would also have to pay for them to have a spa bath once a month out of her own allowance and if she couldn’t ensure this was done properly, she would lose her pocket money for two weeks.
    We would often overhear Isabel say to anyone that would listen,