It is being done for me. I can hear a mechanical sound that coincides with every breath I take in. A click starts it and then the whirring sound of an... electric motor running.The first few times I awoke to this sound I went through a period of confusion and it still affects me that way but to a lesser degree. I know the sound is the motor operating the bellows of the Iron Lung I am locked inside. The feel of the leather straps holding my arms and legs tightly to the cot inside the steel chamber. Someday, the balance will have to be paid.”Silence hung in the room.“Virginia,” I said, my voice soft.Virginia ducked her head forward – and I saw her looking purely and utterly miserable. My past as a bandit was not unstained by blood. But, by and large, I had done my best to simply take gold, not lives. I wondered if her past was nearly so clean. And seeing her misery decided me. I stepped to the side of the bath, then knelt down. I placed my hand on her shoulder, squeezing. “You need not. In the firdt few days I saw the parents and a couple of young daughters, but one day on my way home I saw a 15/16 year old girl going into the house. She was tall, blonde, fit and I was in lust. That night my dad told me he had met the family next door. There were 3 daughters living there and their son was away at college. He told me the girls' names, and that night I drifted off to sleep with thoughts about Hayley.A few days later I finally got a chance to talk to her, and we got on okay. I. It was quite warm. "Oh, you know. One of my bad days." His voice sounded worried, even though he was trying his best to be upbeat. "Are you sure?" I was concerned. He had bad days but usually he was just exhausted. This was different. His breathing seemed laboured and his pulse was slow but strong. This was more than 'one of his bad days'. "I told you," he snapped. "Oh, Sweetheart, I'm sorry. You know how it is. I am sick of always being ill when we are on holiday. It must be so annoying for.