Maria Reynold’s life was never easy.
Her parents died when she was young, of a malady. She was then left to fend for herself, wandering around begging for scraps like a vagrant.
When she was 16, she married a Mr. James Reynolds. Mostly because James Reynolds could provide for her in a way that she couldn’t do herself.
James Reynolds presented himself as a magnanimous man, who would have been kind and would love Maria dearly.
It was all an illusion.
Maria, being naïve like she was, courted and married him two months after they met.
It was a few weeks later when he finally showed his true colors.
James Reynolds was a malicious, malcontent man. He was greedy and ambitious and would use every weapon in his disposal to get what he wanted.
His weapon? Maria.
What he wanted? Money.
Of course, he did not reveal any of this until they were married. He was a smart man. Cruel, but smart.
It was three months after they were married when he had a bit too much to drink, and promptly beat Maria.
It was five months when he revealed his intentions to use her to gain wealth.
It was one year when she was given a task: seduce John Church so that James could blackmail him.
“Think of how it will benefit us,” he said as he delivered a blow to her arm.
“We’ll be able to purchase whatever we want,” he said as he hit her waist.
“We’ll be rich,” he said as he punched her spine.
It was not as if she had a choice.
Maria worked at a sleazy, cheap tavern. She knew how to work around men.
They would catcall her, calling her names like they would call a prostitute.
I am not a prostitute, she would say to herself. I am just trying to stay alive.
James would still hit her for being unfaithful.
But Maria got used to this. She grew resilient over the years.
And at that tavern, she learned how to seduce men, how to trick them into giving her their jewels, their money, their treasures.
All of her earnings would go to James.
He would still beat her, no matter how much she earned.
“You filthy whore,” he would say during the nights when he drank.
Basically, every night.
“You are useless to me,” he would say while delivering carefully aimed blows.
Just hard enough to hurt.
Not hard enough to be seen by others.
“All you do is take up space, all you do is consume and consume and consume, and what do I get? Nothing. Shut up, stop crying,” he would say as he beat her senseless.
In the moments where he was lucid, he would treat her like a queen. He would caw over her, giving her the jewels and gold coins that she earned.
And then when he was drunk, he would beat her for stealing her treasures.
Maybe that’s why she hasn’t left him yet.
Maybe she actually cared for him.
But Maria only loved the man who would treat her like a human being.
There was never a bright spot in Maria’s life until she met Angelica Schuyler.
They met at a winter’s ball that her husband, John Church, was holding.
Maria was sent to the ball by her husband. She was dressed in her finest jewels and clothes. But compared to the others who were attending the ball, she was just plain.
It was because of the simplicity of her clothing that Angelica Schuyler was drawn to her.
“Hello,” Angelica said to her.
“Hi.” Maria knew who she was. She knew that she was supposed to ruin her marriage. Her tone was not very light, for obvious reasons.
“Not enjoying the ball are you?”
“Not particularly."
“Well, I can relate. I, myself, would rather be with my sister and away from my husband, or just anywhere else in general.”
“Marriage problems? I can relate.”
“Well, not marriage problems. Just problems with the males in general.”
“I understand even more.”
The two became friends quickly. They would arrange appointments where they would talk over a cup of tea. Their arrangements seemed peaceful, their discussion topics was not. They found themselves bonding over their general dislike of males, the patriarchy, and the oppression of females.
And Maria found herself falling in love.
She couldn’t help it. She knew the consequences of falling in love, but she couldn’t say no to this. She was helpless.
One week later, they shared their first kiss.
“Should we be doing this?” Maria asked afterwards. “I mean, we are both married, and we are both women-“
Angelica placed a finger on her lips. “Shhhh. Don’t act like men haven’t done worse.”
Two months later, Maria confessed the state of her marriage to Angelica.
“Why are you wearing that?” Angelica asked her. It was a hot day, and Maria was wearing long sleeves, to hide the bruises.
“What do you mean?” Maria replied, stalling.
“It is a hot day, and you only wear winter clothes. I notice these things, my dearest, Maria.”
And so Maria told her how James would beat her, cheat her, mistreat her. She told Angelica these things, sobbing into her arms. But she didn’t tell her about her task to get money from them. Maria wasn’t stupid.
“Hey,” Angelica said, holding Maria’s face in her hands. “I can help you get out of this marriage. We can bring it to court, we can-“
“You can?” Maria interrupted. Maria never had anybody help her in her life. This was new to her.
“Yes,” Angelica said, smiling. “I know a few lawyers that can make your case, you know, Alexander Hamilton is my brother in law-“
“The Alexander Hamilton?”
“You talk of him in such high reverence,” Angelica said, laughing. “He is, frankly, a mess. Quite a scoundrel, as well.”
Angelica gave Maria something she had never experienced before. She gave her hope.
Her husband noticed this. He noticed how Maria walked around with a new light in her eyes, like she was in love.
He began interrogating her, asking her if John was ready to be blackmailed. Maria waved off his questions, appeasing him in bed.
She was becoming quite the actor.
When Maria was with Angelica, she felt safe. She felt like Angelica was there to shield her from the world, from her husband. Angelica would always protect her no matter what, hurting others, using her words like someone would use a bayonet.
One morning, after Maria spent the night at Angelica’s house, she found herself being the one hurt.
Angelica was holding a letter. “What is this?” she asked Maria harshly.
“What’s what?”
“This letter. It’s from your husband.” Maria could see where she was going with this. She sat down on the floor, hugging her legs. “It is asking for payment. It’s blackmailing me.”
Maria began crying now. Her dearest, Angelica, was being so harsh, so cold, like the last few months between them was nothing. Like Maria was a stranger to her. Her husband just had to ruin everything.
“So is your whole story a setup?” Angelica asked her, emotionless.
“No, It’s just that I-“
“Stop crying, goddammit get up.” Angelica turned away. “It was all a lie, wasn’t it. Everything that you said, did, everything that we did, it was just all an act.”
“No,” Maria sobbed. “I can explain, Angelica, please, I-“
“Stop,” Angelica said. She wouldn’t meet her eyes. “Get out. I don’t want to ever see you again.”
“Angelica-"
“Go away.”
Maria never did see Angelica again. After that, she came up with a story to tell James. The bruises were more visible, but it was not too bad.
A few months later, Maria heard that Angelica and her husband was moving to London.
Maria went back to her old life, the life that wasn’t quite living.
She still thought of Angelica. A lot. More than it was healthy too. But the thoughts began to fade. She now thought of Angelica, and felt reminiscent of the past.
But the thoughts faded away. Maria never spoke her name again.