Chapter 4
1152 Words
4
We lined up at the bottom of the stairs, a rainbow of colours in our silk, satin, and damask clothing. It was richer than any of us had ever worn before, and I could tell from the way the other girls were shuffling about that they were starting to get uncomfortable. I'd have to thank Jill later for picking me a comfortable dress. It seemed as if that was the way she'd gone for herself too, as she stood completely still, not moving a muscle. I narrowed my eyes. Something was up with that. Why would she be so laid back while wearing a fancier dress than normal? Was there something she hadn't told me about where she'd come from?
I didn't dwell on that, it wasn't worth it. Instead, I watched as the rest of the servants filed into the room, standing on the opposite side of the staircase from us girls. The Matron went to stand with them. All of them looked smart, as if they were wearing the best clothes they owned, but none of their outfits came anywhere close to the extravagance me and the other serving girls had on. I tried not to think about what that meant, it only served to make me more uneasy.
We stood in silence, nobody moving or saying anything as we all waited for the Duchess. With no clock in the entrance hall, it was impossible to tell how much time had passed, and it felt like an age despite the fact it probably wasn't. If we'd had hours before she needed us, then the Duchess would have us working them.
The woman in question stepped into the hall a moment later. Her dress was a deep purple, a bold choice with royalty visiting, but she was a Duchess, and could get away with the choice, especially if there wasn't a royal woman arriving with the Prince.
"Good morning, everyone," she said loudly. "I've called you here to lay down a few ground rules for while His Majesty is visiting us."
One of the cooks leaned in to whisper something to a gardener. My gaze flitted to the Duchess, wondering if she'd seen the gesture, but she didn't seem to care in the slightest.
"You are not to be seen unless you are called for. The castle must be spotless. There will not be anything out of place," she said, pacing back and forth. "If you are called for, you are to come immediately, no matter what you are doing."
I wasn't sure why she was telling us any of this. It all sounded like nothing more than a normal day under her rule.
"For today only, the girls are not to perform any of their normal tasks. But I expect them still to be done." She glowered at the other servants, who pulled faces as if they wanted to protest, but dared not. I didn't blame them. If they had to do all of their own work, and all of ours, they wouldn't get any sleep tonight.
But no one spoke. There was no point. What the Duchess wanted, the Duchess got. It was as simple as that and no one argued if they knew what was good for them. And we did. We'd had a lot of practice and experience with it.
"Excuse me, Your Grace?" Nancy asked.
I sucked in a breath, as did several of the other servants.
The Duchess' attention swivelled to her, an eyebrow raised as if asking her why she dared speak at all. "Yes?"
"If we're not to do our chores, then what would you like us to do, Your Grace?" she asked.
It was a valid question, even if it was a dangerous one to ask. I wasn't sure I'd have had the courage to.
"You will be diverting yourselves with reading, music, and walks in the garden," the Duchess answered.
My eyes widened. Why was this happening? It didn't make any sense.
"But I don't want to see any of you, and expect you to vacate any room I enter," she added.
I almost laughed. I didn't want to be in a room with her if I could help it anyway, having an excuse to leave any she walked into was a good thing as far as I was concerned.
"And if the Prince calls for you, you are to do anything he asks for." She paused for dramatic effect. "Anything."
Confusion crossed some of the girls' faces, but I understood what the Duchess was getting at. The reason we were supposed to do all of those things was so that we could appear desirable to the Prince. If he called for one of us at night, then we were supposed to go. I wasn't sure if the Duchess wanted that so he would be pleased, or so she could use the information against him at a later date. I didn't think I wanted to know.
I felt sorry for the Prince. The Duchess tended to have beautiful serving girls, and I was certain he would find at least one of us attractive, though whether or not he'd ask for a companion remained to be seen. I'd never heard any rumours about the man being a womaniser, but then, I barely left the Duchess' castle, so what did I know.
"And if he does call on you, then as soon as he is done, you are to report to the Matron and tell her exactly what occurred," the Duchess ordered.
My stomach twisted into a knot. Was she really saying this? She wanted us to entrap the Prince and give in to his every whim, but at the end of it, report back to her so she could use the information.
I wasn't the only one who didn't seem to like the new development, a couple of the other girls were fidgeting noticeably, not wanting to go ahead with the things she was saying. I could understand that.
"He will be arriving any moment, please assume your places throughout the castle. And remember what has been said to you," she warned. "I don't want to see you in my way. You are expected to constantly be on the lookout for the good of this household."
I stopped myself from pulling a face at that. What good did any of this do us? We were all going to be trapped in basic slavery to her. If she did well, there'd be more of us, and more to do. Nothing was going to change.
"Dismissed," she said, walking off and leaving us to do what we wished.
Without thinking twice about it, I left the room and made my way to the stables. If I was going to have free time while the Prince was here, I was going to make the most of it and spend it with Dart. No one would bother me out with the horses, especially if the grooms and gardeners were putting in extra hours doing the work that one of us girls would normally do.
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