2
"The Duchess is asking for you," Maria whispered as she passed me on the stairs.
I grimaced. "Thank you." As much as I didn't want to be called to wait upon the woman, it was better to know she was expecting me and turn up only a little after that. The alternative was to be punished for being late, even if it wasn't my fault. "Would you take this down to the laundry?" I asked, lifting the basket of dirty bed linen I was holding so she knew what I was talking about.
"Of course. You'd better get going." Maria took the basket from me and began to hop down the stairs. "Oh, and you might want to straighten your cap," she said.
"Thanks," I muttered, and fixed it. I hated that she was right and it had become unruly.
I half-ran up the rest of the stairs and down the corridor to the Duchess'
