Chapter 4

She sipped her coffee, giggling softly at what the girl Infront of her had said.

She was befriending the maids. They had the best gossip in the entire manor and she wouldn't miss that for the world

"It was ghastly really. The woman is acting like she owns the place but she isn't even a mother-in-law yet" One of the maids said while stroking her hair

"I feel like the woman should know her place before the mistress of this estate finds out and throws her out. You do know how bad her temper is, don't you Maeve?"

"Of course. mother hates feeling threatened by any superior figure. Especially those suspected to be prettier than her"

"Yes, yes. Just yesterday the woman asked for water to wash her face and a jug of ice water with a hint of lemon in it by 4am! If she needs efficient servants she should have brought some with her!"

"And we only serve young miss Maeve as well"

"Who else is prettier than our young miss anyways! I'm embarrassed by that old pervert they brought for our young miss' hand in marriage"

"Martha don't remind us! I would have thrown tantrums by now, especially since his younger brother is much more handsome"

"Shhhhhhh, that is young miss' rival and enemy since the dawn of time"

"I agree, he is attractive. But young miss would rather eat sand than marry that man"

"I would take him off her hands then, I do believe I have some charm of my own do I not?"

"What a foolish conversation. it's sounds like some jittery mosquitoes got into my wing" She sighed, tapping a finger on her chin

"Oh my, Young miss. I apologize, we almost forgot you were here!"

"I accept your apology. You girls can continue your.....conversation, I want to rest a bit"

They giggled quietly as they walked outside her room.

They would gossip about her of course, but only to sing her praises.

She sighed, rubbing her temples, she groaned loudly. At the moment she had bigger fish to fry, also know as effectively running away.

Everyone in the estate saw her as a foolish dumb girl with only a pretty face to substitute for an empty shell of a skull.

Of course such an image would only benefit her in the long run, dumb girl with obvious steps. If she could use that image for herself, she could easily lead them all astray.

But there were very little details, few pillers that were not yet constructed and her building could easily be blown away by the slightest misconvenience.

'Knock Knock'

"Yes, come in"

"Young miss, the Mistress of the estate has requested for your presence at the sun room."

"yes, I would be right there. On what occasion may I ask?"

"Afternoon tea miss."

"Thank you. You can leave now." The maid quietly exited after that.

Standing up, Maeve went to her closet to get a dress, her personal maid right behind her.

Time to choose an afternoon dress fit for meeting the Mistress of the estate.

~•~

The clicks and clacks of footsteps echoed through the walls. The sun room was in the West wing, opposite from hers.

"Maria, I am quite certain mother is punishing me for some sort"

"How could you be so sure young mistress"

"Mother knows how far the Wings are from each other, but still requested to see me here, at this point I might break a sweat in this sundress"

"Nonsense, The mistress must have taken liking to the view from that view"

"Here we are Maria, please wait outside for the ringing of my bell"

"Yes young mistress, I understand"

She took one last breath before opening the door

"Mother, not to sound rude but- wait. You are not my mother"

"Of course not dear" The old wench from that family dinner smiled at her

"I do not understand the meaning of this lady Esposito, please could you explain such"

"Oh my love, I honestly have no clue what you might be talking about. I simply called my daughter In-law for some tea. You arrived quicker than I thought to be honest. I'm glad you still regard little 'ol me with relevance at least" The woman smiled, taking a sip of her tea

Glaring at her, Maeve picked up the bell beside her and rang it. Maria quickly burst through the doors, bowing Infront of her

"Yes young mistress?"

"The maid that spoke to me earlier, the one who delivered the message. Bring her to me this instant" Maria scurried away, reading the room instantly.

"Oh dear, Maeve darling, what is the meaning of this"

"You, just sit there and act like you can hold yourself together. You look so frail and boney I am not quite sure if you would last a minute"

The woman gritted her teeth and clenched the cup.

"That's not an answer dear"

"I will bring a little bit of entertainment for you"

"At least sit. We have a lot to discuss about"

Maeve glanced at her, eying her up and down she tsked and went to look through the window.

'This lousy brat, how dare she ignore me!'

The doors burst open not too long after. The maid panting quietly.

"Young miss. You requested for my presence?"

"Stand" She glared at the girl, as she stood, Maeve approached her.

'SMACK!'

The sound echoed around the room. The maid clenched her cheek that had just been smacked. She trembled silently, tears welling up in her eyes

"Maid, what is your name"

"Anabelle"

"Disgusting. Anabelle, do you know why you are a maid"

"No young mistress" She lowered her head.

"Dumb bitch. Well you are a maid because you cannot amount to anything better. No education, no beauty, just a waste. You are a maid because the only thing you are and should be good at is following instructions and rules. Tell me what you did wrong"

"I honestly have no clue young mistress" she cried again.

'SMACK!'

"Useless. I would tell you at least. You referred to a simple irrelevant house guest as 'The mistress of the estate'. A title for my mother and only my mother, in the end it would be passed down to elder brother's wife and so on. But you, a lowly maid, referred to this woman as the mistress? You made me waste a large amount of my time and let her roam the halls as if it were her own."

"I am very sorry young mistress. I would never make such mistake again"

"Now if mother hired you, you would know the consequences of disrespect in this household. But you were brought here by the woman behind me. If you live under my roof, you will be disciplined as one of our own. Maria! Take her to the basement. I'm sure the chief would love educating her for sure"

"Yes young mistress" Maria bowed

"MISS! YOU CANNOT DO THIS TO ME! PLEASE. I AM SO SORRY, I WOULD BOW BY YOUR FEET, ANYTHING BUT THAT!" The maid collapsed at her feet, crying and wailing loudly

"Piece of trash" She murmured, yanking her foot away as the guards dragged her away.

Turning to the woman, she smiled brightly.

"Enough entertainment right? Now get out. You do not deserve to walk these halls as if they were your own"

She picked up her cup of tea, sipping a little, she turned it upside down, emptying the remains on the floor.

"Tea is finished, I shall take my leave"

Turning around, she left the room.

The woman clenched her fists, a face full of annoyance and contempt.

"Just you wait Eliana. I'll make sure you and your horrible daughter would suffer at my hands alone" She tsked, leaving the room instantly.

What a waste of time that was.