The Sticky-fingered maid (1)

Part of the fake evidence held against Arabella was her journal. At the time, she stared stunned as the journal she had hidden so carefully was read aloud with events she had no memory of writing. She was even more horrified to find that the writing matched hers exactly. Someone had clearly forged it to write damning evidence against her in it. So someone in the house was working for Cecil at the time and clearly, they were already here considering no new workers that she could remember were hired over that time.

Framing her was easy. She was a non-perceptive person who wouldn't care for small details around her. But she had made an active choice to change that this time and it had begun to pay off. At first, it was an old perfume of hers that would be far emptier than she remembered, then it was a ring that she hardly wore anymore going missing and finally... Her journal would be set back in a different position from where she left it.

Arabelle smirked when she first noticed it. It was just as she suspected.

Arabella smiled into the teacup she had brought to her lips. She would remember that as key information for what she had planned. But she needed to try being as subtle as possible with the most likely culprit. The red-haired maid who was occupied clumsily spritzing the flowers around the room remained blissfully unaware of her lady's scrutinising gaze. Arabella rested her cheek on her fist.

A fresh-faced girl of 17, she had begun working at the estate as Arabella's second maid after she had requested it a year ago. If she remembered correctly, she was rather tough on the new recruit. She'd only been working there for a little over a year and became nothing more than a verbal outlet for her frustrations. She was beyond tough on her, compared to Aubrey who had more years of experience, the new girl paled in comparison and became a thorn in Arabella's side when she craved perfection. So out of frustration, she had assigned her to essentially do the easier work, cleaning up after her messes... It's no wonder all her secrets would come undone so easily.

Arabella didn't think of herself as someone stupid, but in hindsight, she saw herself as the biggest fool to have ever existed. Leaving a maid, who most definitely despised her, alone in her most private abode? Of course, she would snoop all she liked. It's no wonder it was so easy for Cecil to plant evidence against her. And so convincingly too. The way the false entries were written right down to the mannerisms, language, and handwriting. It was undeniably an excellent forgery... Hmph. Just saying that evoked rage. The red-haired girl must have been snooping for some time.

But in the end, Arabella put herself in this vulnerable position. So why not use it to her advantage? She knew the culprit, but the culprit didn't know that. If she really wanted, the maid could be gone with the snap of her fingers but what use would that be for her?

For the past week, Arabella had written in her diary as she would have under normal circumstances trying her best to make each entry sound typical of her 14-year-old self and placed it in the secret compartment of her drawer. With the additional routine of placing a small piece of paper on the cover. And each time she came back, it was no longer there after the maid cleaned the room. She was certain it had to be this girl...

Whatever her name was.

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Arabella's eyes flitted up from the textbook she was buried in as she lay on the chaise lounge. The maid had just finished making the bed that morning. She really was unaware of the information she knew right now and somehow that amused Arabella to no end, she had to hide her smirk behind her book. Before they could accidentally lock eyes, she focused on the pages in front of her once more as the maid walked over.

"Um...Milady, would you like me to return these books if you're finished?"

Arabella peeked up at her visage and decided to try something. She placed the book in her hands down on the small table with the others after bookmarking the page and shook her head, "Keep them here, I'm not finished." She got herself up from the seat and walked over to the wardrobe where she followed. "I want to change for a walk, so call Aubrey."

"Yes, Mila-"

"But make sure you come back too, I'd like your help also."

The maid frowned in confusion for a split moment at the new task given to her. This was never her job. But she quickly bowed her head in acknowledgement and scurried away. It didn't take long for her to return as ordered and for both maids to join her at her large wardrobe. She absentmindedly pretended to rifle through her wardrobe as soon as the two entered the room and waited patiently for her to decide. But, it wasn't like she actually cared about changing clothes, what she really wanted was... Aha!

"This dress. It came with a matching ribbon set if I remember correctly. I'd like to wear this one." She removed the flowery ensemble from its shelf, remembering it to be a birthday gift from last year on behalf of her father. She reluctantly wore it at the time to please him, believing it to be ugly, but now she looked at it with a soft warmth in her chest. It wasn't the prettiest thing, but she appreciated her father's effort. But she brought herself away from reminiscing with a firm head shake.

Arabella turned to Aubrey, "Help me put on the dress," and with a sweet smile turned to the maid who seemed to be looking a little hot under the collar. "And you can find the ribbon set, it should be in the drawers with the others."

The maid froze before turning around and robotically making her way to the drawers to search, a nervous 'yes, milady' escaping her as she did so. Aubrey, as per usual, diligently got to work buttoning up the back of the dress and securing each clasp, all while Arabella kept an amused eye on the panicking young girl digging through her drawers from the reflection in the mirror. After a good five minutes of waiting, Arabella decided that enough was enough and turned to the girl, "What is taking so long?"

The maid jumped at the sound of her voice and slowly turned, trying to calm herself, "...I-I can't seem to find the set you're talking about, Milady..."

Aubrey raised a brow, "Let me look." After a minute of digging through the ribbon drawer, Aubrey's face fell into confusion. "Strange. It's only been opened once."

Arabella hid her smile behind her hand in an attempt to feign deep thought. Of course, it wouldn't be there. Before, she would never have noticed as she had no intention of wearing it, so it went unnoticed and was up for grabs for the person with the loosest fingers. The poor maid was nervous, though Arabella silently commended her for hiding it this well considering how her previous self reacted to losing things. Let's see how much more she could take.

"Is that right? Such a shame... That was a gift from my father..." She moved from the mirror to her jewellery drawer and slid it open, digging through the layers of her most treasured items to get to the older pieces. "I'll just wear...Oh?" She let a few more seconds pass while the maid sweated through her clothes, before spinning around. "Aubrey, do you remember the necklace I bought last year? The sapphire pendant from the capital?"

"Yes, Milady. Can you not find it?" Aubrey: Always quick on the uptake.

"It seems so. I remember placing it so carefully away." She lets her eyes fall on the red-haired maid whose eyes quickly snapped to face the floor. Like a caught puppy. Again, Arabella rested her palm against her cheek and creased her brows. "This is so strange... Two things in a row? Hmmm..." Time for the final blow. She practically pranced over to her perfumes and waved her finger over each one as she smiled menacingly. She grinned as she picked up her newest one. The one she remembered buying a mere month ago. And pressed down on the nozzle. "Oh, would you look at that..." Again and again and again, she repeated the motion and met eyes with the trembling young maid. "I'm all out. Isn't that strange?"

How bold could she be? Older items sure, but something bought only a few weeks ago? How could she have emptied the entire bottle already? Arabella felt practically insulted, the poor girl could at least try to hide her thievery. She let the silence linger for a good while, so much so, that Aubrey seemed to be catching on. The older girl's gaze darted from the empty bottle to the other maid trying to keep her composure and her dark brows furrowed. With all eyes on her, the nameless maid's skin began to crawl and she fought against her own stammering voice to answer, "I-It is strange... Milady..."

It really took everything that Arabella had in her to not laugh at the girl's fidgeting, so having had enough, she relented and turned away to simply shrug, "Oh well. I'm sure I must have misplaced a few things. And who is to say there is any foul play involved." After glancing outside of the window, she sighed and walked over to the door. "I'll take time on my walk to clear my mind. Aubrey, we've made a mess in here so please handle it." She was having way too much fun with this, so she turned to the other maid and smiled. "I'll take you to join me."

She was already sweating in her boots, but Arabella was having too much fun to end now. As they began to walk through the halls the girl seemed to be heavily in her thoughts and looking guilty as ever. It seemed it was time to put the nail in the coffin, "It's so strange..." The maid's face dropped and Arabella maintained her serious composure. "Aubrey seemed a little bit suspicious there, don't you think?"

In an instant, the panic on the girl's face seemed to fade away in the most damning possible way. She lost her stutter almost immediately and nodded, eyes wide, "You're right. She was, Lady Arabella."

Arabella continued walking without a word. Bold. She couldn't quite bring herself to be angry before, but the girls' ease in throwing Aubrey into the line of fire without guilt rubbed her the wrong way. Through a deceivingly serene smile, she turned to the girl. "It's good that we're on the same page. Remind me of your name?"

"Huh?"

"Your name."

"Carol, milady." She smiled, full of relief.

Carol.

Arabella's sweet smile morphed into a smirk. She would have fun with this one.