1887-chapter-21-1
“No!”
“Huh?”
Oh no. I yelled way too loudly. Bessie looked at me with wide eyes. Luckily, an excuse quickly came to mind.
“I-it’s just… it’s a bit chilly. Could you bring it over? I want to wrap myself in it.”
“Oh my, really? You must be coming down with something! And you’ve hardly eaten a thing…”
Bessie scurried over and draped the shawl over my shoulders.
Then, she and Lizzie exchanged glances and lowered their voices to ask, “Did you finish the beef jerky from yesterday?”
As expected, it was Bessie who brought that. But I made sure to keep my expression firm.
“Don’t do that again, Bessie. If you get caught, who knows what will happen this time. You too, Lizzie.”
“But Miss… if you go on like this, you’ll actually get sick!”
Lizzie added, “She’s right. I’ll sneak in some bread later. If I hide it in the laundry pile, no one will notice.”
“Enough, both of you. I’m going to sleep all day, so just bring me some water later.”
At the very least, father wouldn’t stop me from drinking water. If he did, they’d have to dispose of my corpse.
More than anything, I was worried that Owen, who was hiding in the wardrobe, might somehow catch on to all this.
I may not get the treatment of a precious daughter, but at least I wasn’t banned from meals entirely.
I didn’t want anyone to know that I was also under strict orders to stay indoors. It was a matter of pride and saving face.
But there was someone else listening in to our conversation.
“What is the meaning of all this commotion?”
“!”
Bessie, trembling, turned around and stammered.
“H-head maid…”
A middle-aged woman with an imposing stature and a stern face stood in the doorway. It was Gemma, the head maid.
With an intimidating air, she strode into the room.
“I asked, what is all this commotion about?”
This isn’t good.
Gemma was infamous for using her hands to beat people. She’s the perfect match for my father, who would slap my face until it made my cheeks burn. Thanks to this, Gemma was praised for keeping the household in order, eventually rising to the position of head maid. In short, Gemma is a tough opponent to deal with.
Lizzie, too, began to shake in fear. Among the servants, no one had escaped the sting of Gemma’s ruthless hands. However, what Gemma was doing was clearly overstepping her authority.
I spoke in the sternest voice I could muster.
“Gemma, what do you think you’re doing? How dare you enter my room without my permission?”
The head maid flinched at my words.
Come to think of it, before I regressed, I’d never looked the head maid straight in the eye or spoken firmly to her. I was always terrified of her, who hid behind my father’s authority. Shamefully so.
But Gemma quickly regained her composure.
“I apologize, Miss. But as the head maid, I simply couldn’t overlook what I overheard.”
“What exactly did you overhear?”
I brazenly countered her question.
“Are you confessing to spying on my room without permission, Gemma?”
“What are you…”
“Oh! Come to think of it, I once saw you listening in on father as well. If you could do it once—what’s stopping you from doing it again? Should I mention this to my father?”
My words were completely bluff, but Gemma’s face turned pale. Though she was certainly a loyal servant to my father, the trust between them wasn’t all that firm. After all, my father trusted no one.
That being so, if he heard a rumor about Gemma eavesdropping on him, he’d probably dismiss her without hesitation.
“That’s a false accusation! How could you doubt my loyalty and try to sow discord between a mistress and servant?”
“Has Gemma ever shown loyalty to me? I don’t think you’ve ever considered me as your mistress.”
Gemma’s face flushed as if she couldn’t deny my words.
With a furious expression, she looked around my room. Then she fixed her gaze on something.
The tea table.
With a triumphant smile, Gemma strode over to it.
Ah, what now? I can’t see what’s there from this angle!
“Well, Miss. As I recall, the master specifically forbids you from eating or going outside.”
Like a detective who had just found incriminating evidence, Gemma raised a piece of beef jerky from the table in the air.
“Then, what is this beef jerky I see here?”
Oh no. This is bad. But I couldn’t admit defeat so easily.
“That’s been in my room all along”
“No, it was in the kitchen pantry. Before coming here, I happened to notice that there was a missing piece.”
Gemma smiled smugly, clearly enjoying herself.