And so, once again, against all odds, yet another golden opportunity passed the hapless Anna by.
“I’ve returned.”
“Welcome home, Melody!”
“My lady! Nobles do not throw themselves at their maids! For goodness’s sake, it’s unbecoming!”
Luciana was ready and waiting to charge as soon as her maid entered through the door. “Sorry, I know. So how did it go? Did you have a fun day off?”
“Very much so. Thank you for insisting I take one, my lady.”
“Heh, that’s good!” Luciana saw the sincerity in Melody’s smile.
“As it happens, I’ve brought you something to show my appreciation.”
“Oh, Melody, you didn’t have to do that.”
“I’ll have none of that. Kindly shut your eyes, my lady.”
“Is it a surprise?”
The lady did as she was told and held out her right hand. Melody slid something onto her middle finger.
“Okay, open!”
“Oh! A ring!”
“It’s a tad too cheap to wear in public, I’m afraid.”
“Then I’ll wear it in private. Thank you so much, Melody! It’s such a pretty shade of blue.”
It was, in fact, the ring sitting in front of the dolls at the antique store, the one meant for the heroine. Melody had purchased it in secret.
“It’s the same as my mother’s eyes, actually,” she said. “She passed not long ago.”
“Oh.”
“She was a loving, generous, kind person. Even as the plague took her, she spared not a thought for herself. She wanted what was best for me. She supported my dream. That deep, azure blue will always remind me of her and how she cared for me.” Melody smiled tenderly as the memories washed through her. “I was taken aback when I saw it. It was like staring into her eyes again, as if she’d come back to see me, if only for a moment.”
“Melody, it sounds to me like you should have this, not me.”
“No. You should have it, my lady. I have known her love and protection, and I want you to know it too. Though you have Her Ladyship, so perhaps it’s a touch impertinent of me to feel that way.”
“Oh, Melody!” Luciana’s heart ached. “Thank you, thank you, thank you! I do feel loved. And you know what? I bet your mother’s looking down on me from heaven right now. On both of us!”
“You and your theatrics, my lady.” Melody giggled. It had been a long time since she indulged so much in memories of her mother, and it dampened her spirits. Doubtless Luciana saw the rain clouds forming and sought to intercept them quickly and dramatically. “Now, I do believe it’s nearly dinnertime. How is that coming?”
“I-it’s, um, coming. You did most of the work ahead of time, so it should be ready, er…soonish.” Luciana’s eye twitched. Her gaze drifted further and further away with every word.
Melody understood at once. “Will you allow me to assist, my lady?”
Luciana whimpered and hung her head. “Please and thank you.”
This maid-for-a-day needed a bit more experience under her belt before she was ready for a full twenty-four-hour shift.
“I’ll change and then return promptly.”
“Sorry.” Luciana sighed. “This wouldn’t be a problem if we had even a single extra hand to help out.”
“I wouldn’t worry so much about that, my lady.”
“Oh? Do you have something in mind?”
Melody gave her the same performance she gave Anna. A finger to her lips. A smirk. “It’s a secret.”
Promptly indeed, Melody was changed and back in her element. Finding her doll and placing it carefully on her bedside chest, she made to head to the kitchen.
Just before she left, however, she glanced once more over her shoulder at the doll. “I’m off to work, Mom.”
She smiled, and she could have sworn the doll smiled back.
A shriek cut her reverie short. “No, Grail! Bad Grail! That’s the main dish!”
Melody scurried off in a panic. It wasn’t the most graceful end to the day, but that was business as usual for House Rudleberg.
“Feeling refreshed, my lady?”
A decidedly irate lady-in-waiting greeted Anna-Marie upon her return. Anna-Marie’s strategy?
“Well,” she retorted, “there you are, Claris. I looked everywhere for you. Where in the world have you been?”
Playing dumb. That was the perfect lady’s strategy. She plopped herself down on her bedroom sofa with dramatic exhaustion, her cheek perched on her hand for quizzical effect.
“Excuse me, my lady, but excuse me?! You’re the one who’s been missing!”
“Goodness me, we must have spent the entire day just missing each other. That’s rather impressive. It is a large estate, isn’t it?” Anna-Marie loosed a dainty sigh.
It broke something in Claris. “Do you have any idea how you sound right now, you rotten little hooligan?!”
Justified as she was in her rage, Anna-Marie didn’t balk. “Claris, I think it unbecoming of a noblewoman like yourself to use such vulgar language, and at such an obscene volume. Those of House Victillium must hold themselves to certain standards. You would do well to remember that and conduct yourself accordingly.”
The grin on her face shone with self-righteous hypocrisy. Claris’s anger flared, and yet Anna-Marie was right. It was unbecoming of her to react so violently. Remembering her dignity as a Victillium servant, Claris smothered her wrath and growled, “Are you feeling refreshed, my lady?”
Anna-Marie laughed. “I’m sorry, Claris. I only meant to tease. Thank you for your concern.”
That finally cooled the blood boiling in Claris’s throbbing veins. She exhaled and righted her posture, reclaiming the aspect of a proper lady-in-waiting. Then she regarded her lady with a closer, more composed look. Perfect as she was, her smiles never fell short of charming, but of late melancholy shadowed them. This time, however, it was different.
“I take it you had a productive day,” she said.
“Productive indeed. Productive and fulfilling.” Anna-Marie smiled her old smile. It was back. Claris could not begin to guess what caused it. Evidently, she’d needed this secret outing more than anyone knew.