A small girl clings to the long skirt of an old woman, both walking at a slow pace through a long stone-paved corridor, it's cold outside with light snow falling, the little girl wearing a simple dress that covers almost her entire body leaving only a little space under the knees, her feet covered with a thin sock and cloth sandals.
The old woman stops near a shabby old door, she opens it for what would look like the first time in years, and the smell of dust makes the little girl sneeze. The old woman then looked at her with a gentle smile.
"Now, Manila, we are going to clean this place, and this will be your room." She gave a broom to her, and both went inside and started sweeping.
Two hours passed, and the room started to feel more comfortable, and almost all the dust was swept from the floor and the furniture. The old lady let Manilla do most of the work alone, teaching her how to do it properly. The little girl was smiling while working. It was the first time someone had paid her so much attention in many days. Outside, the grayish cloudy sky turned darker, and the little girl heard her stomach growl with hunger. The old woman patted the hard mattress in the bed, signaling for her to sit. She goes there obediently and receives a cloth-packed sandwich, which is delicious; there is cheese, ham, and even some greenish herbs, so different from the normal gruel she was fed daily.
"Now, Manila. This is your room from now on. You will need to take care of it every day. Can you do that for me?"
"Yes, Laura! I need to do exactly as today, right?" A hand lands on the child's head, and with a soft, gentle smile, the old woman pats her head.
"Exactly, and remember you can only stay in this part of the mansion unless you are summoned, you understand?"
Nodding with her gentle smile, the girl continued to eat until the sandwich was finished, helping to clean all the crumbs on the bed and wearing a light green nightgown that was too big for her. Tucking herself under the thin blanket, she looks at Laura, who gently pats her head.
"I will not be able to be here every day, but I will leave food and water for three days. You have to restrain yourself and make sure the food will last for the three days. Can you do this?"
"Why can't you stay with me, Laura? Will I be alone here?"
"I'm sorry, my precious, but master Mellorus ordered me to stay with the little master; it is something that the little master asked for." A sad sigh came from the old maid.
Sad about the fact that she will be alone again, she hugs the old maid quietly and enjoys the last day of her company. Manila opens her eyes and looks around. The same old room, the same one that appeared in her dream. It's been fourteen years since she started living there.
She never saw Laura again, the only person in the entire mansion who treated her well when she was little. After living in the room, she started her training to be a maid and worked every day without a break.
"You did everything they always told you to do and got nothing as a reward." The dark voice inside her mind becomes active at random times of the day, but lately has been more constant, increasing her stress and doubt.
"She probably never liked you either, and after dumping you in this tiny dirty room, she probably got a nice reward for her job well done."
"No, she was different. I know she liked me, but Master Mellorus took her from me." Manila answered while changing into her work attire.
Two weeks have passed since she started her new work routine. The objective is to remain unseen to avoid problems; she would do anything without changing her schedule, but hopefully without any interruption or unlucky encounters. A lot was passing through her mind. The dark voice in her head was sowing disruptive thoughts about her loyalty to the Felnatus family, questions she had never asked before, afraid of retaliation or even the loss of being nurtured as part of the family. Now she is at the limit.
To avoid murmurs about her existence, she always received payment for her work, even with the deductions caused by Luccio, and she never spent any of it. Saving it in a hidden place that only she could find in the mansion. The idea to leave the Felnatus grows in her heart, even if it's just a little seed.
Three light knocks at her door caught her by surprise; it seemed she couldn't avoid the summons anymore. She opens the door and sees Amarilla with irritation expressed on her face.
"You sneaky rat, avoiding me at all costs." The anger in her voice was palpable.
"Do you have something important to say, or can I continue my routine without annoying interruptions?" Her cold and aggressive tone caught Amarilla by surprise. She never answered like that before; she was always passive, no matter how rude people talked to her.
"L-lady Amiliath is summoning you; she is waiting at her chambers." Amarilla composed herself, trying to save her little dignity. With an annoying sigh, Manila nodded with her head and shoved the head maid aside. Those thoughts, the voice inside her, everything she had to endure. All she wanted was peace, and her blood was starting to boil. She knocks on the door three times and hears a calm voice inside the room.
"The door is open, you can come in." A voice she used to like, but after so many unpleasant interactions, she started to hate.
So many years since the first time she entered this room, and nothing had changed. The walls are painted in a light peach color and decorated with beautiful paintings, some new while others remain in the same position. At the center of the room, a small wooden table was covered with a large white laced cloth, decorated with many flowers in its design. A beautiful light green tea set for three people and a four-layered tower with many sweets to finish the decoration of such a delicate piece of furniture.
Having a little sip of tea, the owner of this room, Amiliath, wears a long, classy white dress decorated with peach-colored laces and golden threads, creating a beautiful design. Her short, brown, straight hair is well-kept, and her light blue eyes were focused on the tea before looking at Manila. She smiles and waves her hands to the other servants to leave the room so she can have a private talk. The doors close behind Manila after everyone leaves.
"Welcome, my dear Manila, please have a seat. I need to talk with you about many things since you have avoided me for so long."
"What can I serve you, Lady Amiliath?" Said Manila, containing her frustration while sitting at the opposite side of the table.
"First, you don't need to be so formal with me, Sister, we are the only ones here." Her smile was sweet and gentle, but something was missing.
"My lady, you know well that Lord Mellorus forbids anyone who knows about this fact to talk about it."
"Yeah, yeah, I know." She said with a bored expression on her face. "But no one here will tell Father about that, right? I know I will not, will you?"
"It's not my place to say anything about that, my lady."
"Argh! You are boring sometimes, you know? Try to have some personality or something, you are always so submissive." Behind that smile, a crack finally appears on her mask; she is angry.
"That's what you wanted to talk with me, my lady?"
"Ha!" She said triumphantly. "That's what I wanted! Yes! Be more like this, life in this house is boring enough, you don't need to be like that all the time. But no, that's not what I wanted to say." Taking another sip of the tea and a bite of a chocolate biscuit, she speaks in a fake worried voice.
"You know, sister. Our father didn't treat you well for so long, and you are an angel, very diligent and so good at almost everything you do." Blatant provocation is one of her many skills; she hasn't changed in all these years. First, she will be friendly to lower your defenses, then with her vicious words, she will manipulate you to do whatever she wants, while Luccio is brute and flashy. Amiliath is classy and proper, but they are the same.
"Don't worry, different from those two, I know your potential and can say for sure that your skills are fit for the name of Felnatus."
"Kill her." The dark voice grows louder at each of her words.
"My dear brother is paying for his bad behavior and will be back at our residence in two months, so I'm here to make a deal with you that will help us both."
"Make her drown in her blood." Like a sinister side of her consciousness, the voice argues with her, trying to convince her.
"If you can provoke my brother to be…rough again, it will show our father that he is not good enough to be the Heir and will open a way to me."
"Imagine her dead body falling after you pierce her throat with a serrated dagger." The image appears in her mind, and for a second, she thought that would be delightful.
"What do you say? You would be free of him, and I will probably make your life here easier." She holds an open silk fan in front of her face, letting only her eyes be seen.
"If I join this little plot with you, my lady, it would be my neck on the chopping block, so I will decline. That is all, my lady?" With an annoyed and exhausted sigh, Manila answered in a bored tone.
Amiliath's face reddened so bright that you could feel all the anger she felt only by looking at it. Her mask was held by a mere inch.
"I see…I was wrong to try to make you useful for once; you can leave now."
She gives a slight bow and leaves the room. It will not be the last time that Amiliath will try to charm her into doing her dirty work. Only two months before Luccio comes back, this is all the time she has to prepare to deal with him; maybe there will be a way to leave the house.
But that is for another day to think, there is a lot of work to do.