The next morning, the house was completely silent.

As I dressed and crept out of the room, leaving Esther fast asleep in the bed, I noticed how the whole house was silent. Not one floorboard creaked, not one door squeaked, it was as though it had fallen asleep along with all its inhabitants. Everyone apart from me, that is. Having ended up going to bed not long after eating the cake, I was the first to rise and was likely to be the only one awake for several hours. Miss Jenkins had told me that it was unlikely anyone, including staff, would be up before midday after the party so that meant I had the house to myself for several hours.

After applying a large amount of burn past to my arm, and stuffing the jar in my pocket, I headed from the kitchen up to the drawing room to assess the damage. Thin beams of sunlight poured through the window, basking the room in a warm glow. Tables and chairs that had been pulled out the night before were left strewn about the room. Plates containing unfinished food were left balancing on tables, resting on the top of the piano and even some on the floor, tucked underneath chairs. Food that hadn't been touched were still laid out across the large side table, small sandwiches resting on platters, as well as an assortment of other small foods.

My eyes scanned over the room, coming up with a plan of how to deal with the mess before anyone else had woken up. After not having the opportunity to contribute anything the night before, I decided it was my duty to clean up the mess left behind. My way of letting the Ealing's know that I wanted the job and I was determined to do anything to make sure that happened. Despite throwing myself head-first into the cleaning, I couldn't shake the comment Samuel had made the night before, how easily he had made me see the reality of lying to the family. I needed to find a way to tell them the truth.

With my mind trying to process how I was going to reveal the truth, I set about cleaning the room. From the floor I grabbed plates and forgotten sandwiches, stacking the plates and collecting the food together. Once the floor was clear of any debris, I tucked the chairs back under the tables to keep them out of the way. Grabbing the stack of plates, I headed back down to the kitchen and placed them in the sink before going into the side room and taking a brush and pan back up the stairs to sweep the carpet.

Returning to the living room, I began to clean the floor, sweeping up the crumbs that had been kicked to the side during the previous evening's events. As I swept, I listened to the distance cries of the birds, the movement of the trees beyond the walls of the house. There was something about being surrounded by nature that I loved. It was quieter. In the factory, we would always hear noises from beyond the gates, the sounds of the drunkards causing fights, the horse's hooves on the cobblestones, the sounds of machines.

"I thought I heard someone moving around," someone said. Lifting the brush in the air, I turned towards the sound of the voice a little shocked to see Matilda standing the doorway. She was still in her nightdress, a robe wrapped tightly around her.

"It's just me, everyone else is still in bed," I said, placing the brush on the floor and standing up, my knees ached in protest.

"Miss Jenkins and Esther don't usually rise until at least eleven the morning after a party, everyone else is usually up at midday. I think this is the first time anyone has ever broken that pattern."

"Yes, well, I went to bed rather early and since I couldn't help last night, this is the least I can do. What are you doing awake?"

"Oh, I wanted to get some water and to see who was moving around. I thought someone had broken in."

"Just me. Wait here and I'll get you a glass of water."

Leaving Matilda standing in the doorway, I left the room and headed down to the kitchen. Esther and Miss Jenkins were still asleep, and the kitchen was empty. I had hoped I would have been able to get through the morning without anyone waking up. I needed to be on my own to figure out what I was going to do, how I was going to tell them the truth. Matilda being around didn't help the situation. She was already judging every little move I made, criticising me if I did the slightest thing wrong. Her watchful eye was enough to distract me from what I needed to be thinking about.

I grabbed a glass from one of the cupboards and filled it up with water, wrapping my fingers around it to stop it slipping from my fingers. With the water in hand, I crossed the kitchen and returned to the drawing room where Matilda was waiting. She hadn't moved from the doorway and watched me as I returned and handed over the glass, though she didn't take a sip; she just watched me. Not wanting to seem as though I was intimidated, I returned to my spot on the floor and continued sweeping, trying to ignore the stare.

"Did you like the cake? From last night?" Matilda asked. Slowly lifting her hand up to drink from the glass.

"That was you?" I said, furrowing my eyebrows together. I had thought it had come from Robert, he was the obvious choice considering all he had done for me already. The possibility of it being Matilda never even crossed my mind.

"Yes. I know you probably thought it was Robert, but he wouldn't leave Alexander alone just in case he decided to mimic his father. I managed to slip away and leave it in the kitchen for you, as a way of saying sorry for what happened."

"You weren't the one who soaked me, so you have no reason to apologise," I said, trying to shake off her comment.

"Still, they wouldn't have been here if it weren't for me turning sixteen and Father's incessant need for me to marry the son of one of his close friends. Honestly, I've only just turned sixteen and he appears to be under the impression that now would be the perfect time to start courting. You're lucky you can find your own sweetheart."

"Must be hard, having your entire life mapped out for you like that."

"I suppose. A sense of freedom would be a great thing to have, or at least experience just once. You're lucky in that sense."

"Hm, perhaps."

"I should probably go back to bed, I doubt Mother would be too happy if I woke up looking exhausted after she specifically told me I needed to get later. Good luck with your cleaning and thank you for the water."

"You're welcome. Thank you for the cake, I appreciate it."

With a nod and what could possibly have been a hint of a smile, Matilda turned and left me and my brush alone once again. As I watched her walk away, I couldn't but wonder if she was a playing a game with me, making me feel as though she was no longer out to get me, so I could relax and be caught off guard. There was something about her sudden change in behaviour, the way she went from being someone who couldn't stand me to an almost-friend was odd. It did little to ease the anxiety that was already bubbling up inside, threatening to spill over the surface.

Pushing all thoughts to the back of my mind, I went on with my task. I swept up the remainder of the crumbs on the carpet and readjusted all the chairs, so they sat straight against the tables. With the floor clean, I ran the brush over the tables, catching any loose crumbs that clung onto the tablecloths. Once the tables were clean, I moved the left-over food platters down to the kitchen, leaving them onto the table to deal with later. The crumbs and half-eaten food were dumped into the metal bucket that would be dealt with later. My task was to clean the dishes.

I filled the sink with water and using an old washcloth dumped on the side, I scrubbed down the dishes, leaving them on the drying rack. As I worked, I hummed softly to myself, going over the piano music played at the party and the music Mother used to play. During my time at the factory, I never wanted to remember the fun times with Mother, the good times we had before everything went wrong. It was too difficult to remember the good times whilst experiencing the worst, so I tried not to think about it. Instead, we would savour the good moments we had with each other, no matter how small.

One the dishes I washed, I left them to dry on the drying rack and took a seat at the kitchen table, eyeing up the food in front of me. I hadn't eaten all morning and my stomach was starting to protest its lack of food. After being with the Ealing's for several days, I was already used to eating larger quantities of food than before and my stomach liked to make a scene when it hadn't been fed. Eyeing up the food, I eventually gave in to the temptation and grabbed one of the left-over sandwiches from the tray in front of me, devouring it in almost one bite.

"I'm glad the left-overs are being put to some use," Miss Jenkins said, appearing in the kitchen.

"Sorry, I got hungry," I said sheepishly.

"It's fine, go ahead. They'll only keep for a few days so it's better they get eaten. If you don't eat them, Master Robert will so eat as much as you want."

"Thank you," I said, taking another sandwich.

"How long have you been up for? I know for a fact that this was all in the drawing room when we went to bed last night."

"A little while. I went to bed early so I didn't need to sleep in, I thought I would get a head-start on the chores before everyone else woke up."

"Well, I appreciate the help. If I prepare a tray, would you mind running it up to Robert for me? He's usually the first one up."

"Of course."

"Great, you help yourself to that and I'll prepare the tray."

Miss Jenkins turned away from me and went towards the stove, putting on a pot of water and waiting for it to heat up. Whilst she prepared the tray, I continued to grab things off the tray and eat them, devouring one sandwich after another. I watched Miss Jenkins start to put the plates I had washed back in the cupboard, all while watching the boiling water and placing a mug, saucer and a small plate onto a tray. Once the plates had been stacked, she started to remove some of the left-overs from the platter and place them on the plate.

Once the water had boiled, Miss Jenkins poured it into the teacup and pushed the tray towards me. Stuffing the last sandwich into my mouth, I dusted my hands off and grabbed the tray, leaving Miss Jenkins to the kitchen. Making my way up the stairs, it felt as though the house was starting to wake up along with its residents. Whilst I had been moving around on my own, the house was silent, now that its inhabitants were starting to awaken, the house was coming alive. I listened to the small creaks in the floorboards as I made my way upstairs.

Reaching the landing, I leaned the tray on one hand and knocked on the door with the other. After receiving no reply, I knocked again receiving a muffled "one minute" from within. I stood outside the room, listening to the sound of movement and a door closing, wondering just what Robert was doing inside.

"Come in!" he called. I pushed open the door and shuffled inside, finding Robert struggling to keep his hair lying flat.

"Miss Jenkins thought you might want this," I said, lifting the tray up so he could see it.

"Ah, food! There is always an upside to parties, the left-over food in the morning."

"I'm inclined to agree with you on that, I ate a fair bit of it before coming up here. Cleaning a whole room can really make you hungry," I said, laughing slightly.

"You were the first one up, I take it?"

"Yes, I thought I would do something useful with my time, seeing as I had no need to sleep in like everyone else. I wasn't the only one up, though, Matilda was around for a little while."

"What was she doing awake? Normally she has to be woken up by Mother, something about needing her beauty sleep," Robert said, still wrestling with a single piece of hair that wouldn't lay flat like the others.

"She heard me moving around and thought someone may have broken in. A tad over-dramatic, but it's not as though I expected anything less."

"Hm, she's always had a flair for the dramatics, my sister. I appreciate the tray, you can set it over on the side," Robert said, gesturing to one of the side tables in the room. I set the tray down and then turned to him.

"Is there anything else I can do?"

"No, that's everything."

"Very well, I shall see you later."

Not wanting to forget my manners, I bowed my head to Robert and left the room, closing the door behind me. As I left the room, I noticed a small shadow on the ground in a square of sunlight coming in through one of the windows. I narrowed my eyes and looked around the hallway, trying to locate the source of the shadow. Glancing around the narrow hallway, it was almost impossible to find the source of the shadow against the beam of sunlight filling the hallway. Whoever it was, they didn't want to be seen but they were watching me.

Shaking my head, I turned and walked away from the shadow, heading down the stairs and back towards the kitchen. As I went, I glance over my shoulder to see if I could catch a glimpse of my stalker, instead, I saw the small flick of a dress as it slipped into one of the rooms. Walking down to the kitchen, I couldn't shake the feeling of fear that crept up. Whoever that person was, they didn't want me to know who they were, but they were watching my moment.

My first thought was Matilda. She was the most obvious choice as the person most likely to watch my every move, trying to catch me out in order to have me dismissed. I had hoped, after our conversation that morning, that she would stop trying to trip me up, but it looked as though she was more determined than ever. As I reached the kitchen, I made a vow to myself to watch my back, just in case, Matilda was watching my every move, trying to get into trouble. Any slight slip-up could lead to my dismissal. I couldn't risk getting caught out.

"Ah, there you are! You did a great job on the drawing room this morning. Esther is still in bed, but she should be up soon. Would you mind going up and scrubbing the hallway floor? I'll send Esther to join when she's awake," Miss Jenkins said, setting a wooden bucket and a scrubbing brush on the table.

"Of course."

"Thank you. If your wrist causes you any grief, take a break. You've done a lot of work already today and you shouldn't over-do it until Doctor Ealing is certain the bruising's gone down."

"I will."

Grabbing the bucket in my right hand and the brush in the other, I headed back up the stairs, slightly weighed down by the water in the bucket. I stepped out of the staircase and into the hallway and headed towards the doorway, dropping the bucket onto the ground. Pulling my dress up slightly, I settled onto my knees and started to scrub the floor with the brush. The work was slow, and my knees started to ache within a matter of seconds, but I was glad to be doing something useful for a change.

Being on my knees, scrubbing the wooden floor, reminded me of my work at the factory. Spending several hours at a time crawling along a wooden floor whilst my knees ached, and my arms protested. Doing the same job every day for so many years, my knees remained bruised and I often walked with a great deal of difficulty. Although it had only been a few days, I had already noticed a change in how I walked and noticed that the bruises were starting to go down. It was the smallest reminder that things were going to be okay, that they weren't going to remain bad forever.

As I scrubbed the floor, being reminded of my work at the factory, my mind kept going back to Isabel. What she was doing, whether she was okay, how the other girls were doing at the factory. Not knowing what was happening with them was killing me, they were my friends, but I wasn't doing anything to help them. Instead, I was on my hands and knees, scrubbing the floor of a family who had been so kind to me when I had done nothing but lie to them in return. The more I thought about Isabel, the more I wanted to tell the truth. To tell someone who may be able to help.

After several minutes of scrubbing, I dropped the brush into the bucket and stood up, stretching my legs and my knees out. At the factory, I never would have considered taking a break. If I took a break, if I stopped for a moment, I would have been punished. With the Ealing's, I was able to stop when I wanted for a moment of air, for a chance to stretch my legs. It was just odd doing it all on my own. I needed my friends with me.

"What are you doing?" Matilda asked, coming into view at the end of the hallway.

"Stretching my legs. My arm was starting to ache, and Miss Jenkins said I could take a break if I needed to," I replied.

"Right. Considering you have done very little work since you got here, should you really be taking a break?"

"I don't understand."

"I think you do. All I ever see you do is stand around talking to my brother and when you have been working, it's nothing but cleaning. In my eyes, that doesn't exactly count as work."

"Alright, I shall try harder to do something other than clean."

"You better." She turned to leave. "Oh, and stay away from my brother. Robert may be too clueless to see it, but I'm not. You are here to work, not get close to him."  

~~~

A/N - We are back to our regular Tuesday updates! Chapter Seventeen is ready to go up next week and I am working my way through Chapter Eighteen as well! With any luck, we can keep this momentum going until the end of the book (although that is coming closer than I like xD)

Anyways, this chapter was an interesting one... We had another Robsie moment (well, they were in the same room). What about Matilda? First, she's nice, then she's not! What do you think is going on with her? 

Comment below!

Dedication - This chapter is dedicated to disturbs who has an amazing book called 'Letters to Joshua' which I love! Go check it out :)

First Published - January 8th, 2019