Esther and I were woken early the next morning to begin the preparations for Mrs Ealing's sister's visit. In my six months of working for the family, no one had even mentioned her name and yet there appeared to be a flurry of activity on the day she would visit. It felt like Matilda's birthday all over again, yet this time Mrs Ealing hovered around every room and even ventured down to the kitchen to lecture Miss Jenkins on the cooking for that luncheon. Neither Doctor Ealing nor Mrs Ealing had ever ventured to the kitchen and they had never tried to instruct of lectures Miss Jenkins on her cooking. No one dared do such a thing for free she would chase after them with a wooden spoon.

Robert and Matilda had been instructed to help the twins with their outfits for the luncheon to allow Esther and I to get on with our work so everything would be perfect. When I passed Robert in the hallway, he had been draping a pair of pressed shorts over his back and looked less than impressed with having to dress Zachariah. I knew how he felt, the times I had been instructed to help Charlotte were too many to count and it had never been an easy task. She had a habit of throwing herself on the floor in a tantrum when she couldn't get what she wanted. It looked as though Zachariah had been prone to the same thing.

I scuttled past Robert and down the end of the hallway as he flung the pair of shorts over his shoulder. Mrs Ealing stood at the far end of the hall, her eyes narrowed at me as I approached her before making a turn towards the dining room. Avoiding Robert in the house happened to be easier said than done as he always seemed to appear when I least expected it. In order to keep with Mrs Ealing's rules, I had to come up with an excuse and escape to a different room. I knew he wanted to ask me why, but I never gave him the opportunity, not even when we were in the office. However, he hadn't been the only one to notice that I had started to avoid him.

"I saw that," Esther said as we laid the dining room table. Miss Jenkins had banished both of us from the kitchen after Mrs Ealing's visit and neither of us were too keen to return. We took as long as possible to set the table.

"Saw what?" I asked.

"You ignoring Robert just now. You've been doing it for days now and you haven't been very subtle about it. What's going on?"

"Nothing."

"Rosie." She gave me a pointed look and pulled a rather sharp knife out of a drawer.

"Alright, alright, just put the knife down. I don't trust you." She placed the knife on the table with the other cutlery. "Mrs Ealing told me to stay away from Robert or I would get a second infraction."

"So you're ignoring him? Does he know this?"

"No, of course not. I knew if I told him he would confront her about it, and I didn't want to be the person to destroy their relationship. Besides, maybe she has a point. I spend too much time talking to Robert when I should be working, so this might not be a bad thing," I lied.

I knew that that wasn't the case. Mrs Ealing's threat didn't make any sense, but I had to lie to myself in order to go along with it. I knew she would carry out her threat and give me the second infraction if she saw me talking to Robert and I didn't want to risk it. If avoiding Robert would be all it took to keep my position until I made my decision over whether I would stay or not, then so be it. If it came to it, I would have to tell Robert the truth about what his mother had said but I didn't want to do that unless it ended up being necessary. If they fell out, if Robert refused to speak to his mother again, I didn't want to be the one responsible for that.

My mother always told us to never leave a discussion on an argument or an insult because we didn't know what the future would hold. She always made sure we were friends by the next morning and that none of our arguments ever carried on longer then they had to. I didn't want to be the one to break up the Ealing family and then have something happen, leaving their final interaction to be one of negativity. I knew all too well how quickly circumstances could change and how hard it is to come to terms with the last thing said to a person before fate intervened. Whatever might have happened, Robert didn't need to know.

"Maybe you should tell Doctor Ealing about it, he'll have some sway in the matter," Esther said.

"He has too much going on with the spike of influenza patients. For the time being, I'm going to do as she asks and leave it at that. There is no point adding to the aggravation if there is no need to."

"You do whatever you think is best, I'm hardly in a position to tell you otherwise." She sighed slightly. "We should go back to the kitchen before Miss Jenkins comes looking for us."

We finished setting the dining room table to the exact specifications and returned to the kitchen which looked as though it had been hit by a hurricane. Pots and pans were stacked along the side and food lay scattered across the table alongside dishes and abandoned pieces of fruit. Miss Jenkins' hair had escaped its usual tight knot and sweat gleamed from her forehead as she set Esther and me to work the moment we appeared in the doorway. We were charged with washing the dishes and cleaning up the mess so that there would still be space for what she had in the oven.

If I thought Matilda's birthday party created a mess, this visit sent the entire house into a tailspin and Miss Jenkins seemed to be cooking an awful lot of food for it. She had made a cold starter – though I had no idea what that was – roast beef for the main course and an assortment of desserts to choose from. Alongside that, she had made salads, roast potatoes, vegetables and an assortment of sauces to go with it all. Matilda's birthday had meant finger food, things that could be grabbed from a table whilst the guests interacted with one another whilst this would be a sit-down dinner. An awful lot of effort seemed to be going into impressing Mrs Ealing's sister, especially given the short notice.

Esther and I worked to clean space on the table and the counters, occasionally being dragged away from the task to help Miss Jenkins with one thing or another. We worked in silence with the only sound being the knocking of pots or Miss Jenkins barking orders. As we worked, the sound of footsteps carried down the stairs just beyond the kitchen door, two pairs of feet knocking against the stone. I glanced at Esther who shrugged but gave me a concerned look as though she didn't know what to make of the people coming down the stairs. One visit a day felt almost expected, two never happened. More than one person was also rare, neither of us knew what to expect as the footsteps grew louder and came to a stop outside the room.

I turned away from Esther and towards the kitchen door when the footsteps came to an end. Mrs Ealing towered in the doorway, her dark hair pinned up and small diamond looking earrings hanging from her ears. She wore a long purple dress and seemed that much taller and intimidating due to the shoes she wore. Beside her stood a young girl with bright red hair twisted up in a knot and a bonnet covering her forehead. Like Esther and I, she was wearing a grey work dress and large black boots with laces done up to her mid-calf. She stared at the floor as though waiting for someone else to say something. I watched Esther out of the corner of my eye and noticed the look she gave to Miss Jenkins.

"Good morning, Miss Jenkins," Mrs Ealing said.

"Morning, Ma'am."

"This is Sarah, I have hired her for the afternoon so she may assist Esther in serving upstairs. Sybil is particular on certain things I doubt she'll be too pleased if she saw that." Mrs Ealing gestured to the burn on my lower arm and I quickly tucked it behind my back.

"If you are sure, Ma'am," Miss Jenkins said. She glanced at me out of the corner of her eye.

"Sarah has been trained in service so she knows what she is doing and will just need help getting to grips with everything." She placed her hand on Sarah's shoulder. "I'll leave you in their capable hands."

Mrs Ealing turned and walked away, the trace of her smile on her lips as she went. Sarah lingered in the doorway, not entirely sure what she had to do now that Mrs Ealing had gone. Neither Miss Jenkins nor Esther spoke, and we all stood in the silence that followed trying to process what had just happened. I stood staring at Sarah, trying to understand just what Mrs Ealing might have implying by bringing a new servant in for the luncheon. Perhaps she wasn't lying and that her sister was particular about how servants looked at the luncheon table, or she was lying, and it had been her idea to introduce Sarah to try and nudge me into leaving.

Whatever the case may have been, Sarah focused her attention to the floor and said nothing. I felt bad for the girl, she had been brought into a new household with people she had never met before and expected to work for an afternoon before being taken back to where she had been prior. I knew how she felt. When I had first arrived all those months ago, I felt out of place around Miss Jenkins and Esther, I was the new girl who didn't really belong. Mrs Ealing may have introduced Sarah to be a possible replacement for me in the future, but I wasn't going to let that change how I saw or spoke to her. She didn't ask to be part of Mrs Ealing's plan to get rid of me.

"Well, I'm Rosie. It's nice to meet you," I said, breaking the silence.

"I know." I gave her a confused look. "I'm from the girl's school, I know Suzanna and Lucy."

"Ah. Whatever they might have told you, it's a lie." Sarah laughing slightly and appeared to relax, but only just.

"I'm Miss Jenkins, and that's Esther. She'll show you how things work around here. Esther?"

"Right. Follow me."

Esther led Sarah from the room and back the stairs whilst I finished the chores we had been set before Mrs Ealing came down. Miss Jenkins said nothing as I turned my attention back to the sink full of dishes. She didn't have to say anything, I knew exactly what she was thinking because I had been thinking the same thing since Sarah had been introduced to us. The smug look on Mrs Ealing's face had told me all I needed to know about Sarah and how easy it would be for her to replace me if I failed to follow the rules that had been put in place. Sarah looked to be the same age as me and had trained for most of her life in service whilst I had only just started. She had two perfectly functioning arms and hands and I doubted she would spend most of her time talking to Robert.

If Mrs Ealing had introduced Sarah because she thought it would rattle me, she was right. I didn't want the thought of her replacing me to be the only thing that crossed my mind when we spoke, but I knew it was true. More often then not someone would regard the burn on my arm with a question or a disgusted look when the Ealing's hosted sit-down dinners. It had become the topic of conversation among their friends and I knew Mrs Ealing wasn't too happy with it. To her, the burn on my arm represented shame, something that didn't belong in her household and if the burn didn't belong, then I didn't either.

Deep down, I knew it was nothing but a way to shake me up and unnerve me, but it worked. Just seeing Sarah pottering around the kitchen and helping out in the chaos to prepare for luncheon whilst there was little I could do due to my lack of cooking skills, made me feel isolated. I know she didn't do it on purpose, she didn't know what Mrs Ealing appeared to be planning, but on the inside, I disliked her being there. When she was finally set off to the dining room with Esther and I was left alone with Miss Jenkins, I felt relieved and I hated myself for it.

"You're awfully quiet over there," Miss Jenkins said as she laid the dessert items on the table.

"Washing dishes requires my full attention," I replied. The counter next to the sink was weighed down with dishes from the first two courses and it was a lot for one person to get through.

"I doubt Mrs Ealing meant anything by it, asking Sarah to work for the afternoon that is. From what I know, Lady Thatcher is very particular about these things and Esther can't serve upstairs by herself or questions will be asked."

"I know, I know. It just feels oddly timed, after been given my first infraction suddenly she's bringing in someone else? When it was Matilda's birthday I was told to stay down here and no one else was brought in."

"You're reading too much into it, Sarah will be gone by tomorrow and everything will be returned to normal.

"We'll see."

I knew she was only trying to help, but nothing Miss Jenkins or anyone else said could dissuade me from the idea of Mrs Ealing threatening to get rid of me. All she needed would be two more infractions and I would be out of the door. Doing something as simple as talking to Robert posed a threat to my job and any slight mishap would have me out on the streets. The only time I felt safe from Mrs Ealing, where I knew my job would be secure, was when I was at the office. When it was just me, Doctor Ealing and Robert and I could escape her watchful eye and were mistakes in filing barely made a difference. I felt safe at the office, but I always had to return to the house and back under the watchful eye of Mrs Ealing for a week.

"How's it going upstairs?" Miss Jenkins asked when Esther and Sarah returned to serve the dessert.

"Lady Thatcher is interesting, to say the least. Miss Matilda doesn't seem all that thrilled, she keeps getting asked why she doesn't have a sweetheart," Esther said.

"After what happened with Alexander, I wouldn't be surprised if she had sworn off finding a sweetheart," Miss Jenkins said.

"Hm." Esther paused. "Oh, she seems to know that Rosie works here. Apparently, Robert has been writing to her and she knows everything. She wasn't all that happy that she's not serving."

"I bet Mrs Ealing loved that," I grumbled.

"She was thrilled. Just as a heads up, Lady Thatcher said she wanted to meet you and might be coming down here later on this afternoon."

"Thank you for the warning. Get going, or you'll get in trouble," Miss Jenkins said.

"Do you think Lady Thatcher will come down here?" I asked as Esther and Sarah grabbed the dessert trays and retreated back to the dining room.

"I don't know, but I think we should be prepared."

Whilst the dessert course unfolded upstairs, Miss Jenkins and I worked together to clear the mess of plates, cutlery and dishes that had accumulated since luncheon began. I washed the dishes in the sink and Miss Jenkins dried them and stacked them away. We cleared the sawdust from the log pile and returned all of the unused food to its rightful place in the pantry. I had never seen the kitchen looking so clean before and even Miss Jenkins looked stunned at how clean it could be if there was no work to be done.

Even with the kitchen clean, Miss Jenkins appeared to be on edge, and I didn't blame her for that. No guests ever visited the kitchens, we were kept out of the way and that was how it had to be. Those downstairs only ventured upstairs when necessary and those upstairs never came downstairs unless something important happened to be unfolding. The only person who visited regularly was Robert, but he had never been one to care all that much about social etiquette. From what I knew about Lady Thatcher, which wasn't all that much, she had always been one to follow the rules that society had put in place and venturing to the kitchen went against all of that.

As we waited to find out if Lady Thatcher would be joining us in the kitchen, I wondered just how easy Miss Jenkins' life would be if I had never walked through that door six months ago. Everything that happened in that time had happened because of me and it only seemed to be getting worse rather than better. If I hadn't have arrived, Miss Jenkins would have had another girl who could do all the work without worrying about a burn or an old injury from years of abuse. She wouldn't have someone who risks being thrown out for no reason other than the place they come from. Everything would be so much easier for her if I wasn't there.

After almost half an hour of waiting, the sound of footsteps once again carried down the stairs, they were hurried and accompanied with the sound of plates clanging together. They grew closer and after a little while, Esther and Sarah appeared in the doorway with the dessert trays empty and piled high with leftover dishes. They hurried across the room and deposited their trays on the counter.

"She's coming down, Mrs Ealing tried to talk her out of it, but she wouldn't listen," Esther said.

"Where is she?" Miss Jenkins asked. She crossed the room and pulled my bonnet tighter over my head, tucking a loose bit of hair underneath it.

"Right behind us."

"Be polite, Rosie."

"I'm always polite." I loosened the bonnet on my head slightly, it felt as though it was constricting my head.

"Right this way, Aunt Sybil." Robert's voice carried down the stairs alongside the sound of approaching footsteps.

I glanced towards Miss Jenkins who chewed on her thumbnail as the footsteps grew louder and closer. Turning my attention back to the kitchen door, I watched Robert appeared and slid slightly into the room, he stood beside Esther and Lady Thatched entered the doorway. She looked nothing like her sister, with blonde hair pulled up in a complex style on the top of her head, blue eyes that looked kind and welcoming and a long, pale pink dress that touched the floor. I always thought she would be the carbon copy of her sister, the dark hair and cold eyes yet seeing her standing in the doorway, she was the exact opposite.

Mrs Ealing stood behind her, looking none too impressed about her sister venturing to the kitchen beside her stood a tall, dark-haired man I assumed to be Lord Thatcher. They all stood in the entranceway to their kitchen, their eyes raking over us as though we were animals in the zoo. I found myself unconsciously fidgeting with the back of my apron, waiting for someone to speak. Eventually, they did.

"Aunt Sybil, this is Rosie Grey and our cook Miss Jenkins," Robert said.

"Ah, the factory worker," Lady Thatcher said. Her eyes scanned to the burn on my arm before she turned back to her sister. "I can't imagine why you would hide her away down here, Elizabeth. You have done a charitable thing by taking young Rosie into your charge and allowing her to work here with no previous experience in service. She adds character to the place. How do you find working here, Miss Grey? Does my sister treat you well?"

"Perfectly well, thank you Lady Thatcher," I lied.

"Do you spend all of your time down here?"

"I do a lot of the cleaning upstairs."

"She also comes with Father and me to the office once a week, to keep the desk tidy," Robert added.

"Hm. Next time I visit, I want you serving upstairs. I think it is wrong to keep you squirrelled away down here with nothing but a pile of dishes to keep yourself occupied, don't you agree Elizabeth?"

"Yes, I suppose so."

"Good, now I could do with some afternoon tea."

Lady Thatcher turned and brushed past her husband and sister before her footsteps echoed back up the stairs and away from the kitchen. Lord Thatcher followed not long after with Robert bringing up the rear. Mrs Ealing lingered in the hallway, she glared at me through the doorway and I refused to break eye contact with her before she eventually turned and followed the others. The tension that had encased the room since Lady Thatcher's visit lifted yet I knew that things were only going to get worse.

~~~

A/N - We are back! I definitely didn't forget to update again and had to be reminded ... That's a lie. Also, as a  heads up, it is about to get REAL! The next few chapters are crazy!!

What did you guys think of the chapter? Why did Mrs Ealing bring in Sarah? Is Rosie right to worry (and avoid Robert)? What do you think Mrs Ealing has planned?

Comment below!

Dedication - This chapter is dedicated to tsneem2001 for reminding me to update xD

First Published - November 12th, 2019