Chapter 21: Nobody Likes A Blabbermouth
"Nobody likes a blabbermouth," Martha said and picked up Rose’s bowl of soup.
The meetup with the Queen at the courtyard had ended a while ago, but this was the first time she had seen Martha since then. Now that Martha had appeared in front of her, it was safe to assume that Henry spoke to them and from Martha’s reaction, she didn’t like what he told her.
Rose gave Martha an unimpressed look. All she had done was ask for a bed. She turned her attention to the bowl—she was more interested in getting some food into her stomach than anything Martha might want to do or say. The maids sitting at the same table all lifted their heads from their meals to watch. Rose could tell they were entertained and wanted to see where this would go.
"Did you hear me?" Martha asked when Rose didn’t answer.
Rose simply nodded and stretched out her hand for her bowl. She didn’t have time for this. She knew they were going to give her even more chores now that Henry had spoken to them, but at least let her eat something first.
Martha laughed. "What do you think this is?"
Rose knew what was going to happen even before it did and wondered if she should have begged. She was that hungry, but she knew better than to encourage their bullying—mostly Martha’s. The other maids just laughed, snickered and made a lot of snide comments, she could handle all that.
Martha tilted the plate, pouring the soup onto the ground. Some splattered on the table and onto Rose’s clothes. "You’re nothing more than a whore! Clean this up." She dropped the bowl on the ground. It made a clang that echoed in the hall before Martha walked out of the kitchen.
Rose sighed and looked around. Everyone turned their gaze away. She glanced at the cook, but the woman wouldn’t meet her eyes. Rose knew not to bother—they wouldn’t give her more food. She pushed herself from the table. She had to clean the mess.
Rose gathered the ends of her dress and scooped as much as she could with the spoon into the bowl. She needed a piece of rag and water to wipe up the rest. She was about to stand to her full height when something hit her head and fell to the ground—a brush.