Chapter 52: No Sign of Edna
Rose wanted to walk slowly to pretend nothing had happened in the hall, to save some pride but the maids’ presence not only threw her for a loop but also made her painfully aware of everyone else and that they all knew. She grabbed her dress and sped through the hallway of the wing, going past the assembly hall. Guards looked at her from all sides, and Rose just kept her gaze glued to the floor.
Rose wasn’t sure if she heard whispers or if it was all in her head, but whether or not she heard it, she was sure they all had something to say. She gripped the hem of her dress tighter, but it ended up slipping out of her hands. She gave up pretty quickly; the dress wasn’t long enough for her to trip over. It was just something she did because she was nervous.
Eventually, she entered the huge hall—the one she had slowed down to get a proper look at when the guard led her here. It wasn’t as empty as she thought. She caught glimpses of the Queen’s ladies-in-waiting, but there was no sign of the Queen. Rose was relieved at this and curtsied to the ladies before fleeing, grateful that they didn’t call to her. However, she ran before they even had the chance to.
She got to the servants’ quarters and rushed up to her room. The sun streaks floated through the open window, and Rose squinted at the light. It was late morning and getting closer to noon.
The room was empty, and there was no sign of Martha. Rose’s things were exactly as she left them, and she wondered if Martha had come into the room at all. Martha’s bed was still a mess, and her dresser’s drawers were as she left them—half open.
Rose didn’t have time to think too much about this. She needed to clean up and change her dress. She had thought of setting the dress ablaze, but she didn’t have a lot of clothes, so washing it was the only option she had. She hated that she would have to keep the dress. It would constantly be a reminder of what had happened today.
After washing and cleaning up, Rose returned to the room, and there was still no sign of Martha. She hadn’t caught any sign of Edna either as she walked up and down the servant quarters’ hallway, trying to wash.
She picked up her items—the flute and the swallows—hid them in her dress, and made her way to Edna’s room. She knocked twice, but nobody answered. She tried to push on the door, but it didn’t budge. She looked around, but the only maid she saw didn’t make any eye contact with her. The hallway was surprisingly empty.
Since there wasn’t any sign of Edna, Rose decided to return to her room. Edna must have been serious—none of the maids were calling her to do any tasks. Usually, by now, someone would have stopped her and given her work to do. And it could also be true that Martha was cleaning the south wing, and considering how much work it was, she wouldn’t even have time to make a trip to their room.
While walking to her room, Rose ran into a maid. At first, the young lady wanted to avoid Rose, but she blocked her path. The maid lifted her face with confusion written all over it. Rose let out a sigh of relief when she saw it wasn’t contempt.