Chapter 176: Distraught
"That’s all?" one of the ladies-in-waiting asked Welma in a condescending tone.
Of course, that was all the information she had on Rose. It had only been a day, and the woman was mostly stuck in her room. There was nothing more to report about her, and Welma had been very thorough.
"Yes, my ladies," she said with an apologetic look. "I’m afraid she doesn’t do much. Yesterday, she did go out with the knight Thomas, but he simply took her around the castle."
They scoffed. "No, that’s already information we are aware of. We need something new."
"If you were to poison her meal, how easy would that be?" one suddenly asked.
Welma didn’t even flinch, as shocking as the question was, and despite the turmoil inside her as she heard it, her face didn’t give any of it away.
"Hard," Welma said. "Mister Henry watches her food like a hawk, and then there’s Lily. She acts like she doesn’t care about the girl, but I think she might not turn a blind eye. Even if Lily weren’t there, Mister Henry is bound to notice something. I don’t think it’s something that could be done easily."
"Tch!" the lady who had asked the question said.
Welma was in the Queen’s room being interrogated, but she noticed there was no sign of the Queen. This wasn’t surprising. It seemed her ladies-in-waiting were in charge of doing her dirty work. Still, poisoning was an extreme measure—even for the Queen. Was that how much Rose’s presence terrified her?
Welma looked from one of the ladies to the other. They all had the same look—hair piled high with pins sticking in from all sides. Welma was sure it hurt. Their dresses looked too tight, and she was certain the corsets were digging into their sides. How they walked around in such heavy clothing was something Welma couldn’t figure out.
"Go, shoo," one of them said.
Welma nodded, curtsied, and left the room. She could hear the ladies-in-waiting whispering as she walked out. She shook her head. She almost felt sorry for Rose. Perhaps it wasn’t as glamorous as it seemed.