I had cleaned the staircase that had maybe two hundred steps. I stopped counting at fifty five. There was really not much to clean since I only had to sweep the dust away. And also wipe the balustrade until it was literally shining.
I had in fact tried to look for Prince Henry but I could not locate him. And I could not ask anyone for fear that they might probe too much on why I was looking for him. I did not know how I could ask without raising suspicion. I had honestly never been a good liar.
I was in the middle of wiping a stained glass window in the ballroom when someone came up behind me. I turned to see one of the male servants dressed perfectly in his suit. I took a moment to take him in.
His red hair was neatly combed atop his head and trimmed on the sides. His eyes were a shimmering grey and a little bit almond shaped. His jaw was shaved and he had a little depression in the middle of his chin. He was handsome in his own right.
"Hello. You must be Zia, right?" he asked.
"Yeah. Anything the matter?"
"Mrs Baxter has demanded your presence in her office at the earliest hour, preferably now." For a moment, I felt time still. Mrs Baxter wants to see me immediately. That meant that Prince Henry had gone to her. Now she was going to fire me.
But with the way this guy spoke, I expected a professional face to go with that professional sounding speech. But he surprised me with a cheeky almost playful smile that made me wonder whether he was telling the truth.
"Are you serious or are you just playing around?" I asked with a raised eyebrow.
"What do you think?"
I let out a sigh. "Listen, I'm so not in the mood for this..."
"Honestly, she wants to see you. And you better not keep her waiting," he said more seriously now and the jitters in my stomach resurfaced.
After thanking him, I made my way to the maids quarters. I stood in front of Mrs Baxter's office and contemplated not entering. I knew I could not avoid her so I lifted my shaking hands and knocked.
"Come in," she called.
Here goes nothing! Or maybe everything.
I entered and found her sitting behind her desk. I went and stood in front of her and waited. This was probably the longest wait I had ever encountered. Those three short minutes felt like a lifetime.
After writing in her book, she closed it, put the pen down and looked up. "Who are you, young lady," she asked.
"Uh... I'm Zia Blade," I answered carefully.
"What are you doing here?"
"Here... you asked for me." Now, I was downright confused. Did she forget? Or maybe that fool had lied to me.
"Wrong. You're an impostor. Tell me what you're doing here or else I'm going to have you arrested."
I felt my insides drop. She found out. How did she though? I was going to lose my job and go to prison.
"I, I, I uh..." I stuttered. I had to let her know it was not my intention to lie. Though I doubt I lied. I just played along. "I can explain."
"Well then, please do."
I told her the whole story of how I came to be here and why. "Honestly Mrs Baxter, I tried to tell you that I wasn't the person you were expecting but I wasn't given a chance. Please don't fire me or have me arrested. My mother needs me and so does my younger brother, Bobby."
"Truthfully, if I wasn't in dire need of labour right now, I would have you thrown out by now."
"Does that mean I can keep working?"
"Yes. I really don't have the time to look for a new maid," she said tiredly. "you can get back to work."
I turned to leave but stopped. I just had to know, "If you don't mind me asking, how did you find out about me?"
"She called and apologised for not making it. Now please leave, I have work to do and I believe you also do."
I also believed I wouldn't have a job if she found out the way I talked to the Prince. So, I had to cover my back and find that son of a... a king before he opened his mouth to speak anything of the encounter.