Chapter 26 Old Wives Tale
Sharon
“ I dare say we have more than a couple more hours.” She added.
“ We get up by five?” I asked, with some semblance of shock, that was a whole hour earlier than I was expected to get up at home, providing m mother or Vienna didn't need anything before then.
“ On normal days, when we're on breakfast duty, but not today, we get to sleep a bit more.” “ We get time off?”I asked unable to believe my ears.
“ Of course we get time off, two days each fortnight.” Betty replied like it was the most natural thing in the world, which it probably was to her.
“ But this is not a day off. We were on breakfast duty yersterday and worked all day from breakfast prep to after supper clean up, so we get to sleep in today and only get up in time for breakfast at nine.” She explained.
“ N....ni....nine?” I spluttered barely able to choke the word out.
“ We get to loiter in bed till nine?” I asked, sounding so shocked that she narrowed her eyes at me.
“ If we want to. We can generally do whatever we want and sleep for as long as we want on such days, as long as we show up for work not later than half past nine.” She explained.
I stood there gaping, the pair of bloomers I was about to put on forgotten and hanging limply from my hands.
In exchange for working all day, I didn't have start work the next day, until past nine!!!!! That was practically the middle of the day.
And to crown it all, there were two days off every fortnight, that was four days a month where I didn't have to work! It sounded like I had fallen into an old wives tale. And as much as I had grown to trust Betty in such a short time, I knew this was something I would have to see to believe, not that I thought she was lying, far from it.... I didn't even believe she had that ability, but this......this was so strange it needed personal confirmation to be believed.
Betty completely oblivious to the turmoil her words had plunged me into returned her pocket watch to its place of honor underneath her pillow, plumped up said pillow to receive her head, and pulling the bed covers over herself prepared to return to her slumber.
“ Go back to bed Sharon,I'll wake you when it's time to get up,” she told me, before closing her eyes, and returning to all intents and purpose back to the slumber I had woken her up from.
Still in some kind of numb shock, I took off my clothes by route, put on the night dress I had discarded earlier and got back under the covers beside her, still trying to wrap my head around her words.
I didn't get another wink of sleep, but lay there silently counting the hours as they crawled back, watching through a small slit in the window curtains as the pitch black darkness of a couple of hours after midnight slowly gave way to the inky darkness of early dawn, and finally the fresh brightness of early morning.
When Betty finally woke up, and acting true to her words of hours past turned around to wake me,I turned and smiled at her at the first whisper of my name. It barely registered what I was doing, until I felt the corners of my lips turn up, and then it dawned on me; I was smiling! Voluntarily smiling! Me! And not as a way to filter pain and hurt, but an actual genuine smile! Betty greeted the smile with a warm one of her own, before yawning and stretching as she sat up in bed, reaching under her pillow for the afore mentioned pocket watch in the same movement.
“ It's half past eight,” she announced before stowing it again.
“ I dare say we have time for a leisurely wash, and buttoning up.”
Once again, excusing herself, she left the room and soon returned with a bucket of water, some coarse salt for teeth cleaning, and a tray of flat bread and milk.
Laughing over my protestations at not letting me go with her to bear some of the burden and set everything down, urging to make first use of everything.
Half an hour later, both of us having washed up, cleaned our teeth and eaten our fill of flatbread and milk, we found our way downstairs to the kitchen, where we were greeted by smiles and nods for Betty and sneers for me.
Once again, I was sent off to wash the dishes and Betty joined me.
However the day wasn't destined to be a repeat of the previous day, for no sooner were we settled down to our task, than a sudden and rather loud throat clearing forced us to raise our heads, only to find Elle standing over us and looking down her nose at us.
“Elle!!!” Betty called so cheerfully one would think she was talking to a sister she hadn't seen in months.
“Are you joining us?” She asked.
“Of course not.” Elle replied with a sneer that had me itching to reach up and slap her across the face, not on my own account, no I was used to worse, but rather for Betty. The dear thing was a literal angel and deserved no sort of ill treatment.
“ You're wanted outside.” She said to me.
“ I said you would end up in the fields didn't I?” She asked, before turning and sashaying away without waiting for an answer.
“ Don't mind Elle.” Betty announced with a laugh as soon as she was gone.
“ I dare say she doesn't know she's being droll sometimes. I'm sure you won't get sent to the fields, why? You're obviously not suit for such strenuous work.”
“ Thank you Betty,”I said rinsing my hands and getting to my feet.
“ But she may very well be right, and don't worry about me, I can assure you that however strenuous field work may be, its not worse than I'm used to.” I added.
She offered to go with me, but I assured her that there was no need and that I was perfectly capable of finding my way to the door myself, and proceeded to do just that.
A legionnaire was waiting for me, standing ramrod straight with his hands behind him.
“ Miss samaf,” he said with a bow as soon as he saw me.
“ Please come with me,” he added before turning and walking off in the opposite direction.
I hurried after him, finding out in a few minutes as we climbed up the second flight of stairs that we were heading to the top floor. This discovery immediately set my heart aflutter as I recalled that the alpha had his personal quarters on the top floor.
By the time, we arrived at the top floor landing, and made our way to an heavy looking door, my palms were sweaty and my legs felt as heavy as tree stumps. The last few steps were nearly impossible.