Burn Me

02: To Catch a Cold Case

Plates clanged together as the dish washer's got to their afternoon load of fine China and gold detailing. Puffs of laundry steam shot out from the pipes as middle aged women wandered around the crammed hallways with baskets at their hips. The cleaners perfected their mops and attached rags to their belts and threw acidic bottles on to their carts.

The distinct chatter and shouts were enough to make you loose your train of thought or counting to ten. A busy and chaotic, long room, filled with less average to average palace workers wiped their foreheads and rolled up their sleeves as the day came to its peek. Tea time on its' way for the royals, garden's due for trimming, meals being prepped for supper, clothes being washed for nightfall, the restless family of labourers sweat in their shoes as well as their hairlines.

"Half till 2, you want to or should I?" Maren put down her tray of bowls and spoons on the metal counter.

"I can, you stay here and get these around." The friend grabbed a clean tray before leaving for the kitchen area.

Maren, with her dark brown hair and brown eyes, grabbed the folded white uniforms and began throwing them in to the basket's of the maids.

The other girl grabbed a fresh tray, planting a tower of biscuits, brownies, and cakes on the right side. Then, a tea cup, accompanied by a bowl of sugar, milk, and honey in the middle. Lastly, 3 small, but elegant, spoons on to the silk white napkin on the left.

She straightened the items and grabbed the tea pot from Reggie, the water boy, setting it on the left corner. With both hands on the sides of the tray she exited the humid room and out to the cool hallway. The towering ceilings and rich detailing mocked her with every step she took in her wedge work shoe.

She twisted, walked, turned, paced, twisted again, and calmly walked to the hallway of the king's chambers, taking a deep breath in to deal with whatever royal crap he had to say today.

As she approached his room, she slowed her rapid pace and furrowed her eyebrows in confusion. The door was always open at 2, he liked for the workers to not touch the handle if they didn't have to. Also, he didn't like the guards outside his doors, he thought it was too uptight.

So it was automatically abnormal that both his doors were closed— and their were guards placed on both sides of them.

"It's time for tea." She stated to the guards as she halted a metre away from them.

"No visitors." The guard on the left instructed.

"He never skips tea." She stated again.

"No. Visitors." The second one repeated.

"Why is his door closed? And why are you two here? He never has guards at this time of day." She interrogated. With no response, she continued to plead her case.

"He takes his medication with tea every day, he can't skip it." She explained.

"He won't be needing medication anyway." The second spat out, his heavy German accent waving on his dry lips.

"Karshov!" The first one shamed.

"I'm sorry- I-" the second one began to apologize.

"What do you mean he won't need his medication?" She asked, again.

Both of them went silent and stood tall. They ignored her for 2 minutes as they she waited patiently for them to speak. Accepting that they would say nothing more, and her presence wasn't intimidating, she spoke to break the silence.

"Is there a time I could come back?" The server asked with the steaming tea going colder by the second.

"No visitors today or tomorrow." The first one said in a plain voice, his accent was more English.