Roots and veins

Chapter four

Following the same routine as yesterday: I head to the bathroom, wash up, do my hair and brush my teeth, and get dressed.
I re wrap my head and hand; a little difficult to do without my left hand.
What the hell? My head seemed to almost be completely healed. Where my ear used to be hurts slightly to the touch, but other than that it's mostly just scar tissue. Perhaps it was the antiseptic she used?
My fingers however were swollen to twice their normal size and were slightly purple.
Damn.
I wrap them up and painfully squeeze my hand into my glove.
We head to breakfast, I sit by myself.
We're served the same thing as yesterday. I've just begun to eat when I girl plops down beside me; it's Irina.
She has a look of concern on her face. "Hey girl, how are you feeling?"
"Pretty shitty, no thanks to you."
"Im sorry alright, I wasn't going to hang around to have a play date with the bug girls."
"Fair."
"I'm glad you're alive. I heard that you ran into Mistress and she saved your ass."
"Yeah, she fixed me up. Gave me a bath and dressed my head and hand."
"Huh. She's not really the nurturing type, well, except for her daughters maybe. Be careful around her, as of what I've heard she's pretty unpredictable."
That's weird, she seemed pretty nice last night, but thinking back to to night we met I can see what she means.
We're called to head down to the greenhouses for job assignments so Irina and I get up and fall into line.

Today the two of us are placed together in one of the greenhouses. Our job is to take care of the herbs and flowers that are infused into the wine.
What seemed like an easy job took HOURS. We had to tend to the plants with such detail it was unbelievable. Watering them with little water droppers and mist sprayers, delicately trimming them with tiny little scissors, pulling the smallest of weeds with tweezers as to not disrupt the soil.
"Uuggg, this is taking forever! When is roll call??"
Irina checks her watch that she bought from the merchant
"A few more hours. At least we're not out in the cold."
"Call me crazy, but I haven't felt cold at all since yesterday."
"Seriously? It's been fucking freezing?"
"I don't know, I just haven't."
Before Irina can say something next a fly lands on my hand.
A few more start buzzing around the greenhouse.
"Oh shit-" Irina drops her water dropper and turns on her heal but a hand materializes from a swarm of flys and grabs her wrist, holding her back.
I stand stunned as three masses form from the thousands of flys merging together.
Three women appear from the swarm; the same three from last night.
Their hoods are down and I can see that they each have half of their heads shaved with a circle shaped scar on the side of their head.
Their mouths are still blood stained and their eye makeup is smudged.
They have gleaming yellow eyes identical to their mothers.
Irina starts screaming and wrestles against the hand on her wrist.
The black haired girl holding her looks at her with an eyebrow raised.
"Calm down we're not going to bite you."
The orange haired one comes up behind her
"Today!" She laughs.
"Daniela!" The blonde one says "Don't taunt her, we're not here for that. Cassandra, get her to shut up!"
The dark haired one, who I'm assuming is Cassandra slaps Irina across the face.
"Hey! You can't just hit her like that!"
All three girls turn to me.
Shit.
D: "You're sooo lucky mother was there last night! I would have sucked you dry if she didn't stop us."
Cassandra elbows her in the ribs
C: "We would have sucked her dry!"
D: "I'm the one who found her!"
C: "Nuh-uh Bella found her!"
D: "Okay you know you don't need to be a bitch Cassandra!"
C: "It's not my fault you're always trying to hog all of our prey!"
B: "Will both of you assholes shut the hell up!" Bella screams.
Daniela and Cassandra fall silent immediately.
"Thank you. *clears her throat*" her demeanor completely changes "okay, hiiii Julia; I was just sitting in the library when I realized, we never formally met! So I thought we should introduce ourselves! So I'm Bella, the one holding your friend is Cassandra *Cassandra waves* and Daniela is our little sister *Daniela smiles and winks*."
C: "We're sorry we tried to eat you last night."
Eat me!?
D: "We just couldn't help ourselves, we could smell your blood all the way from the castle! You smell quite lovely by the way."
B: "Mhm mhm *nods*"
They go quiet, probably expecting me to say something.
"Uh, well, hi. I guess you already know my name. Thank you for apologizing."
D: "Can we be friends?" She gives me a big toothy grin with her blood stained teeth.
"Um, sure?" I try to sound the least uncomfortable as I can.
D: "Yay!" She skips over and gives me a big hug. I eye the bloody sickle at her belt.
Now I'm really uncomfortable.
I pat her back with my uninjured hand.
"Just, only if you don't try to...eat me, or my friend, ever again."
C: "That's okay, she doesn't smell very fresh anyway."
Irina makes a face. "Do you know how impossible it is to get to a shower in the morning?? There's like two showers in there and seventy of us!"
B: "Don't be rude! We just agreed not to eat you!"
Irina seems to decide that Bela has a point.
We're quiet for a moment.
"Uh, could you...let go of her? Maybe?"
Cassandra looks at me, then down to her hand.
C: "Oh, yeah, sure." She lets go of Irina who then rubs her wrist.
"Thank you." I give Irina a look to say the same.
I: "Yeah, thanks."
B: "Alright, we'd better go. Mother usually has us check up on all of the maidens to see if they're not slacking off. See ya later Julia."
C: "Bye!"
They start to disintegrate into their swarms of flies. However before Daniela follows her sisters she turns to me.
D: "Mother seems to really like you."
"Is that a good thing?"
D: "Well...let's just say things might turn out better for you in the end."
And with that she leaves me.  
While the interaction lasted no more but 3 or so minuets I'm left with so many questions.
First of all, WHY THE FUCK ARE THEY MADE OF FLYS?? Is this a dream? A terrible nightmare?? Eat me?? Turn out better for me in the end? What's that supposed to mean?? What the hell is this place?! I've godda get the fuck out of here.
I snap my head back to look at Irina.
"How do I quit."
She laughs
"Honey you don't quit. You're stuck here."
"What!? For how long??"
"Most girls are here for 6 months. Some longer."
I have to be here for six months!?
"Jesus christ..."
"Yeah, I cried when I found out. At least the pay is good."
Six months. I have to stay here for six months. Half a year of this hell.
Half a year of monsters, iron dense food that makes it impossible to use the bathroom, short ass showers, uncomfortable beds, scratchy clothes I'm expected to wear every day, heavy work outside, and a blood sucking 9 foot tall boss and her freakish daughters.
What the hell are they on about!
I can't do this.
What was I thinking!?
I could DIE here and my family wouldn't even know!
There's no way I'm staying here for six months. I know! I'll sneak out! Right in the beginning of the workday hours before roll call so when they finally take it I'll be long gone.
Things might turn out better for me in the end.