Roots and veins

Chapter 8

I inspect the beds and the soil in them. Hm. I take a peek in the small shed off to the side. Loads of gardening tools, most of them rusty. Well this just won't do. I take the notepad she gave me and start jotting down things I'll need. Walking around the greenhouse my list grows. Okay. I think that's good for now. I guess since I can't do anything in regards to growing or tending to anything I suppose I can clean. I take a broom and an empty barrel and start sweeping. I pull all of the shriveled and dead plants from the beds along with the weeds that are taking over. By the end of the day I have the house stripped of most of the death and other rubbish. The sun is beginning to go down so I pack everything up back into the shed.
Stepping back into the brisk winter air I lock up the greenhouse and trudge back up to the castle. As I walk through the hall back to the servants quarters I hear a faint buzzing coming towards me. I stop in my tracks and turn around. Ugh. One of the daughters. The blonde haired one, Bela, forms in front of me.
"Hello Julia." She gives me a bloody smile.
"Hi Bela."
"I heard mother is letting you make our super top secret greenhouse all shiny and new."
"Yeah. It's ah, kind of a wreck."
"You think you can fix it?"
"Yeah, with some time. Oh, I have this list for your mother" I hold out the paper and she takes is "It's things I need for the greenhouse. Soil, fertilizer, seeds, and new tools."
"Oh, okay, I'll give it to her right away."
She turns to leave, but a question tugs at me.
"Why didn't she kill me?"
Bela turns back around slowly.
"I'm not really sure. She typically bottles girls after smudging the floor wax. You're...different I suppose." She's quiet "Go get some sleep" she leaves me then, turning into her swarm of flies.
I walk down the long dark corridors, passing by a few maids. When I finally make it back to the servants quarters only about half of the girls are there, the others finishing their shift. The ones who are there stare at me as I walk by.
I sit on my bed and lay back. These past few days have been beyond wild. I look at my hands, dirty from working in the greenhouse. I suppose I should shower. I muster up the strength to sit up and walk to my chest at the end of the bed.
I riffle through the contents, my clothes and other belongings; but something catches my eye. Sitting at the very bottom of the chest, is the oval shaped bright red Ruby the Duke gave me. Underneath is a note written on yellow parchment.
"You dropped this."