Violets and Ash

Chapter 7

Her frame seemed even smaller from a distance and was swimming in the billowing fabric of her muumuu. Even with Lacey shouting 'abandon ship' in my head as she urged me to flee like a gazelle, there was nowhere for me to run.

Norma's face was impassive as she asked, "...you do this kind of thing often, child?"

"No, of course not." The lie came out much too fast and yanked my voice up an octave or two. Instead piecing together it's shattered remains, I went into damage control mode. "I mean—only when I'm stressed...or in a new place."

"Both of which you currently are."

"Right..." I swallowed as embarrassment heated my face. "Look, I—"

"This isn't you freaking out about going to the University is it?" She asked, and just a hint of accent peeked through.

"No, not at all." I stammered. "It's something I've done back at the old house. Look, Elijah knows about it. He and Sylvia have so much going on...I just didn't want him to worry about me, especially when I'm doing good for a change."

"Child, I'm still not sure what that was, but I wouldn't walk around callin' it good." Her voice had the same sternness as Twyla's did when she launched into one of her lectures.

"It's just something I do to calm down. I don't know why, but it makes me feel safe." I admitted, hoping the uneasiness in my voice would prove I was telling the truth.

This time her expression did change. The sight of her narrowed eyes and pursed lips made my skin feel sticky and warm. Half a second was all it took for her face to return to normal.

She nodded at the front door. "Horace and I are the only staff that live in the house. He's in bed by nine on the weekdays, and eleven on weekends."

Without another word, she turned around and shuffled back down the hall.

Even though I checked the locks last night, my encounter with Norma left me frazzled. It took a few hours for the patter of my traitorous heart to stop echoing in my ears, so loud that I swore it filled every inch of the pitch-black room.

The dull glow of my phone screen lit a small patch of the room. I had a grand total of three contacts, so I knew it wasn't a text I'd gotten. Sure enough, it turned on to let me know that not only was my battery dying, but it was also one in the morning.

I intended to put it on the charger, but I blinked and the darkness that cloaked the room was replaced by beams of sunlight.

'What time is it?' Lacey snarled.

I tapped on the screen of my phone, which was now dead and went to plug it in when there was a light knock on my bedroom door. Norma nudged it open without looking my way, her focus fixed solely on the metal cart she wheeled into the room. She took one look at me and huffed, "...did you not get any sleep, child?"

Even though I'm an avid morning person, my tumultuous sleep schedule made enjoying those early hours harder. Often I needed time to wake up and let the leftover exhaustion seep from my bones before getting anything done for the day.

Jackie never woke up earlier than eleven, and Elijah often left well before the crack of dawn. Social interaction first thing in the morning, that was something I'd have to get used to.

It just wasn't today.

My eyes narrowed instinctively, "I slept fine, thank you."

Norma raised an eyebrow, but I refused to balk. Lacey goaded me on in the background. That was, until she smelled the coffee that drifted towards us in sensual, mouth-watering waves.