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Although I wasrife with apprehension about the entire situation, Shay proved true to her word. She allowed me to be right at home in her small, cramped house just outside the center of Anderlane, with its four bedrooms and one and a half bathroom, already hosting three other roommates.
“I’m not going to ask you any questions,” she reassured me. “And no one around here is going to bother you. We mostly keep to ourselves, anyway. We all have our own baggage and stories. No one here wants you digging into their past any more than you want them digging into yours. It’s like I told you when we met—we all have our own demons.”
After the sprawling palace, with its many corridors and rooms in Ironhelm Place, the boarding house which Shay kept seemed minuscule in comparison, but I quickly felt safe in one of the small rooms, off the kitchen. It hadn’t even been a real room but a pantry closet, but I was thankful that Shay had anywhere for me at all. I wasn’t living in an alleyway, and she refused to take a dime from me—not that I had many more to give her.
“We’ll get you working, and then you can pay,” she told me, and I agreed, determined to start a job immediately, pressing her for leads every morning.
On the third day, Shay informed me she had an interview for me. But as we buckled ourselves into the little, white smart car, I was consumed by nervousness, this being my first time in public since my arrival, and I said as much aloud to my new friend.
“I mean this in the most respectful way possible, Liana, but no one cares about you here,” Shay explained with a rueful smile. “You’re interviewing to be a maid, not the CEO. No one is going to give you a second look—trust me.”
Although Shay thought she was insulting me, the words proved to be a pep talk. That was exactly what I needed, to blend in with the scenery, to be overlooked.
Shay pulled up to a huge building, the intricate iron placard announcing “The Marietta” in bold, black lettering. She jumped out and tossed her keys to a male in a red and gold uniform who caught them with his left hand. “Won’t be a minute, Rog,” she promised.
“I’ll keep it running for you, Shay,” the valet promised as I climbed out of the passenger seat and rushed to keep Shay’s confident step as another liveried worker held open a mirrored door for us.
I looked at the luxurious surroundings with appreciation. It was the kind of place where one might disappear for a weekend retreat or romantic overnight.
If someone had a romantic overnight partner to go with…
“Liana,” Shay murmured, my eyes trailing up toward the skylighted roof. Sunlight streamed in through the windows, birds soaring beyond. “LIANA!”
I jumped, realizing that she was calling me. I blushed and looked at her sheepishly. “Sorry,” I blubbered. “What is it?”
“The office is this way,” Shay sighed. “Are you sure you’re up for this? Maybe we should reschedule this interview, if you’re too jumpy. I mean, Gingerlynn’s probably not going to scrutinize you, but if you’re totally spacing out…”
I shook my head vehemently, my hair almost shaking loose with the gesture. “No!” I insisted.
I needed to get to work, to make money, and keep my mind busy. I couldn’t sit around, taking advantage of Shay’s good nature and staring at the walls with a mounting sense of dread.
“This is what I want,” I told her firmly, forcing my mind to be in the moment. “Show me the way.”
Shay continued through the wide, vast hall, and I focused only on following her, despite the many distractions of the hotel. There would be time enough to explore the many intricacies later.
She paused at a heavy wooden door, the brass nameplate reading “Gingerlynn Hamm,” and knocked three times.
“Enter!” a jovial voice called from beyond the door.
Shay turned the knob, and my stomach flipped, but this was not the time for second thoughts.
A heavier-set brunette sat behind a massive desk running the entire width of the room. Anyone else might have seemed lost behind such a surface, but Gingerlynn was perfectly centered, her springing curls spilling over the desk as she fussed among piles of paperwork.
“Is this the new one you’ve brought for me?” she asked without looking up.
Shay nodded, stepping forward. “This is Liana, Gingerlynn.”
“Good, good,” the manager told us, still without making eye contact, just as Shay had predicted. “She can start right away. We need maids on the third and fourth floors. Have Hanover take care of her. Thank you.”
“Thank you,” Shay chirped, spinning around and waving me to follow.
Blinking, I stared first at Gingerlynn and then at Shay, but my new friend had already vanished into the hallway without me. I barely knew what to do but mutter my gratitude toward the harried manager, whom I couldn’t be sure heard me, and rush after Shay.
“That’s it?” I rasped, glancing back over my shoulder as if I expected Gingerlynn to chase after us, realizing she’d made a mistake in hiring me.
“That’s it,” Shay chuckled. “She’s too desperate for staff to care much.”
She paused and offered me a shamed looked. “I didn’t mean that to sound insulting.”
