Chapter 50: Tea
Maya took a deep breath as the aroma from the tea leaves filled the room. She had steeped the leaves in the hot water, drained out the water after some time, and poured the filtered water into a fancy kettle with matching tea cups.
It really was a very simple process, and Agnes had a look of disbelief when Maya stepped away from the tray.
"All done," she announced.
"What do you mean, all done?" Palmer asked, loudly saying everyone’s thoughts.
"All done, really. I do this all the time. All you need is sugar, honey, and perhaps milk, but never add them yourself. Serve them in separate bowls alongside the tea. You never know exactly how much someone prefers. If you’re specifically instructed to add any of them, then do as you’re told, but use as little as possible and place the rest in a bowl. That way it can never be too much, and if they want more, they can add it themselves."
"Hmm," echoed in the room as multiple maids nodded at her explanation.
Agnes still seemed a little distrustful, but she had seen how the chicken soup had turned out. It was hard not to have confidence in Maya. They also didn’t have time to waste; quite some time had passed since the Alpha had made the order.
"Very well. Bring the sugar, honey, and milk." The maids moved quickly, pouring the items and placing them on the tray.
Sugar and honey were luxury foods. Honey was easier to come by in Verlassen, but sugar could only be gotten from the capital, and it was thanks to Keenan that they had access to it.
When the tray was ready, Agnes turned to Palmer. "Take this to the drawing—"
"What is going on here?" Alaina asked as she pushed the doors open and marched in with Bess beside her.
Maya frowned. She had been wondering where Bess was. She had seen no sight of her even though most of the maids were in the kitchen.
"I heard something about you letting a pig into your kitchen to make tea," she let out a laugh.
Maya stiffened. She didn’t know what Alaina was up to, but something told her it wasn’t good. She looked especially sinister as her eyes locked on Maya.
Agnes ignored her and walked toward the counter, picking up the tray that Maya had prepared, and walked toward Palmer, who had her hand stretched out to receive it.
"No," Alaina stopped her with a dark smile. "She made it, didn’t she? It’s only fair that she serves it herself."
"What?" Maya blurted without realizing. This was an Alpha she was familiar with; to serve him dressed like this was shameful.
"Do you have something to say?" Alaina asked and stepped forward. "You are so great with etiquette. Wouldn’t it be best if you served it? The maids can’t even make tea; who is to say they can serve it without errors? This is a very important guest."
The maids sent glances to each other and mumbled a few words Maya couldn’t hear, but she didn’t need to hear them to know what they were thinking.
"Agnes, surely I am not asking for something unreasonable. You would agree, wouldn’t you?"
As she spoke, she stepped toward Agnes and grabbed the tray. The cook was reluctant to let go of it, but Alaina stared hard at her, refusing to let go of the tray.
Agnes sighed and took a step back, and Alaina smiled, then turned to Maya. "Here you go. Go serve."
Maya looked from Agnes to the maids; no one looked ready to stop Alaina. She could tell they agreed with her words. This was another humiliation trial that she could do nothing to stop, especially when Alaina had phrased it as though she was the only one who could do a good job.
The maids here didn’t trust her; no one did. Agnes barely trusted her. There was also the fact that she may have prepared the tea wrongly; no one wanted to take the fall for that.
Maya bit the inside of her cheeks. She had hoped she would be able to hide in some way. She knew she couldn’t avoid breakfast and dinner, but that was a completely different situation than this.
"The tea is getting cold, Maya," Alaina dragged her name. "Would you prefer to embarrass Alpha Keenan?"
Maya stretched out her hand and took the tray. She was dressed like a maid; hopefully, the Alpha wouldn’t recognize her. She wasn’t exactly seen very often. She would serve the tea and flee the scene.
Alaina laughed as she took the tray. "You look like a proper maid now."
Her hold on the tray tightened, but she didn’t let her expression show on her face. With a slight nod, she walked toward the exit with the tray in hand. Palmer stepped right after her, walking next to her.
"Just what do you think you’re doing?"
"She might not know the drawing room," Palmer explained.
Maya tried not to show her surprise. She was certain the maid hated her but to offer to accompany her when the other maids avoided her like plague felt nice.
"No one asked you to do that. Bess, make sure she finds her way."
"Yes, Lady Alaina," Bess said and stepped forward, almost pushing Palmer out of the way.
Maya kept a steady hand on the tray as Bess walked beside her. She was almost convinced the maid was sent to sabotage the tea and spill it all over her, but surprisingly, that didn’t happen.
"There," Bess pointed as she stopped walking. "That door is the drawing room."
Her steady hands shook slightly as she walked toward the door. She stopped and knocked twice. Every nerve in her body was screaming that she should flee.
Other than the Alpha’s reaction to her dressed in this manner and serving him, she was worried about Alpha Keenan. Would he think this was another ploy? What would his reaction be?
Maya let out a small gasp as the door opened and a familiar man appeared in front of her. He opened the door wider and stepped aside to let her through.
