No one has to know

Chapter 51

Catherine sat stretched out on the lounge, reading when her guard opened the door and let Kenna in.

"You called for me your majesty?" Kenna said, obviously worried.

"Mm yes, could you hand me that bowl of grapes please." She said, pointing and not taking her eyes off the page. Kenna looked confused.

"You called me here to get you a bowl of grapes?" She asked. Catherine rolled her eyes and looked at her as she placed the grapes on the table next to her.

"Of course I didn't call you here to hand me grapes." She said. She pointed to the desk. "There's a list of things I'd like you to do on the desk." Kenna walked over tentatively and picked up the list.

"Bring your lunch, deliver your laundry...clean...out...chamber...pots..." Kenna looked sick. "Isn't there a servant that does that?"

"Yes, but as it turns out the poor thing hadn't had a day off in three years. So I need someone to fill in." She said, again not looking away from her book.

"Why does it say pots...as in more than one?" Kenna questioned.

"Because that particular servant is responsible for this entire wing of the castle." She said, looking very pleased with herself.

"The entire wing?" She asked.

"Yes. A hundred rooms...give or take." She clarified.

"A hundred rooms?"

"Are you going to repeat everything I say to you as a question? Because that could get rather irritating." She said sarcastically.

"No. Of course not." She turned to look at Catherine's chamber pot. "Where exactly do I...empty them at?" She said, wrinkling her face in disgust.

"I have no idea. Why don't you ask one of the other servants. I'm sure they would be more than happy to give you some tips." She suggested while flipping a page. "Oh and make sure you get the food and the laundry first, I don't need you getting crap all over them."

"Yes your majesty." She said, as she started to leave.

"Kenna." She said.

"Yes." She said in an irritated tone.

"Curtsy." She reminded. Kenna did as she was bid. Catherine still did not look up from her book.

"You weren't even looking." Kenna whined. Finally she looked up, eyebrows raised.

"I'm sorry did you also want me to applaud afterward?" She said sarcastically.

"No. It's just, what's the point in a curtsy if...never mind. I shall be back shortly." She bent into another curtsy. "Your majesty." She said pointedly.

When Kenna came back, she was carrying a tray of food.

"It's about time. Bring it here." Catherine said, putting her book down and sitting up. Kenna set the tray on the table next to her. She curtsied again and started to go.

"Wait. Come back here." She said after taking a bite. She turned around. "This food is cold. Take it back."

"It was hot when they gave it to me, I made sure." She said.

"Well perhaps if you hadn't taken so long to get it here, it would still be that way." She argued.

"I brought it straight here." Kenna explained.

"Are you arguing with me? Bring it back. I want my food hot." She started getting angry. Kenna sighed and picked the tray back up.

"My apologies majesty." She said and went to leave again.