Oris had to peek at the room from under her arm when the silence got too long. She wasn't surprised to see her maids bowing their heads and staring at the floor. Only Andrea was fidgeting on the spot she stood.

Oris sighed loudly and sat up again. "You four must think I'm stupid."

All four of them fell to their knees.

"This servant doesn't dare," they said together.

"Andrea, come here," Oris beckoned the youngest maid whose eyes were already glistening with unshed tears.

The girl glanced at Mayree then got to her feet and took a small step forward. It made Oris laugh on the inside. They were all acting like she was their executioner.

"Are you afraid of me?" she asked. "Or have I become ugly overnight and you four are trying not to hurt my feelings?"

Andrea shook her head furiously and rushed to her side.

"You still won't talk?"

The girl glanced at Mayree once again before setting her gaze on her shoes.

"Fine, I won't force you," Oris said, "give me a massage, my shoulders are stiff."

"Mistress, I-"

"You've made up your mind not to talk, stick to your conviction," Oris told her with a lazy smile then returned her attention to Mayree and her gang of silent maids.

"I know that I have no place in the palace, but I hoped I had a place in your hearts," Oris picked up the skirt she had been embroidering and continued from where she stopped.

"I let you serve me because I trust you not to keep secrets from me. Secrets in the palace can get people killed. I don't know how your other mistresses treated you, but I'm sure you can tell that I'm different."

Oris tugged gently on the needle and knotted the thread. She held out her hand and Andrea placed a pair of scissors in it.

"I've emphasized the need for us to be open with each other. I still trust you, but anymore secrets and I will dismiss you," she cut the thread and rolled back her shoulders. "Let's go on that walk. Andrea prepare my veil. The rest of you can stay here and make a decision."

Finally, Oris took her eyes off the cloth and looked at them. It seemed that somewhere during her speech, they had silently gotten to their feet.

She held out her hand for Andrea to support her.

The girl helped her out of the bed and walked her to the dresser. She slicked Oris' braids with oil and tied on her veil.

"Mistress," she said as she wore slippers on Oris' feet, "why did-"

"Let's talk outside," Oris hopped off the chair. "It's too stuffy in here."

~

Oris had never been out in the palace grounds since she arrived. Hallways and imposing halls had been the only scenery she enjoyed during her stay.

Andrea was about to show her the imperial gardens which she claimed housed the best flowers on this side of the Great Sea. A guard walked some paces behind them as they navigated the windings passages.

"You seem to know the palace well."

"Mistress," Andrea looked up at Oris in shock. "You are no longer upset with me?"

"Was I ever upset?" Oris felt bad now for treating her poor maids so harshly. She squeezed Andrea's hand.

"You four are the only ones who truly care for me in this palace, how could I be upset with you for trying to help me?"

"Then why-"

"Why did I scold Mayree and Keziah? Why did I scold Seline not you?"

Andrea nodded.

"It's the secrets, Andrea. I know that you all are true to me, how can I not be touched? But we should be of the same mind. Just look at what happened the day we arrived. I was accused of treason. We all could have died if there was any inconsistency in our stories.

"I cannot go about living my life while you four make sacrifices for me. If things continue this way, I won't even be able to tell where your corpses fell. Other maids can act this way, but I will not allow my people die pointless deaths."

"Mistress, I can tell you what we did."

Oris shook her head. "I want to hear it from them. They are older. They will understand my intentions."

"You let me go because I'm the youngest?"

"I let you go because you're the only one I am truly worried for. Mayree was right, you can die at any moment," Oris pinched the girl's cheek with her free hand. "Just a little interrogation and you are already about to cry."

"I wasn't!"

Oris laughed. "You are so cute and innocent, and I wouldn't want that to change. Remember this though, I have no power to protect you and the palace has more than one way to pry answers out of you, none of which are pleasant."

Andrea sobered up and bowed her head. "Thanking Mistress for her teachings."

Oris couldn't help but pat the girl on the head. "You are so obedient."

"I'll be stronger in the future," Andrea said boldly. "I won't cry."

"Alright, alright," Oris smiled and looked up, surprised to see a clearing out in front of them. "It seems as though we're here."

Andrea tugged hard on Oris' hand and pulled her onto the stone-paved road of the garden. "I'll show you my favorite spot."

Oris almost felt sorry for the guard that had to keep up with them. She felt even more apologetic when she saw that the hedges in the garden were much taller than her and arranged like a maze.

In a matter of steps, even she didn't know the way back despite trying to form a map in her mind. At a one point, everything around her had started to look identical.

"Andrea?" Oris tried to even her breathing when they finally stopped running. "Are we lost?"

"Impossible."

Oris let herself be dragged to the stone bench in front of her. Her gaze was fixed on the paradise she seemed to have barged-in on. Surrounded by four wall-high hedges, it was as though she was had entered a different world.

In front of her was a marble fountain that seemed to have run out of water a long time ago. Nature ran rampant. Moss grew out of the cracks in the fountain and blooming vines accompanied it, winding along the fissures in the marble until the fountain was carpeted by the greenery.

Flowers of different colors sat in the basins of fountain then spilled out to radiate through the entire enclosure, leaving only a strip of path and the stone bench untouched.

"What is this place?" Oris reached down to caress the petals of a tulip.

"My secret garden," Andrea said proudly. "No one knows that it's here but I've been growing it for years. It might not compare to the splendor of the rest of the garden, but it's all mine."

"It's beautiful."

"Mistress, you can come here whenever you want in the future."

Oris laughed. "I don't think I have the ability to lose the guard like you did."

"I have lived here since I was small, before the Emperor was crowned," Andrea said with a sigh. "My mother was the bosom friend of the favorite consort of the former King of Inae, the Emperor's father, so I practically grew up in the palace. I often played with the princes and princess in this garden. I found this place back then."

"You had such a high status, how did you end up being my maid?" Oris was curious now. As someone so close to the royal family, Andrea shouldn't have fallen so far at this age.

"When the Emperor came to power, it was really unexpected. Many princes were killed and the princesses were married off. The wives of the king were buried with him, so my mother lost her connection with the royal family. My family's status was weakening and my elder sisters were already married, so I was sent into the palace to attend to the Empress Dowager."

"And then?"

"Then..." Andrea spread her fingers and leaned back, a small smile stretching her lips. "My family supports the Emperor's mother and some people weren't happy about that. I was meant to be the close aide of the future Empress but I was framed for a crime I didn't commit. I was spared from death, but I got demoted."

"What was the crime?"

"Letting assassins into the palace."

"Really?" Oris did a quick calculation. "You must have been around eleven summers back then. The Ministry of Justice couldn't see that you were being used as a scapegoat?"

"The evidence was irrefutable," Andrea said softly. "I didn't let assassins in, but I did help someone out of the palace that night."

"Who?"

Before Andrea could answer, Oris held up her hand to silence her. She placed her index finger against her lips and stood up slowly.

Andrea's eyes widened but she got to her feet as well because beneath the chirping of birds and crickets in the background were voices.

Her brows furrowed in confusion as she followed behind Oris to the hedge in front of them. The voices grew louder with each step they took.

"Are you seriously going to review all the answers personally?" the voice of a man asked. It was soft, almost effeminate, and for some reason it made Oris think of plum blossoms.

"What choice do I have?" asked another voice with a sigh. It was a voice that sounded familiar but Oris couldn't remember exactly who it belonged to.

"The Emperor was never this demanding when he was a prince."

"Only you would think so, you are his favorite courtier."

"Are you talking about me or you, Magnus?"

Magnus again? Oris squinted at the hedge as though her vision could pierce it. What is he doing in the gardens at this time?

"Do you know me to speak in riddles, Eugene?"

"Of course not," Eugene said with a nervous laugh. "It's just that the Emperor is getting married but you are the one selecting his wives. Doesn't he trust you a bit too much?"

"The Emperor is busy and has no time for trifles. As his advisor, I should ease his burdens."

"As his advisor, you should be stopping war and famine."

"I'm sure you didn't summon me here to nitpick."

"Of course not," Eugene said. Oris imagined a sly smile on his lips. "What do you think about the women?"

"This is not the place to discuss this. This is not a discussion to be had in the first place," Magnus said. "I beg your leave."

"Ah, Magnus! Don't go!"

"As an official, it is illegal to take bribes."

"I am just making an inquiry. Don't go around putting charges on my head."

Oris took a step back. The two men were now out of her hearing range having walked farther away. Listening further would have been pointless.

"Who is Eugene?" she asked.

Andrea shook her head. She didn't know. "We should get back, Mistress."

"There is no rush," Oris walked back to the bench. "It isn't as though I have food awaiting me."

"The guards might raise alarm if we are missing for too long."

"Alright, Andrea, you win," Oris smoothed the skirt of her dress. "Now, tell me. Who did you help escape the palace?"

"The Emperor's wet nurse."

~