"Coochie-coo! Ya little darling, you! What a beautiful girl you are! Can  you smile for me then?"

The nurse maid tickled the baby under the chin, sending that child into giggling spasms. The maid chuckled along with the little girl, their combined laughter ringing through the quiet room like music.

"There you go, little one. Get some sleep now while I get a cuppa and relax a bit." She closed the flowered drapes around the child and, with a sigh, made her way to the kitchen.

Her son sat at the tiny table, swirling his tea in the cup with a dirty spoon. Sullen, he didn't acknowledge her entry into the room.

"And what are you doing here?" the harried servant asked. "You know I don't like you here where I work."

"I need money."

"Again? What do you do with all I give you?"

The lad merely looked her way with muddy eyes registering resentment that he had to beg. His shaggy beard and filthy jacket offered little hope of finding employment in any respectable establishment.

"Ah, what's the use in asking!" His mother pulled out a tiny black purse from the folds of her uniform and yanked out a wad of bills. "Here."

He grabbed it quicker than necessary. "So how's the little bit?" His moody face took on a softer expression.

"Ah, she's lovely really. A little angel!"

"And how is she getting along?"

"I would hardly divulge to you anything about her. So why are you asking?"

"Just curious."

"Out with you. I have work to do."

"But I was just asking a simple question..."

"Out!" With an unceremonious glare, her fiery eyes sent him running.

"Hallo, mum!" Her daughter's voice filled the kitchen like tiny bells. She had arrived for her tea. It was a busy morning making beds and tidying up the Smythe family's messes. That's what she got paid for.  She didn't mind though, so they could be in the same house.

"Here, tea's ready." Her mum nodded toward the chair and filled a cup, pushing it in front of the girl.

"How is she this morning?" she asked, taking her first sip.

"Ah, beautiful."

"Mum, could I go and see her?"

Her mother paused in mid-motion, tea pot still in her hands. "I don't think that's wise, dear. You've got to remember, it's not your child."

"Mum."

"It's not your child."

The girl sipped her tea in moody silence, finally asking, "I heard Teddy. Did he ask to see it?"

"No."

She sipped thoughtfully. "Figures," she muttered.

Her mother shot her a glance. "And that's why it's better Mrs. Smythe adopt her. You can't raise that baby on your own...and you could hardly marry your brother, even if he is the father." The maid's face stretched in lines of contorted agony. "We can't tell that to anyone. I can barely believe it myself." 

She grabbed up her daughter's cup and tossed it in the sink. "Tea time's over. Now back to work. Stay away from the wee one. Remember, she's no longer yours. She never was as far as the world is concerned."

Copyright 2007 JO Janoski

A Musecrafters Forum Challenge