I arrived at the Conservatory that Thursday, making extra sure to show up on time today. Loid didn't escort me there; he had some work to do this afternoon. We parted ways and I made my way in the magnificent building alone. I had no idea there were such beautiful structures in our city. The Conservatory was massive and had a clear glass panel ceiling.
A butler met me as soon as I came through the door and offered to take my coat. "Thank you," I smiled, letting him help me out of it. He then brought me down this long fancy hallway to a gigantic room full of tropical plants. It was so humid in there, I could already feel myself start to sweat. The ladies were already inside, sitting at tables scattered throughout the place. I recognized some of them but not everyone; there were more people here this time. Each table had a smartly dressed server standing on-side, waiting for someone to need him- all the staff were men again. Unsure of where I should sit, I stood still momentarily and feeling awkward and uncomfortable.
That feeling sort of went away when a familiar figure, Mrs. Bates, hollered over to me from across the room. "You who! Mrs. Forger! Over here!" She was waving her gloved hand around in the air to catch my attention. I felt a wave of relief wash over me when I saw that sitting next to her was Mrs. Desmond- that woman Loid eagerly wanted me to be-friend. Grinning, I approached their three-person table and took the remaining seat. Course the butler pulled the chair out for me and pushed me in. I thanked him before turning to the well-dressed older ladies.
"I knew it was you! From the moment I saw you enter I was sure that was Mrs. Forger!" Mrs. Bates prattled on. "Hello Mrs. Bates, Mrs. Desmond," I gave them each a respectful nod. Mrs. Desmond set down her teacup and glanced over my way. "Good afternoon, Mrs. Forger. Have any trouble finding the place?" "Oh no! My husband gave me directions before I came. It was pretty easy to find," it was not but that seemed of little consequence now. Mrs. Desmond nodded and Mrs. Bates beamed. "See? I told you she was a clever one. We're so happy you came today, my dear. I was just telling my mother yesterday how refreshing it is to have new blood in our little group. It's not usual for a party member to marry outside him…. "class", but you bring such an invigorating outlook on affairs. Quite charming, if I do say so myself." "You say quite a lot, Hetty," Mrs. Desmond closed her eyes as she reached for her cup again. While I was mildly horrified by the comment, Mrs. Bates merely laughed it off, clearly taking no offense.
"Melinda's right, child; I do speak rather a bit too much. Friedrich- ah, my husband, Mr. Bates- always scolds me for chatting his ear off. "For god's sake, let me rest, Hetty!", he cries. He's quite dramatic when he's tired." "I-I'm sure Mr. Bates is a very patient man," I didn't know how else to respond to this; these rich people seemed to like getting complimented. This theory was proved correct when she laughed heartly again, waggling her hand around above the table. "Oh he's nothing but a headache. But then, aren't all men? Surely your Donovan isn't much better, eh Melinda?" Mrs. Bates looked to Mrs. Desmond for validation to her claim. The latter wiped her mouth with her napkin before frowning at her friend. "Keep that up and we'll start to feel sorry for Mr. Bates," she scowled and Mrs. Bates laughed yet again.
Feeling awkward again, I pulled up the little wrapped bundle I carried with me. "Is Damian here? I brought him some cookies." "Hmmmmm? Oh, that's very nice of you, dear. I'm afraid Damian is at the Academy today, but I'm sure he'll appreciate them once he gets home from school," Mrs. Desmond took the package. "He goes to an academy?" I inquired, still looking at her. She nodded stoically. "Eden Academy. It's where most of the party members' children go." "I see. Well it's good he's getting a good education. That's such a privilege," I let my lips smile a little. Mrs. Desmond remained quiet for a minute and then lowered her eyes in that gentle way of hers. The same sort of way as Mr. Henderson did….. "Yes," was all she said in agreement.
Mrs. Bates proceeded to chatter away for the next half an hour on a ton of different and unrelated topics, all the while Mrs. Desmond and I sat there silently drinking cup after cup of tea. At two o'clock it was announced that the dessert hall was opened at the back of the room à la carte style. Mrs. Bates leaped out of her seat in excitement, ready to dash off to the buffet. "Oooooh, it's my favourite part of afternoon tea- the pastries! Won't you join me, Melinda? Mrs. Forger?" "O-Oh! I'm uh, not very hunger," I forced a grin, holding my stomach as I said this. Mrs. Desmond also shook her head. "I too am not hungry. You go, Hetty; we'll catch up to you later. Will you walk with me, Mrs. Forger? The air in here oppresses me," she stood up from her chair. "Of course," I was fast to join her. So while Mrs. Bates went to one side of the room, Mrs. Desmond and I made our way into a small greenhouse room adjacent to the main area. This room was compact but had this lovely indoor waterfall and pond in it. It's also where they housed and bred the butterflies. They were flapping all around us as we entered.
"Amazing!" I gasped in delight, and she "hummed" in agreement. We walked for a while before sitting down momentarily at a little two-person table by the waterfall. While I watched it in awe, Mrs. Desmond kept her eyes on me. Her forefinger and thumb lifted to her chin in a contemplative fashion.
"This is all new to you, isn't it?" She finally asked, causing me to blink her way curiously. "Yes. I've never been in anywhere like here before…. Not until I got married, anyway," I had the urge to be open and honest- or as much was appropriate, that is. She hummed again, lowering her head a tad. "Marriage….. Nothing changes a woman's life as much as that." "I-I suppose not….." I replied and she didn't say anything more. Getting that uneasy feeling in the pit of my stomach again, I tried to lighten the mood- although painfully failed to.
"How did you and your husband meet?" I asked innocently but foolishly. Mrs. Desmond gazed at me through the corner of her eye for a second before turning to the water. "Ours was an arranged marriage." Oh my god, what have I done? "O-Oh! I'm so…..!" My lips sputtered, eager to fix my blunder but she gave me a look which cut me off. She didn't appear angry per se; more pensive and disappointed than anything.
"None of us women have the luxury of remaining single or marrying for love. We've got to take what we can get in this political climate, and trade happiness for security." Oh wow! I mean…. She's not wrong. I just didn't expect one of the higher-up's wives to have such a bleak outlook on things. I sat back in my chair a little and lowered my head sadly. "Yeah, it's true…. It is really tough out there… for single women in today's society." I felt her eyes on me again. Her finger traced across her bottom lip.
"Was yours a love match?" She next put forth. My finger twitched at this highly unanticipated question. My teeth clenched a bit before answering. "Er, no… No, it wasn't," this man I didn't know asked me to marry him in a café, and I agreed. The thought of love or attachment never crossed my mind in that instance, or if it did, it wasn't a strong enough concern for me to remember. It was about my personal security from the very start- that's the only reason I got married. If things weren't as they are now, I would have never even considered marriage to anyone….
After staring at me for a long moment, Mrs. Desmond nodded in that thoughtful way she did. Then her eyes gradually drew back to the pond. "I don't blame you. Marriage is convenient, no matter what ring of society you're in. It's the only way for a girl to stay safe nowadays, what with war potentially looming in the distance, and all those spies roaming around the city." "I don't think I've ever met any spies, and if I did, they were certainly good enough to fool me," I truthfully admitted. She chuckled lowly, letting her forefinger fall down to her chin. "You'd be surprised how good those Westalis spies are becoming. Rumour has it Berlint is crawling in them." "Really?! Well I can't say I'm too surprised. The secret service has….. has been pretty suspicious of single women lately….. Or so I've heard!" I quickly tacked on so not to reveal my worries.
She looked at me and nodded, presumably unaffected. "Yes, I heard about that. Waste of time if you ask me. They should really be looking at any bachelors new to the city. Single men don't move to Berlint for no reason. I bet some of them are even trying to make their way into the party." "Possibly, but I'm sure our husbands and the like could tell if they were. Loid's very perspective, as I'm sure Mr. Desmond is! We can trust in our men, I think," I grinned a tad, feeling both sincere and embarrassed. Mrs. Desmond blinked and then relaxed her posture slightly. "You're exactly the kind of woman the party wants its members to marry. You're exceptionally loyal, Mrs. Forger…" "W-Well to my husband, yes," I blushed, lowering my head a bit. To the National Unity Party on the other hand…..
Mrs. Desmond nodded once more, placing her hand on her lap. Her eyes wandered out into nowhere for a second as she was obviously thinking to herself about something. "Donovan's paranoid enough as it is. He's terrified of running into any spies, so much so that he's become a bit of a recluse." "Perhaps he should talk to my husband. He's a psychiatrist for the party; he may be able to help Mr. Desmond ease his worries," I offered politely. Mrs. Desmond glanced to me and grinned mildly. "I'll keep that in mind. Thank you, Mrs. Forger," her voice was kind and we genuinely smiled at one another from across the table.
After a bit more friendly talking, we made our way back to the main room, only to be surprised and alarmed by the sight of two secret service officers standing amongst the crowd of ladies. Mrs. Desmond and I both paused; her frowning and me having an inward mini-panic attack. I spotted those men, wearing the same uniforms as the creeps who cornered me in the alleyway that one day…. Suddenly the memory of his board hand reaching for me swept through my mind, and I felt like I was going to be physically ill. No… Anything but them….. I'm so afraid of men in those awful, terrifying uniforms….. The guys with the power to make me disappear…..
I was stone as a statue, too afraid to even breathe, while the rest of the women were more direct and outspoken with their annoyance at the intrusion. "What's going on here?" Mrs. Desmond wore a prominent frown, shooting daggers from her eyes at the soldiers. They acted a lot more cautiously than I'd ever seen secret service members behave before, like they were almost afraid to say the wrong thing to these women. They stood there almost regretfully, with one even rubbing the back of his neck nervously. This was a fascinating sight to behold: these guys had complete dominance over average civilians in the street, but I bet some- or lots- of these women were married to their bosses. No wonder they had to walk on eggshells around them…. er, "us" now, I guess.
One of the soldiers cleared his throat very, very uncomfortably. "Our most sincere apologies ladies, b-but we have reason to believe that one of you may have come into contact with a Westalis intelligence officer recently….. Unknowingly, of course!" Man, it was weird to see them dance around with their words like that. Guess that's the power of money and prestige for you. One of the ladies I'd met before at the castle, though I didn't know her name, glared at the policemen in utter contempt and disgust. I didn't know women could look so angry…. or insulted.
"What?! One of us well-to-do ladies, converse with a spy?! How dare you suggest such a thing?! You should be removed from your post for such insolence!" "Please, ma'am! We didn't mean any disrespect by it. The authorities know that any such… such "occurrence" would be purely accidental. We would never accuse any of you respectable ladies otherwise," the one soldier cowed. The room erupted in even more angry threats at the policemen; this time from several different women all at once.
The verbal takedown continued until the other soldier- the one who was smart enough to remain quiet up until this point- decided that the only way to end this, while making his bosses happy, was to interview one of us. I'm not sure how he selected her, but his gross, gloved finger soon pointed to a stunned Mrs. Bates. "Please, ladies! Please! We only have one suspect….. er, person in mind. Ma'am, would you please come with us so we might take a statement?"
This was one of the most disgusting things I'd ever witnessed. I knew for a fact they had no good reason to single out Mrs. Bates. That poor woman didn't do anything wrong; she may be classist, but that's no reason to interrogate her using their horrific methods. I doubt they'd actually torture her, but it was the principle of the matter! They just wanted to get this over and done with so they could get the heck outta here, lest they be butchered alive by a mob of insulted party wives.
I wasn't the only one wordlessly shocked by this accusation either. The room grew quiet for a moment, until Mrs. Bates started proclaiming her innocence and the officers trying to calm her down. My hands balled into tight, irate fists as I watched on with abhorrence. How dare they? How dare these creeps pick on and bully whoever they please? They're ruined enough girls' lives; isn't that enough? I hate them; I hate everything they stand for. They're the reason I rushed into marriage. They're the reason Yuri was so afraid to move outside the city away from me. They're the reason so many colleagues went missing at work. I hate them…. I HATE them.
And that's when I realized for the very first time in my life…. I'm not helpless anymore. I'm not that average single woman anymore. I'm married to someone in the party- the party these jerks work for. I have more power now than I've ever possessed in my life, and I'm sure as hell going to use it to protect any innocent women they target. No more… I will never stand by and watch as they drag away a girl again. Never again!
Before I knew what I was doing, my feet were moving, making me stand out from the crowd and be the one closest to them. "Mrs. Bates wouldn't talk to a spy! She's a kind woman who's got a good head on her shoulders! She'd know better than to ever do a thing like that." All eyes blinked to me dumbfounded, especially the policemen. They looked more taken aback and alarmed than angry. Good! That's just the way I want them.
One of their stupid lips began to tremble. "I-It's just a formality, I assure you. She'll be fine," he's lying! I know he is, and judging by the hopeless look on his face, he knows that I know too. My fingers gritted into my palms in rage; my arms were shaking. "Didn't you hear me?! She didn't talk to a spy! None of us did! If any of us were aware of any espionage, we'd alert the authorities! We're the wives of party members, for Christ's sake!"
Their jaws hung open in utter disbelief and apprehension to push the matter. The first lady to shout at the rang a bell and this particularly big security guard showed up. "Holmes, would you please see these men out? I think we're done here." And with that, Holmes took the soldiers away, letting us all give a collective sigh in relief. A still shell-shocked Mrs. Bates raced over to me. Boy, did she look pale; her breathing was really heavy as well. I looked to her with worry.
"Are you alright, Mrs. Bates?" "Y-Yes…. Yes, I am… now. Oh my, what an unexpected intrusion. I can't fathom where they got the idea that any of us would talk to a Westalis spy," she was fanning herself while talking, taking small gasps in between her words. I tried to reassure her with a warm expression. "I'm sure this is all just a big mistake. None of us have done anything wrong- I'm sure of it," I smiled. Mrs. Bates looked me in the eye momentarily, letting her lips quiver and her gaze soften. Her hand then reached out towards me. "Thank you, Mrs. Forger… Thank you," she patted my arm so tenderly, so sincerely….
I smiled, taking her hand in mine. "Anytime. We women need to look out for each other. It's a tough enough world out there as it is. But if I can make it easier for you…. I will," I said and there was a collective, soft gasp in the room. Ladies who once glared at me with distain were now smiling at me endearingly. I don't think I was officially accepted into their society yet, but I was definitely closer now than I'd ever been. This was confirmed when Mrs. Desmond came up behind me, placing her hand on my shoulder with a hint of approval and affection. I glanced back at her, only to see her grinning too.
"You may not have been blessed to be born into our realm, but we are certainly glad you made your way here, Mrs. Forger." "Mrs. Desmond….." My eyes ogled her in astonishment. She gave me a kind nod, keeping her hand on my shoulder. "In case you want to entrench yourself into our world even more, the party's club- the Garden of Eden club- is having interviews soon. I'll personally ensure that you are put on the list, if that would be of interest to you and your husband." My jaw literally dropped. "Oh, Mrs. Desmond! You would do that for me?!" She nodded. "The waiting list for an interview is at least two years long…. But I think they'll make an exception for your case.
In fact, I'll have Donovan make sure they do."