Chapter 65
[Este o usu.]
Rosetta handed the child a teddy bear, and she beamed with admiration. The child, who had been in shabby shape when she came here, had eaten well and her face was glowing. She was wearing a clean, neat dress.
[Thank you, Rigaina!]
The child was genuinely happy to receive a teddy bear for the first time in her life. She hugged the teddy bear and thanked Rosetta several times.
Benny’s heart was filled with joy as she watched. At first, she offered to serve Rigaina out of curiosity. She was curious about the woman Riga had brought with him out of the blue, and she liked her pretty looks. She had honestly wanted to be her maid so that she could show off to the other maids.
But now I genuinely like her. Not just for her good nature, but for her attentiveness, even giving the little girl a doll.
Benny now realized that she would have to serve her well. It was her job to help Rigaina get pregnant and establish herself here as soon as possible. Benny knew all too well what could happen to a woman from another tribe with no roots here if she couldn’t bear a child.
[Thelma.]
Benny led Thelma to a corner where no one was around, but only after checking her surroundings one more time did she speak.
[Do you know that nothing has happened so far between Riga and Rigaina at night?]
Thelma looked at Benny with no change in expression. Benny suddenly realized that she already knew that.
[My God, Thelma, you already knew! How did you know?]
I’m the one who serves right next to her, and I’m just now realizing it! Thelma sighed lowly as Benny gave her that look.
[It’s just that the sheets are so clean every day… More than that, how did you know? Do the other maids besides you know about this?]
Benny shook her head quickly.
[Yes, well, then, you must keep it to yourself, for there is no good in gossiping about it when they have separate rooms.]
[Why, why don’t they spend the night together? It’s good for both of them to make a baby sooner rather than later.]
A baby would give Riga an heir, and Rigaina a blood family. What could be more comforting than that in a foreign land with no family?
Benny couldn’t understand why the two of them weren’t doing anything, and it wasn’t like they hated each other.
[It’s just that… there’s a situation.]
[A situation? What’s that?]
Thelma raised her eyebrows. [That’s something I can’t tell you, it’s Master Rashid’s private matter.]
Private matter.
If it’s a man’s private matter…
Benny’s mouth dropped open as she mulled over the words.
Not knowing what heinous thoughts were running through Benny’s head, Thelma walked away with one final order:
[Don’t let Rigaina know you know, it’ll make her feel even more uncomfortable. Understand?]
Left alone, Benny clenched her fists. She knew it was the only way to get through this.
***
That afternoon, Benny walked into the room and said, “Rigaina, please have dinner with Riga tonight.”
“Dinner? Why all of a sudden?”
“You’ve been spending so much time apart, you two should have dinner together tonight.”
Benny was adamant that she wouldn’t take no for an answer. Rosetta nodded, feeling pressured by the urge.
They couldn’t keep avoiding each other like this forever. It wouldn’t hurt to take this opportunity to talk.
“Now then, please help me.”
Benny quickly grabbed Rosetta and led her somewhere. They ended up in the kitchen.
[Rigaina.]
The same pretty woman from the last time they met smiled at them as she approached. Everyone working there saw Rosetta and greeted her. Instead of the surprised and puzzled looks on their faces, there were warm smiles on their faces.
[Benny, are you sure you’re going to cook this?]
[Benny, I’ve prepared what you asked, but are you really going to cook this?]
The woman handed Benny something wrapped in cotton cloth. Judging by the blood on the cloth, it was probably meat for tonight’s dinner.
[Yes, of course.]
[But no matter how you cook this, it would be tough and not very flavorful, and I’m not sure if Riga will eat this…]
[That’s why I brought Rigaina here. If she cooks it, I’m sure he’ll eat it all.]
They spoke secretly, as if they were plotting something, and they lowered their voices at certain words. Rosetta listened, wondering what it was. Barely, she caught a word in the conversation that she already knew.
Usu pika? Bear what? Teddy bear? That’s roughly what they said. When I combined them, an unexpected word emerged.
Teddy bear?
Why does that word come up in cooking? Did I hear it wrong?
Rosetta tilted her head, but Benny grabbed her again.
“From now on, Rigaina, you’re only going to help with the simple things!”
By now, the meat from earlier had been chopped up until it was almost unrecognizable and carried over to where they were. Rosetta did as Benny told her, kneading the flour dough and sprinkling the food with salt and herbs.
Cooking for the first time was so fun and exciting. Rosetta smiled and laughed as she made the food, unaware of the flour on her face. She wanted to try her hand at knife skills, but she couldn’t because everyone stopped her.
And while she was cooking, the maids were constantly bringing her delicious treats: raspberries, freshly baked cookies, and more, until she was so full she couldn’t eat anymore.
Finally, the finished dish took the shape of a giant meat pie. The pie had just come out of the oven, with hot steam rising and a delicious smell wafting through the air. The crispy pie crust wrapped around the minced meat and vegetables looked absolutely appetizing.
“But Benny, what kind of meat is used in this? If it’s rabbit meat, I won’t eat it.”
At Rosetta’s question, Benny smiled broadly and exclaimed, “That’s right, that’s rabbit meat! That’s only for Riga to eat. I’ll make something else for you, Rigaina.”
“Okay.”
Rosetta nodded, thinking that people here seemed to like rabbit meat quite a bit.
And in the evening, Rosetta and Rashid sat at the table and looked at each other. It had been two days since they had seen each other properly.
“…Let’s eat first.”
Rosetta cleared her throat, breaking the awkward silence. She pushed a meat pie toward him.
“I made this myself.”
Rashid looked at her in genuine surprise. Feeling a little embarrassed, Rosetta quickly averted her gaze.
“So… um, this is my way of apologizing for saying something mean to you in the square the other day.”
“…I wasn’t thinking about that at all.”
“I knew you wouldn’t, but I just thought it would be nice to say I’m sorry.”
Rosetta cut the meat pie with a knife, then picked up a piece with her fork and held it out to him.
“Here, take a bite. I don’t really know what it tastes like because I haven’t tasted it either.”
Rashid looked very perplexed that he was being asked to take food from her fork into his mouth. Rosetta secretly enjoyed seeing him unusually agitated. It was the exact opposite of the last time she’d hurt her hands.
“Aren’t you going to eat it? My arm hurts.”
Rashid finally let out a thin breath and took the food.
Rosetta watched his reaction with excitement. Of course it would be delicious, she thought. She didn’t make it alone, but with a team of skilled kitchen workers.
But as she watched, his expression became somewhat puzzled. He turned his head slightly.
“What kind of meat is this made of?”
“Rabbit meat.”
“…This is rabbit meat?”
“I heard it’s rabbit meat…”
Rosetta suddenly felt like she was going to break out in a cold sweat. The food must have tasted strange. But even if she wanted to check, she didn’t want to eat rabbit meat again.
“Actually, I did hear a little bit of Ardennese in the kitchen, but it wasn’t rabbit meat I heard, it was something else.”
“What did you hear them say?”
“They were pointing to the meat and saying ‘bear something’. In Ardennese, they said ‘usu pika,’ I know usu means bear–”
Instantly, Rashid covered his mouth with his hand and remained frozen, not moving an inch.
“Rashid?”
Rosetta was so startled that she jumped to her feet. “Do- do you think it’s poison? Then spit it out!”
Rashid remained still and shook his head. Then, with a wave of his hand, he motioned for Rosetta to sit down.
“As expected, it tastes weird…”
Rosetta sank back into her chair and sulked. Rashid took his hand away from her mouth when he saw her increasingly sullen expression. He began to chew and swallow the food slowly.
“…Delicious. Really.”
Rosetta’s head snapped up at that, and he began to eat faster, as if to prove he wasn’t lying. The magic happened before her eyes as the large meat pie disappeared in the blink of an eye.
Rosetta exclaimed, “I didn’t know you liked to eat so much. I’ll make you another one next time!”
“……”