How to write

Chapter 1

She touched the note in her pocket, reassuring herself that is was still there. She had touched it a hundred times on her walk to the market, though she didn’t dare take it out of her pocket in broad daylight.

“G’day Miss, sweet, juicy apples for your pleasure.” Lost in thought, Amanda was startled by the voice.

“Oh, not today Mrs. Ruskin.  I’ve been sent for flour and eggs.  Mrs. Stout’s baking bread today.”

“Perhaps she’d like to bake an apple pie, dearie.” Mrs. Ruskin cupped a large, red apple in her palm and winked.

Amanda knew better than to bring home items Mrs. Stout didn’t request.  One summer day she bought a bouquet of yellow daisies, enticed by their fragrance and color of sunshine, she spent the change from her shopping allowance.  Smiling and humming, she walked into kitchen nook, only to have the flowers snatched from her hands.

“What are these?” Mrs. Stout demanded.  “Did I ask for flowers?”

“No ma’am.” Amanda murmured as the feelings of happiness drained from her body.

“Did you steal them? Hmmm?  No? Then where did you get the money?”

“I had money left from the butcher.”

“No, you didn’t have money left. I should call the constable and report the theft.”

Panic enveloped Amanda. It didn’t matter that the flowers had cost only a few coins. The constable would act on behalf of Mrs. Stout; Amanda had no advocate.

“No, please ma’am.  I’ll pay you back. I’m sorry.”

Mrs. Stout looked at the flowers, broken and wilting in her grasp. 

“Start by cleaning up this mess.” She tossed the flowers to Amanda’s feet and left the room.

Amanda had gone on half rations for a week and worked long into the night doing extra chores.  No, she wouldn’t be tempted to splurge on apples today.

She was thankful when the Stouts offered her work.  She had been raised in an orphanage and had no where else to go.  She often went to bed exhausted from her labors and was hungry more often then not. Nonetheless, she was happy to have a place to call home, even though Mrs. Stout was a harsh taskmaster.  Diane came to work for the Stouts a year after Amanda, she was four years younger and Amanda thought of her as a sister. 

Her thoughts returned to the note in her pocket.  Could it have been Diane who left it underneath Amanda’s pillow three nights ago? That didn’t make sense.  Diane would simply talk to Amanda, not send her a note.  No one other the Mr. and Mrs. Stout had access to her room, at least no one she could think of.  And no one knew of her past.  Amanda didn’t even know much of it herself.

Distracted as she was, Amanda was able to finish her shopping and return home before the noon meal.  Diane was in the yard, beating rugs to remove dust. 

“Hi, Mandy” Diane smiled radiantly and waved. At fourteen, Diane was slim and preferred running or playing in the woods to dreaming of dances and silk dresses with ribbons and bows.  Freckles covered her upturned nose, and her green eyes sparked with mischief.   Amanda often envied Diane’s joyful attitude. She never seemed unhappy with her circumstances.  An orphan, like Amanda, Diane didn’t seem to wonder if there was family for her somewhere, she simply accepted the people around her. 

“Hi Dee, and hello Kiki” Amanda bent to pet the burrel rolled into a ball at Diane’s feet.  The burrel was grey as soot with intelligent, golden eyes and a ringed tail.  Kiki’s long ears quivered as he heard something in the tall grass. Burrels were impressive hunters, stalking mice or birds, they were seldom spotted and never outwitted.  It was a small miracle that Diane managed to tame Kiki; yet she accepted the animal’s friendship as though it was a natural as having a puppy licking your nose. Kiki dashed into the grass and disappeared like a wisp of smoke in the wind.

“I think there’s an elf hiding in the woods.” Diane nodded in the direction Kiki had disappeared to. 

“The elves are gone Diane. They’ve been gone for a hundred years.”

“Maybe they sent a scout to see if it was time to come back.”

“Why would they come back here?  They were nearly destroyed.” Amanda knew Diane dreamed of seeing an elf; the legendary woodsmen who crafted their homes in trees and cooperated with animals, living in harmony with nature.

Diane shrugged and returned to her work.  The conversation of elves would have to wait for another day. Amanda knew if there was an elf within a thousand miles of Diane, she would find it; especially with the help of Kiki.

Amanda left the flour and eggs on the wooden table in the kitchen and gathered the scrub brushes and bucket to clean the floors.   

“You took long enough this morning.  I hardly have time to get the bread baked.  Mr. Brook is having the mayor to dinner this evening. Mayor Smith loves my fresh baked bread.”

Mrs. Stout was the most admired cook and housekeeper in the area.  The Mayor had tried to entice her to work for his family for years, but she was loyal to the Brooks.  The Brook family had grown in years, as John Brook Jr. took a wife and had seven children. John Brook Sr. still lived in the home, but he kept to his personal suite.  Few had seen him since his wife’s death two years earlier.  Everyone assumed it was only a matter of time before he joined her.

“What’s this?” Mrs. Stout bent and picked up a scrap of paper. 

Amanda’s heart froze as she realized the note had fallen from her pocket.