Chapter 10 #2
Jennifer remained standing, looking pained and sipping tentatively from a lidded cup which smelt like some sort of soup.
‘This is disgusting,’ she said, taking another sip.
‘What is it?’ Finn asked, throwing an arm along the back of the sofa and disturbing more dust.
‘Bone broth,’ Jennifer replied, gagging.
Finn frowned. ‘I thought you were a vegetarian?’
‘I am,’ Jennifer snapped. ‘This isn’t food, it’s medicinal. It’s full of collagen, it’s amazing for the skin.’
‘But—’
Before Finn could argue, there was a knock, and the door swung open again to reveal Violet with a small stool.
‘Oh, you angel!’ Jennifer said, as Violet moved the offending folding chair and put the stool in its place, beside the little plastic table, laden with water bottles and fruit.
Jennifer sashayed over, skirts rustling.
‘Here,’ she thrust the hand holding the broth cup in Violet’s direction. ‘Get rid of that, will you? I’ve had enough now.’
Jennifer didn’t look to see if Violet was ready before she let go of the cup. Violet, whose arm was reaching for the cup, launched herself forward but didn’t make it in time before Jennifer let go.
The paper cup hit the floor, the lid shot off, and half a cup of bone broth spilled across the rug at Violet’s feet.
Jennifer, realising what had happened, clutched her skirts.
‘Shit, did any of that splash on my dress?’
She peered forwards, examining the fabric.
Violet gestured for her to keep her distance.
‘I think it’s okay, but please step back so you don’t get any on you.’
Violet was crouched over the floor, pulling tissues from her pocket and dabbing at the spill.
Jennifer arranged herself on her new stool and grimaced.
‘Sorry. I thought you had hold of it.’
Violet lifted her head and smiled at Jennifer. ‘Don’t worry, I’ll sort it out.’
She picked up the now-empty cup and lid and left, a little pad of tissues marking the spillage spot. She hadn’t made eye contact with Finn once.
Jennifer started scrolling on her phone.
Two minutes later, Violet returned with a little box of cleaning materials and a bucket of steaming water that smelled like synthetic lemon.
Without looking at either Finn or Jennifer, she knelt down on the floor, dunked a cloth in the water, and started scrubbing.
Jennifer didn’t look up even as the water splashed and Violet spritzed more of the lemony-scented cleaner.
Finn’s eyes flicked between the two women.
Jennifer, the lady of the manor, symmetrical blonde ringlets framing her face, blue satin skirts arranged around her in a pool, swan-like neck bent over her phone.
And Violet, on her hands and knees, hair working itself enthusiastically out of a bun, her shoulders shifting back and forth as she scrubbed at the rug.
A muscle over his eye twitched as he thought of the huge changes she had made to be here today, cleaning up bone broth.
Finn stood abruptly, went over to Violet, and squatted down beside her.
‘Let me take a turn.’
He reached out a hand for the cloth.
Violet, eyes down, shook her head, her bun wobbling and more hair breaking free.
‘It’s her job, Finn. You can’t risk getting mess on your costume,’ Jennifer said with a tut.
Finn ignored her. ‘Let me help you to—’
‘It’s fine,’ Violet said in a low voice. ‘It’s part of the job.’ She glanced up at him as she wrung the cloth into the bucket. ‘And you wouldn’t want your costume to get sticky.’
Her eyes met his in a steady, unblinking gaze. Finn stood and backed away, averting his gaze from Violet, still crouching on the floor. He hovered awkwardly, too uncomfortable to resume his seat but unable to leave the room until he was called to set.
‘Ugh. You’re looming,’ Jennifer said, rustling her skirts. ‘Sit down, you’ll terrify the poor girl,’ then went back to her phone.
Finn glared at the top of her wig.
The door opened, and Leanne walked in. ‘Finn and Jenni—oh, Violet, what happened?’
‘She dropped some soup,’ Jennifer said, standing with a sigh. ‘Ready for us?’
‘Yes, ready on set,’ Leanne said chirpily.
Jennifer stepped past Violet, her skirts brushing along the side of Violet’s face as she went.
Finn looked at Violet’s bent head and hesitated.
From his current position, he would have to almost step over Violet to get to the door.
Turning on his heel, he walked around the far end of the sofa and behind it towards the exit, going nowhere near where Violet was still knelt down.
Turning back in the doorway, he saw her plunge the cloth back into the bucket and start to attack the rug once more. He rubbed his hand over his jaw. It somehow felt wrong to leave her like this.
‘Finn?’ Leanne called from down the corridor.
He nodded, and on heavy feet, he trailed after Jennifer and Leanne, glad now that the scene they were about to film was an argument.
‘Cut!’ the director yelled, an hour later, after another take. He jogged up to Finn, pulling him to one side. ‘Okay, so it’s good, but rein it in a bit. No need to be quite so angry at Beatrice. It’s frustration more than anger, yeah?’
‘Yeah, sure,’ Finn nodded. ‘Noted.’
‘Resetting and going again,’ Jake shouted and crew swarmed onto the set to redress and retouch what was needed.
His standby makeup artist, Hannah, was hovering just behind the director, kit bag at the ready. He stood obediently still and made encouraging noises to keep Hannah chatting as she touched up his makeup.
Across the gardens, Violet was standing by a gate in the tall brick walls, stopping people from entering when cameras were rolling.
She cut a lonely figure, standing by herself as crew rushed in and out, no one stopping to talk.
One of the costume team seemed to say something as she hurried by and squeezed Violet’s arm.
Her face lit up for a moment, and she smiled and nodded, then her face dropped, and her shoulders sagged.
She glanced up suddenly and locked eyes with him. He gave a small smile as a peace offering, but Violet’s lips set in a straight line as she straightened her shoulders, stood up taller, and adjusted her position so her body was angled away from him.
‘Okay, ready for you,’ Leanne said, gesturing for Finn to follow her.
Finn looked at Jennifer, already on her mark, shrugging off a padded coat. Frustrated, he chanted to himself. Frustrated not angry.
They were losing daylight when, two freezing hours later, they called wrap on the garden scenes, and Finn and Jennifer were ushered inside to get warm in the green room before the final scene of the day in one of the drawing rooms.
Inside the green room, a chair with a Wet Floor sign pinned to it had been placed over the damp spot in the rug. A little blow heater had been set up, and Finn let Jennifer hover in front of it and lift her skirts to let warm air get in underneath.
There was a rap at the door, and he glanced over to see Violet. Her cheeks were pink, and her lips were pale and tinged with blue from the cold.
‘Would either of you like a hot drink?’ she asked brightly.
She did an admirable job of appearing to look from one to the other while not actually looking him fully in the face.
‘Oh God, yes!’ Jennifer said, bent over and rubbing her hands in front of the heater. ‘Two coffees for me please, black with sweetener.’
Violet started noting this and, without looking up, asked, ‘And Finn?’
‘Sure, a coffee, please, with milk. Thanks.’
Violet was turning to go when Jake nearly barrelled into her in the doorway.
‘Oh, sorry, Violet, I just need a quick word with Finn and Jennifer about the next setup.’
Violet smiled and stepped back into the corridor.
‘Oh,’ Jake said, wrinkling his nose. ‘Is there a strange smell in here?’
‘Yes,’ Jennifer said, sinking down onto her stool with a sigh. ‘Violet spilt some soup earlier.’
‘Ah,’ Jake said, with a grin. ‘Oh, dear.’
Violet, half in shadow in the doorway, locked eyes with Finn. The whites of her eyes gleamed in the half-dark, the lighter waves of her hair standing out against the dark wooden panelling. She opened her mouth, closed it again, then slipped away down the corridor in silence.