It wasn't the snickering that Rose found odd. The maids still laughed at how she spoke, though they no longer boldly mocked her as they used to; it was not weird to hear a snicker. It was the smacking that Rose found very odd. That had never happened before; instead, the others would usually join in the laughter.
Lily grabbed the door handle and slowly turned around to look at Rose. She had a look on her face as though she might refuse to speak with Rose, but then her shoulders slumped, and she took her hand away from the door.
"I don't see why not," she said and stepped away from the door.
The other two maids didn't wait. As soon as Lily stepped aside, they stepped forward and were out of the room without looking back. The sound of their feet rushing away floated into the room just before the door closed.
Lily folded her arms and stared hard at Rose. "What do you want?" she asked, darkly.
