John began to walk around the house aimlessly after finishing his meal. He rubbed his stomach in satisfaction. There was no doubt of the butler’s cooking skills. His eyes got back its glow and began to twinkle with happiness. He explored every corner of the ground floor, going in and out of rooms that were all over the house. He walked into the study room. It was filled with lots of books. In the centre of the room was a long table made of the finest oak wood. It was so clean that you could see your reflection on it. He took a book and flipped through it. “Weird symbols again,” he thought. He put the book back and went to the next room. It was the music room. He saw a violin on the mantel top, together with its bow. A grand piano occupied the centre of the room. It was white and old, about twenty years old. The white keys were yellowish and the black keys lost the shine that it once had. He looked around for a moment and saw nothing interesting. He proceeded on with his adventure.
“Lunch time Master John!” called out the butler at about noon.
John hurriedly walked to the dining room and ate together with the maids and the butler. It was roast beef with potatoes and coleslaw. It was good. They all ate in silence. John used his hands to eat as he was not accustomed to forks and knives. He couldn’t stand the silence and decided to break the ice.
“Well, you all know me. But I haven’t gotten your names yet.”
“I’m Alfred,” answered the butler.
“I’m Janet,” said the plump maid. She was a bit short and round, but always had a smile on her face.
“And I’m Anna,” said the other maid. She was tall and bulk. Her skin was tanned and her features were sharp.
“Nice to meet you Alfred, Janet, and Anna. I want to say thank you for all that you’ve done for me these past few days.”
“It’s our pleasure, young master,” replied Janet.
“What are you going to do after this?” asked John.
“Oh. Nothing much. Just a bit of cleaning up.”
“Can I follow along?”
“Sure you can.”
After lunch, John followed Janet to clean up the music room. She began to dust the picture frames and shelves with a feather duster and told John about her history in this house. John stood patiently by the door and listened to her stories. Janet continued talking as she proceeded to wipe the piano. As she wiped the keys, she accidently pressed one of the keys and the sound echoed through the room. John’s heart began to pound. “What was that, Janet?” “Oh, nothing. Just the piano.”
“Piano... piano...” he muttered under his breath as his face became more and more excited.