Chapter 2 - The Utility Kitchen ExileFar away from the warmth and laughter of the dining room, down a narrow, shadowy hallway, the atmosphere was starkly different. The utility kitchen smelled faintly of industrial cleaning supplies and cold tile.
Sitting alone on a small gray plastic folding step stool was little Lily, five years old, wearing a pale pink cotton nightgown. Before her stood a standard black plastic trash bin with a blue liner. Resting on her lap was a small white ceramic plate containing a meager handful of cold vegetable scraps and leftover remnants.
Earlier that evening, when Lily had wandered toward the edge of the dining room hoping to see her mother, Victoria had intercepted her with a sharp reprimand. “Important family members eat at this table,” Victoria had snapped coldly, her voice dripping with disdain. “You do not belong among us. Take your plate back to the service wing and sit by the bins where you belong.”
Tears welled in Lily’s big, innocent eyes as she looked down at the plate, too terrified to disobey her grandmother, quietly accepting a punishment she was far too young to understand.
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