In Roseville, inside the boarding establishment, Belle was given the least good room in the building, as it was said the rest were occupied, and as desperate as she was for a place to rest the day, she had no choice but to take the lounging.
The room was small, not even half the size of her chamber, with a string bed that had rusty iron posts and an old, cracked nightstand. There was a barn-worn-out basin kept at the side for a bath and two unlit lamps hanging on the walls. And true to the owner's words, there was no fireplace, nor were there stoves to keep the place warm. It had one window, but that too had a broken windowpane, and the curtain was sheer, with the morning wind blowing in fiercely, chilling her soaked body to the bones and marrow.
The man who had led her to the room had left, saying a hot bath would be brought to her, and she would have to pay for it separately as it did not come with the room payment. Belle had quickly agreed to it.
