CHAPTER 2 â THE MAID WHO DARED TO CHALLENGE HIM
The sound of silence felt unfamiliar.
For three months, Victor Hale had hated silence.
Because silence reminded him of the day Elena was gone.
The penthouse had once been filled with warmth. Her laughter used to echo through the massive rooms. Her footsteps crossed the marble floors every morning. Her voice filled the empty spaces that money could never reach.
But after she diedâŠ
The penthouse became nothing more than a beautiful prison.
Expensive furniture.
Perfect decorations.
A breathtaking view.
And a man slowly falling apart inside.
Until tonight.
Because now, for the first time in months, his son was sleeping peacefully.
Victor stood several feet away from An, watching her carefully.
The same woman who had entered his home as a maid.
The same woman who had dared to tell him he was wrong.
And somehowâŠ
The same woman who had done what he couldn't.
She had calmed Ethan.
Victor didn't understand it.
He had hired the best pediatric doctors.
He had bought every baby product recommended by experts.
He had even transformed an entire floor of his penthouse into a luxury nursery.
Everything money could buy was there.
Yet his son still cried every night.
But a maid with nothing except patience and experience had solved the problem in minutes.
It bothered him.
More than he wanted to admit.
"How did you know?"
His voice finally broke the silence.
An looked up.
"Sir?"
Victor walked closer.
"How did you know what he needed?"
An glanced down at the sleeping baby.
Then she answered calmly.
"Because babies don't cry without a reason."
Victor frowned.
"That's your explanation?"
"No."
An gently adjusted Ethan's blanket.
"It's because I listened."
Those two words irritated him.
Listened.
As if he hadn't been listening.
As if he hadn't spent every night holding his son, praying for him to stop crying.
Victor's expression darkened.
"I have been with my son every day since he was born."
An nodded.
"I know."
"Then don't act like I don't care about him."
Her eyes lifted immediately.
"I never said that."
The answer surprised him.
Most people around Victor either feared him or tried to please him.
No one corrected him.
No one challenged him.
But An wasn't trying to fight him.
She was simply telling the truth.
"You love him," she continued softly.
"Everyone can see that."
Victor looked away.
For some reason, hearing those words from her felt different.
Because they didn't sound like praise.
They sounded like understanding.
"But sometimes," An continued, "when someone is afraid of losing something, they become too focused on saving it."
Victor remained silent.
Because againâŠ
She was right.
After losing Elena, Ethan became the only thing keeping him alive.
Every cough terrified him.
Every cry felt like an emergency.
Every moment away from his son felt dangerous.
He had become a father consumed by fear.
But he hated admitting it.
Especially to someone who worked for him.
"You're very confident for someone who just started working here."
Victor's tone became colder again.
An looked at him.
"I am not confident, sir."
"Then what are you?"
She looked at Ethan.
"Experienced."
Victor studied her.
There was something strange about her.
She wasn't like the other employees.
She didn't flatter him.
She didn't try to impress him.
She didn't look at him like a billionaire.
She looked at him like a tired father.
And somehow, that made him uncomfortable.
"Where did you learn to handle babies?"
The question came suddenly.
An's expression changed slightly.
Only for a second.
But Victor noticed.
"My previous work."
"Where?"
"A family home."
"Which family?"
A pause.
An looked away.
"Does it matter?"
Victor immediately noticed the hesitation.
His instincts as a businessman awakened.
A person hiding something was always dangerous.
"Everything matters in my house."
His voice became sharp.
"I don't allow strangers around my son without knowing everything about them."
An slowly placed Ethan back into his crib.
Then she turned around.
For the first time, Victor saw something different in her eyes.
Not fear.
Not anger.
Pain.
"You're right, sir."
Her voice was quiet.
"You should protect your son."
She walked toward the door.
"But protecting him doesn't mean pushing away everyone who tries to help."
Victor watched her leave.
A strange feeling appeared in his chest.
Guilt.
But before he could say anything, his phone rang.
The screen showed the name:
Richard Hale.
His father.
Victor answered.
"What?"
The older man's voice immediately came through.
"I heard the baby finally stopped crying."
Victor frowned.
"How did you know?"
"People talk."
A pause.
Then Richard continued.
"Was it the maid?"
Victor glanced toward the doorway where An had disappeared.
"Yes."
His father's voice became colder.
"Be careful."
Victor's eyes narrowed.
"What does that mean?"
"You just hired her."
"So?"
"People don't enter the Hale penthouse by accident, Victor."
The words created an uncomfortable silence.
Richard continued.
"Find out who she really is."
The call ended.
Victor stood alone in the room.
He looked at Ethan sleeping peacefully.
Then he looked at the door.
For the first timeâŠ
He wondered the same thing.
Who was An?
The next morning, Victor thought he would forget about it.
He was wrong.
Because when he walked into the kitchen at 6 a.m., he saw something that stopped him.
An was sitting beside Ethan's crib.
She wasn't holding him.
She wasn't doing anything inappropriate.
She was simply watching him sleep.
And beside her was an old notebook.
Victor immediately noticed.
"What's that?"
An quickly closed it.
"Nothing."
Victor walked closer.
"Nothing?"
His eyes narrowed.
"You're keeping notes about my son?"
An stood up.
"It's a baby care journal."
"Why?"
"Because he needs a routine."
Victor looked at her suspiciously.
"He has doctors."
"Doctors examine him."
She looked at Ethan.
"But someone has to understand him."
Those words irritated Victor again.
"Are you saying I don't?"
An didn't answer immediately.
And that silence hurt more than an accusation.
Victor stepped closer.
"Answer me."
Finally, she said:
"I think you're trying."
A pause.
"But trying and understanding are different things."
Victor's jaw tightened.
Nobody spoke to him like this.
Nobody.
"You're just a maid."
The words came out colder than he intended.
An froze.
For a second, hurt appeared in her eyes.
Then it disappeared.
"Yes, sir."
She lowered her head.
"I know exactly what I am."
Victor immediately regretted it.
But pride stopped him from apologizing.
An walked away.
And Victor remained standing there.
Watching her leave.
He didn't know why those words bothered him.
Maybe because deep downâŠ
He knew he hadn't insulted her.
He had insulted the only person who had helped his son.
That night, Victor sat alone in his office.
A folder was placed in front of him.
The background check report on An.
He opened it.
And his expression slowly changed.
Because the first page contained something impossible.
Something that made his blood run cold.
AN PARKER.
Age: 28.
Previous employment:
Private caregiver for Elena Hale.
Victor stopped breathing.
His wife's name stared back at him.
And underneath it was one sentence:
Employment terminated three days before Elena Hale's death.
Victor slowly closed the file.
His hands tightened.
The maid in his penthouseâŠ
May you like
Was connected to his dead wife.
And he had no idea why.
