Chapter Twelve

Chapter Twelve

The kitchen was warm, filled with the aroma of spices and sizzling oil. Pots clattered, spoons scraped, and voices rose in cheerful chatter. The maids were gathered in small groups, exchanging gossip and laughter as they moved about preparing the evening meal.

But Katherine wasn’t laughing.

She stood by the far end of the room, back straight, hands hidden in the folds of her apron. Her left palm clenched tightly around a single pill, small, white, and dangerous. Her fingers trembled.

She swallowed hard, folding her clammy palms.

Her heart pounded so loud she was sure the others could hear it. She tried to calm herself, but her eyes kept flicking toward the large pot humming softly on the cooker. That was her target.

"Just one drop," she thought. "One drop, and everything changes."

“Katherine?”

The voice snapped her out of her thoughts.

She turned sharply.

Standing by the kitchen door was Mariam Rachael. Her eyes were narrowed, arms folded as she leaned against the frame.

“Are you okay?” She asked again, more slowly this time. She've been watching her for sometime now.

Katherine forced a smile.

“Yes, ma. Just... tired. Long day.”

“Hmm,” Ma'am Racheal hummed. “You’ve been told by the doctor to not stress yourself. Now, go to your room, I'll handle your job.”

Katherine's heart lurched. No, if she leaves, then she won't be able to carry out the necessary.

“N….no, I'm okay, I promise.” She replied, forcing a smile.

“Are you sure?" Ma'am Racheal asked.

Katherine nodded.

Ma’am Racheal raised a brow but didn’t press further. With a final lingering glance, she turned and walked away.

Katherine watched her go, holding her breath.

When she was certain Ma'am Racheal was gone, she sprang into motion.

She glanced around. The other maids were still chatting and distracted. Good.

She slipped out the side entrance of the kitchen, moving quickly but trying not to draw attention. Her footsteps echoed faintly as she passed the laundry room, turned a corner, then another, until she reached the restricted hallway that led to the emergency control room.

No one saw her.

It was locked, so she quickly removed her earpin and unlocked.

Stepping in, she moved towards the emergency button. And for a second, she hesitated.

“Do it,” her mind urged. “You don’t have time.”

She pressed the button.

BEEEEP!

The sound was shrill, sudden, piercing.

Red lights flashed overhead. Sirens wailed down the hallways.

Then came the voices of guards shouting, maids screaming, hurried footsteps stomping up and down the stairs. The mansion was spiraling into panic.

Katherine ducked behind a cleaning cart just in time to avoid being seen.

Moments later, two security officers ran past.

“An intruder is in the mansion! Take everyone to safety!” One guard instructed

“Check the east wing!” Another yelled

Katherine waited a few more seconds. Then, as the hallway cleared, she retraced her steps and slipped back into the kitchen through the other door.

It was empty.

She moved fast, her hands trembling. She sprinkled the powder from her pouch into the stew, the water jug, and even the salt jar. Then, carefully, she approached the large pot still bubbling on the cooker.

She opened her hand. The pill was damp from her sweat.

Without another thought, she dropped it into the stew. It was done.

She wiped her palms on her apron before going to join the household staff had gathered there. Some sat on the floor, shaken. Others whispered to one another, scared and confused.

“Where have you been?" Ma'am Racheal asked immediately she saw her.

Katherine gulped. “I was actually in the restroom before everything blew up. I was scared so I hid in there.” She explained.

Ma'am Racheal stared at her for a while before nodding. Katherine was up to something. She could feel it in her gut.

Katherine kept her head down and folded her arms.

Moments later, the guards returned.

“It was tampered with,” one of them announced. “False alarm. There’s no danger.”

The room let out a collective sigh. Some people started laughing nervously. A few cursed under their breath.

Katherine stood still, her expression blank.

She’d done it.

******

At the Hollingsworth Corporation, Massimo sat at the head of the long, polished oak table, surrounded by the company’s board of directors. The walls of the room were glass, revealing a panoramic view of the city skyline, but his gaze wasn’t focused on the view. It wasn’t even on the charts or financial projections being projected on the wall. His body was here, in this room. But his mind?

Far away.

It was with her. Katherine.

Her face kept flashing before his eyes, uninvited. Unwanted. He wasn't thinking about Kassandra because they look so alike, no! But her, only Katherine,

For months now, since the day he'd woke from coma, something inside him had shifted. He’d convinced himself it was hatred, pure, intense loathing. But then why did his chest tighten every time she walked past him? Why did her silence echo louder in his mind than most people’s words?

He didn’t understand it. Didn’t like it. He hates her. Yes.

“Sir… Massimo?” his PA’s voice broke through the fog in his brain.

He blinked.

The room had gone quiet. All eyes were on him.

“Yes?” he said, straightening in his chair.

“We were asking for your take on the new expansion proposal,” the PA said gently, his voice careful.

Massimo gave a brief nod, drawing in a slow breath to speak. He opened his mouthm only for his phone to buzz on the table beside him.

He ignored it.

“Apologies,” he muttered, fixing his attention back on the charts.

But the phone buzzed again. This time, a second vibration followed the first, longer and more persistent.

With a clenched jaw, he reached for it. One notification. Then another. Both from the same sender.

Sender: Mr. Matthew (Katherine’s Father)

Message: Thank you, Sir Massimo. The money which I and my family owed you has now been paid. I want my daughter back.

Massimo’s blood ran cold.

He stared at the message, unblinking. His hand tightened around the phone, knuckles turning white.

Back? He read the message again, as if it might change. But it didn’t.

A cold chill spread through his chest as the weight of the message settled.

The debt was paid. Katherine’s purpose was fulfilled.

And now… her father wanted her back?

Massimo’s gaze slowly lifted from the message in front of him. His eyes darkened, a shadow crossing his features as his mind raced.

No. Not yet. Not her.

He should be glad, should be relieved that the woman who haunted every corner of his mansion, the woman he told himself he hated, would finally be out of his sight.

But the idea twisted in his gut like poison. The thought of her leaving just like that stirred something uncomfortable in his chest.

He told himself it was because he wasn’t done watching her suffer.

But deep down, a whisper crawled up from the back of his mind.

What exactly has she done to deserve it?

Around the long table, the directors continued their discussion until they noticed the shift in his energy. One by one, their voices faded. Silence fell.

Massimo didn’t speak. He reached into his jacket and pulled out his second phone. He dialed the number of his most trusted guard.

One ring. Two. Three.

No answer.

He hung up and dialed again. Still nothing.

A knot tightened in his stomach.

Frowning now, he called Ma’am Racheal.

Also unreachable.

His pulse quickened.

He didn’t say a word. No excuse. No explanation. Just stood suddenly and stormed out of the room. The directors watched him leave, stunned into silence.

—------

At exactly 6:55 p.m., Katherine stood still in the center of the dim room she had shared with Ma’am Racheal.

The older woman now lay sleeping peacefully, tucked beneath soft sheets. Katherine had helped her into bed moments ago, after slipping the sedative into her evening tea.

Her hand trembled as she adjusted the blanket over the woman’s chest.

Her heart twisted in guilt.

Ma’am Racheal had been nothing but kind to her, gentle, warm, and understanding in a world that had treated her like nothing. And now, she’d betrayed that kindness.

But this… this was the only way. It wasn’t just her life at stake anymore.

Katherine knelt beside the bed and pressed a soft kiss to the woman’s forehead. Her voice cracked as she whispered, “I hope you forgive me someday, Ma’am. I love you… Thank you for caring for me and my unborn ba—”

Her words cut off sharply as her phone buzzed in the silence.

Her heart leapt in her throat.

She snatched the phone, tension gripping her spine.

It was her father. She exhaled shakily and answered.

“I’m here, Katherine,” he said. “At the meeting point. And I wanted to let you know that I sent the money to Massimo a few minutes ago.”

“What!” She exclaimed. He wasn’t supposed to send the money yet. She had told him to wait until they were together.

If he had already sent it, then Massimo would know. He could already be on his way. But he doesn't even care, right? All be wanted was his money.

Still, she ended the call without replying and stood quickly, She grabbed the small bag she had packed earlier and rushed to the door.

She didn’t notice the pair of eyes that fluttered open on the bed as she slipped out.

Ma’am Racheal blinked slowly at the closed door, her lips curling into a faint, weary smile. “I wish you success in your new life… and safety, Kath,” she whispered. “I love you too.”

Then her eyes gently closed once more.

—-------

Katherine walked through the long hallways, her footsteps soft, heart pounding.

The mansion was quiet, eerily so.

All around her, the staff lay unconscious, slumped in corners, against walls, over tables. A few snored softly. Others looked like they had simply dozed off.

Her guilt deepened.

“I’m sorry,” she whispered, barely audible. “I hope one day y’all forgive me.”

She reached the far side of the estate and approached the hidden corridor, one of the only ways out without being noticed. Only a few knew of its existence. Uncle Ryan was one of them.

Kneeling, she lifted the panel and slipped into the narrow space. The air was thick, musty. The crawlspace was tight, allowing no room to stand. She moved forward slowly on her hands and knees, her bag slung awkwardly across her back.

Her breathing echoed against the stone.

Every inch forward brought her closer to freedom.

Then, snap.

The sound was sharp. Barely audible.

But it was enough. She froze.

Goosebumps prickled her skin. Her breath hitched.

She twisted her head slightly, eyes straining into the darkness behind her.

There was nothing. Still… she felt it.

She was being watched.

Her heart thundered as she began crawling faster, her knees scraping on the rough floor. The faint glow of the tunnel’s end flickered ahead. She could see the small wooden hatch that led out into the woods.

Just a few more feet.

Her lips parted in shaky relief.

But before she could move another inch, a strong hand yanked her backward. Another clamped over her mouth, muffling the scream that tore from her throat.

She thrashed, panic flooding her limbs, but the grip was too strong.

“You’re going nowhere,” a familiar voice snarled close to her ear.

Low. Vicious.

“You lying slut. Betrayer.”

Katherine’s eyes widened in horror.

James.