CHAPTER 2

SCARLETT HAYES POV

"You missed a spot."

I paused, my shoulders aching as I slowly sat back on my heels. Selena stood at the end of the long corridor, her arms crossed tightly over her chest. She wasn’t even looking at the floor. Her eyes were locked onto me, tracking every ragged breath I took.

"I've wiped down this section three times, Selena," I said, keeping my voice as even as I could manage. My hands were red and raw from the harsh chemicals in the bucket, and my lower back felt like it was about to snap.

"And you'll wipe it a fourth time if I tell you to," she snapped, taking a slow, deliberate step forward. The sharp click of her heels sounded like a countdown. "Don't get smart with me, Scarlett. You’re lucky I even let you keep this job after your pathetic display yesterday. If it were up to me, you'd be sleeping on the curb right now."

Just ignore her. She wants you to snap. She wants an excuse to fire you. Toby's pale, exhausted face in that sterile ICU room flashed in my mind. The image was enough to freeze the hot anger bubbling up my chest. I dipped the heavy rag back into the gray, sudsy water and wrung it out, the icy water biting into the small cuts on my knuckles.

"Fine," I murmured, staring down at the polished wood.

"What was that? I didn't hear a 'yes, ma'am'."

Beside Selena, the heavy oak doors to the garage swung open. Ethan walked in, holding a set of car keys. He stopped when he saw us, a slow, greasy grin spreading across his face.

"Still scrubbing, Scarlett?" Ethan chuckled, leaning against the wall. "Man, Selena, you really aren't letting her off easy, are you?"

"Why should I?" Selena hummed, sliding her hand down Ethan's arm. "She needs to learn her place. She's not some high-society princess anymore. She's just staff. And staff does what they're told."

Ethan looked down at me, his eyes filled with a disgusting mix of pity and satisfaction. "You know, if you just asked nicely, Scarlett, maybe I could convince Selena to give you a break. A little humility goes a long way."

The sheer nerve of him made my stomach turn. This is the same man who promised to help me pay for Toby's early treatments, only to steal my mother’s diamond ring from my jewelry box before running off. I gripped the rag so hard my knuckles turned white. I wanted to throw the bucket of dirty water right at his face. I wanted to scream at him until my lungs burned.

But I couldn't. One wrong move, one complaint to the butler, and I would be thrown out of the gates without a single cent.

"I don't need your help, Ethan," I said quietly, focusing entirely on the wet wood floor beneath me. "Just let me do my job."

Selena sneered. "Then do it faster. The master's wing needs to be dusted before noon, and if Mr. Reed finds a single speck of dust, it's your head on the chopping block. Move it."

They walked away, their shared laughter echoing down the hallway. I waited until the heavy double doors clicked shut before I let out the breath I had been holding. My hands were shaking. I forced myself to stand up, my knees cracking from the hours of kneeling.

Suddenly, my phone buzzed violently in my pocket.

My heart did a violent flip. I scrambled to pull it out, my wet fingers nearly dropping the cheap device. It was a local number. The hospital.

"Hello? Scarlett Hayes speaking," I said, my voice trembling as I pressed the phone to my ear, desperately trying to keep my voice down.

"Ms. Hayes, this is Dr. Aris from the pediatric ward," a tired, professional voice said on the other end. "I'm calling about Toby."

My chest tightened so hard I could barely breathe. "Is he okay? Did something happen?"

"He's stable for now, but his vitals are fluctuating," the doctor sighed. "The surgeon is scheduled to fly in tomorrow. If we don't receive the initial deposit of five hundred thousand pesos by five this afternoon, we will have to give his slot to another patient. We have a massive backlog, Scarlett. I'm sorry, but my hands are tied."

"Five PM?" My voice rose to a panicked squeak, and I quickly covered my mouth, looking around the empty hallway. "But... but the billing office said tomorrow morning! I have some money coming, I just need a little more time—"

"I'm sorry, Ms. Hayes. The policy changed due to the surgeon's schedule. Five PM today, or we postpone. We need a guarantee."

The line went dead.

I stood frozen in the middle of the grand, empty hallway, the phone slipping slightly in my sweaty palm. Five PM. That's only five hours from now. Five hundred thousand pesos. Even with the Reed family's high salary, I hadn't even signed the official contract yet. I hadn't received a single advance.

Desperation, cold and sharp, clawed at my throat. I couldn't lose Toby. He was all I had left.

I stuffed the phone back into my pocket, my mind racing. I have to ask for an advance. I have to find the master of the house. Selena had mentioned Mr. Reed. Lucien Reed. He was the one who held the checkbook. He was the only person in this entire mansion who could save my brother.

Ignoring the half-finished floor, I abandoned the bucket and ran toward the grand staircase. My heart hammered against my ribs like a trapped bird as I sprinted up the plush, carpeted steps toward the forbidden upper floors. I didn't care about the rules anymore. I didn't care if Selena caught me.

I reached the massive double doors of the master study at the end of the west wing. My chest heaved as I stared at the dark, polished mahogany.

I raised my hand, my fingers hovering just inches from the wood.

The door suddenly swung inward, catching me completely off guard.

I took a panicked step backward, my foot catching on the edge of the thick hallway rug. With a gasp, I lost my balance entirely, my hands flailing in the air as I tumbled forward, straight into a solid, towering wall of dark fabric and the faint scent of cedarwood and expensive rain.

Two heavy, warm hands immediately gripped my shoulders, halting my fall with effortless, unyielding force.