The morning light poured softly through the floor to ceiling windows of the vast Dallas estate.
Mary smoothed down the front of her plain blue uniform with nervous hands.
She had worked at the mansion for six long months without complaining once.
Every day began at five in the morning to ensure every surface shone bright.
Her back ached from hours of bending and cleaning the vast white marble floors.
Yet she never raised her voice or uttered a single word of complaint.
She needed this job to afford her monthly heart medication.
Victoria: Mary, why is there dust on this grand piano again?
Victoria stood at the top of the grand staircase with her arms crossed tight.
Her bright red dress looked sharply out of place in the calm quiet morning.
Mary: I wiped it down twenty minutes ago, Mrs. Sterling.
Victoria: Are you talking back to me, old woman?
Mary lowered her gaze to the floor immediately.
Mary: No, ma'am, I will wipe it down again right now.
Victoria: Make sure you do, or I will dock your pay for this week.
Victoria walked down the marble steps with quick and loud heavy footsteps.
She loved showing off her wealth to anyone who walked through the front doors.
She had married Julian Sterling just two short years ago in a grand ceremony.
Since that day, she treated all the household staff like simple lower creatures.
Julian was the chief executive officer of a huge real estate firm in Texas.
He spent long hours at his downtown office building managing investments and deals.
Whenever he was away, Victoria ruled the grand estate with complete cruel control.
Mary quietly picked up her soft cloth and walked over to the piano.
Her hands shook slightly as she wiped the shiny black wooden surface clean.
She remembered a time when she lived in a warm little home of her own.
Tragedy had taken everything from her thirty long years ago in another city.
She had been forced to give up her infant child after a terrible accident.
She had searched for her missing baby boy for decades without any success.
Now she was old, tired, and working for a woman who despised her presence.
Victoria: Why are you moving so slow today, Mary?
Victoria marched into the grand library holding a silver coffee cup.
Mary: My knees are hurting a bit today, ma'am.
Victoria: I do not pay you to feel pain or make excuses!
She set her cup down on an antique wooden desk with a heavy slam.
Victoria: Clean the library shelves until they are spotless before noon!
Mary nodded her head slowly and reached for the high wooden ladder.
She climbed up carefully to reach the framed American flag on the wall.
Suddenly her foot slipped on the smooth wooden step of the tall ladder.
She grabbed the heavy frame to keep from falling onto the hard floor.
The antique picture frame shifted and tilted sharply against the wall.
Victoria let out a loud and angry scream that rang through the entire room.
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