Elena stood near the archway, holding Lily close, her hands still trembling from the adrenaline rush. She looked down at the floor, suddenly self-conscious of her fraying uniform.
Elena: Mr. Sterling, should I clean up the broken glass by the stairs? I don't want anyone stepping on it.
Patrick: Elena, put the broom down. You are never cleaning another floor in this house again.
Elena froze, fear flashing across her gentle face as she looked up.
Elena: Are you... are you letting me go too? I promise I will work harder, sir. I have a sick mother at home who needs medication. I can't lose this job.
Patrick: Let you go? Are you out of your mind?
Patrick stepped across the marble floor and placed a warm, reassuring hand on Elena's shoulder.
Patrick: You threw your own body across stone stairs to save my daughter's life while the woman wearing my engagement ring walked away. You think I would fire you?
Elena: I just... I know my place, Mr. Sterling. I'm just the maid.
Patrick: You are not just the maid. You are the guardian angel of this family.
Patrick reached into his pocket and pulled out a small black leather checkbook and a gold pen.
Patrick: As of today, your position as domestic staff is terminated. Effective immediately, you are the head estate manager and Lily's primary legal guardian alongside me.
Elena's jaw dropped, her breath catching in her throat.
Elena: Mr. Sterling, that is too much... I don't have a college degree, I don't know how to run a mansion—
Patrick: You know how to love my daughter. That is a qualification that all the billionaire socialites in this city couldn't buy with all their inheritance money.
Patrick quickly signed a check and handed it to her trembling fingers. Elena looked down at the numbers and gasped, covering her mouth.
Elena: Two hundred and fifty thousand dollars? Mr. Sterling, I can't accept this! This is a fortune!
Patrick: That is your emergency bonus. Use it to pay off your mother's hospital debts, hire the best private doctors in New York, and buy yourself a home of your own. Your annual salary will be double that amount.
Lily: Elena, are you staying? Are you going to read me bedtime stories tonight?
Elena looked between the bright, hopeful eyes of the little girl and the resolute, grateful smile on Patrick's face. Fresh tears rolled down her cheeks, but this time they were tears of pure relief.
Elena: Yes, Lily. I'm staying. I'm not going anywhere.
Through the large arched windows, flashing red and blue lights illuminated the gravel driveway as two police cruisers blocked Victoria's path, bringing the disgraced heiress to justice once and for all.
Patrick took Lily into his arms and extended his other hand to Elena, walking together into the warm, sunlit living room of a home that was finally safe.
Leave a Comment