Chapter 2

At five in the morning, a bucket of cold water was splashed right over my head.

I was jolted awake, my whole body shaking hard.

Martha, the housekeeper, stood over me with the empty bucket, looking down at me in disdain.

"Get up and get to work. Don't think you're still some pampered heiress," she barked.

She tossed a rough brush and a bottle of pungent cleaning fluid at my feet.

"From the first to the third floor, there are twenty bathrooms. If you miss a speck of dirt, you can forget about eating today," she warned.

I wiped the water from my face and picked up the brush.

My stomach cramped painfully. I hadn't eaten or drunk anything since yesterday.

But I didn't dare stop. My father's life was still in Victor's hands.

I crouched on the cold tiles, scrubbing the toilet rim with all my strength.

The cleaner burned into the scrapes on my hands from last night, causing agonizing pain.

Back then, to get Victor out of the mafia's hands alive, I had to do what my dad said and marry David.

I was afraid of telling Victor the truth. All I could do was act like a snobbish gold digger.

I thought he'd hate me for a while, and then maybe we could start over.

But instead, he became the most terrifying monster in all of Nortonford, consumed by revenge.

By noon, I'd finished scrubbing the last bathroom, and my legs were so numb that I could barely stand.

There was a commotion at the end of the hallway.

"Mr. Sterling. Please see me once. Please spare me." It was David's voice.

He'd had his ribs kicked in yesterday, but today, he was here, dragging Lily along to beg for mercy.

Martha marched over and yanked me up from the floor.

"Go change. Mr. Sterling wants you in the dining room to serve the guests," she barked.

She tossed me a very revealing maid outfit. The skirt was so short that it barely covered my thighs, and the neckline was so low.

"I'm not wearing that," I said, tossing the outfit back on the floor.

Martha let out a cold laugh and grabbed her walkie-talkie. "Tell the hospital to pull the plug on the patient in bed two."

"I'll wear it." I scrambled to grab the outfit, my whole body shaking.

Ten minutes later, I walked into the luxurious dining room, carrying a silver tray.

At the far end of the long dining table, Victor lounged back in his chair lazily.

David and Lily were sitting to his right.

I made my way over to David with the tray in hand.

David turned and saw me. He was stunned for a moment before cracking up.

Even though every laugh made his busted ribs ache and his face twist in pain, he didn't give a damn.

"Isabelle, I never thought I'd see you like this," he howled, clutching his chest.

He brazenly checked out my skimpy outfit. "So this is what you've come to? Out here hustling after you left me?"

Lily giggled behind her hand. "David, don't be so harsh on Isabelle. She's Mr. Sterling's personal maid now."

She lingered on the word "personal," making it sound more suggestive.

I stood there stiffly, my nails digging deep into my flesh.

"Pour the wine," Victor commanded briefly, leaning back in his chair.

I walked over to Lily and grabbed the wine bottle.

When I was about to pour the wine into her glass, Lily suddenly smacked my arm.

The red wine splashed onto her white maternity dress.

Lily screamed, "Bitch, are you trying to hurt my baby?"

David jumped up and slapped me across the face hard.

I stumbled back, lost my footing, and went down hard with the tray.

The silver tray smashed into my knee with a loud clang.

My cheek ballooned up in seconds, and my ears buzzed nonstop.

David, still furious, lifted his foot, aiming straight for my stomach.

"Enough," Victor finally said.

David's foot stopped dead in the air. He withdrew it, looking embarrassed.

"Mr. Sterling, this woman is too vicious. She's jealous Lily's having a baby," David hurried to explain.

Lily clutched her belly, pretending to groan in pain.

"My stomach, it hurts so much," she whimpered.

Victor set his wineglass down and leaned forward a bit.

"Isabelle, you messed up the guest's clothes. How are you going to make amends?" he asked.

Holding my face, I got up from the floor.

"She was the one who bumped into me," I said, staring right back at Victor.

Victor grabbed a wineglass from the table and smashed it at my feet.

Shards of glass flew everywhere, cutting into my calf.

"I didn't ask for your excuses," Victor said. "Get down on your knees and pick up every last piece of glass," he ordered.

David and Lily exchanged a look, their faces lit up with gloating delight.

"Mr. Sterling told you to get on your knees. Didn't you hear him?" David barked.

I stared at Victor.

There was nothing but merciless amusement in his eyes.

I slowly dropped to my knees on the carpet, which was littered with shards of glass.

The sharp shards sliced into my skin.

I reached out to pick them up one by one.

Blood dripped from my fingers onto the white carpet, the red stains shocking.

"Isabelle, those hands used to play the piano," David sneered. "Why are you crawling around on the floor like a beggar?"

Lily giggled. "David, look at her. Even a stray dog has it better."