Chapter 1

I'd been around for thirty-four years and met all kinds of people.

But I'd never met anyone so shamelessly greedy.

A woman wanted to pay me 3 dollars a day to cook the same meals for her son that I poured my heart and soul into for my daughter.

And then she had the nerve to call me stingy and difficult, like she was the one doing me a favor.

Standing at my door listening to her twisted logic, I was seeing red.

That was the moment I realized that someone could be so low. It was beyond anything one could ever imagine.

*****

My name was Claire Bennett.

I was thirty-four years old.

I used to be the head chef for fancy food at the city's most luxurious five-star hotel.

Eight years ago, I gave birth to my daughter, Mia.

Mia was born with multiple food intolerances and a severe dust mite allergy.

To take care of this precious little life, I'd quit my high-paying job.

I started running an exclusive gourmet meal service from home, with a flexible schedule that let me always be there for Mia. So I could make sure she ate right and lived well.

Mia was in second grade at the main campus of a top primary school.

The school cafeteria was outsourced, the ingredients were questionable, and everything was heavily seasoned.

I was worried Mia would get sick from the cafeteria food. So, since her first day of school, I'd been personally cooking her lunch every day.

My lunches were always crafted with care and attention.

I'd prepare the ingredients for breakfast the night before and get up at five in the morning to cook it fresh.

Lunch was a whole other level. I had to make sure it was nutritious, tasted good, looked appealing, and avoided anything Mia was allergic to.

All the ingredients were top-quality organic stuff bought from my usual sources.

The beef was premium imported beef, and the seafood was wild-caught, killed, and cooked fresh every day.

The vegetables were delivered fresh from organic farms, and the cooking oil was cold-pressed organic walnut oil.

The pasta was made from premium organic flour I specially ordered from a farmer in Noraville. It was harvested once a year.

The ingredients for a lunch like this cost over 25 dollars a day, not counting my time and effort.

Sometimes, when I added some black truffle or a bit of foie gras, the cost shot past 30 dollars.

Every day, when Mia showed up with her lunchbox, her classmates couldn't help but crowd around for a peek.

I never thought much of it.

But one night, I got a message on WhatsApp.

It was from Linda Carter, the mother of Jason Carter from Class 3, Grade 2.

She didn't bother with any small talk and texted: [You're Mia's mom, right?]

I replied: [Yeah, that's me.]

Then I got stunned by her next message: [From now on, pack a lunch for my son Jason every day. Make it the same as Mia's.]

I stared at my phone, completely dumbfounded.

I wondered if my eyes were playing tricks on me.

So I carefully read the message again.

Sure enough, she wanted me to pack a lunch for Jason every day, identical to Mia's.

I kept my composure and replied politely: [Sorry, I only cook for my own kid, not for anyone else's.]

I thought I'd made myself clear and she'd get the hint.

But then she hit me with a reply that threw me into a fury. [Isn't it merely one more serving? Why are you being so stingy?]

I was sitting at the dining table, peeling fruit for Mia before bed.

When I read that message, my hand froze mid-slice.

She called it merely one more serving.

Every morning, I'd get up at five and spend two hours putting together a lunch for Mia.

I was using imported beef that could cost hundreds a pound and organic vegetables that were pricey for a tiny box.

And in her mind, all that effort was merely one more serving.

I took a deep breath, trying to keep my cool.

I tried my best to keep it together and explained: [It's not about being stingy. The meals I make for Mia use pricey ingredients, and everything is customized for her allergies. It won't work for other kids.]

I thought I'd spelled it out for her.

But her next reply took my disbelief to a whole new low: [Is it really that expensive? Isn't it made of pasta, some vegetables, and a bit of beef?

[I'll give you 3 dollars a day. That should more than cover the cost of the food.

[So it's settled. Jason's lunch starts tomorrow.]

I stared at the screen, totally speechless.

Did she mean 3 dollars a day?

She really thought she could pay 3 dollars for the gourmet lunch I made for Mia, with ingredients alone costing over 25 dollars?

Was I dealing with a scammer here?

Or maybe this woman had completely lost her mind?