The maid’s secret

CHAPTER TWO

AMELIA’S POV

The mansion was nothing like I imagined.

Its walls stretched high and endless, polished floors gleaming under golden chandeliers. Everything smelled faintly of expensive wood and something floral I couldn’t name. Lily clutched my hand tightly, her wide eyes taking in the size of the place.

“This is… our new home?” she whispered.

“Not home, sweetheart,” I corrected softly. “It’s Mama’s workplace. We’re only guests here, remember that.”

Her little lips pressed together in a pout, but she nodded.

A stern-looking woman in her fifties met us in the grand hallway. She wore a crisp black uniform, her gray hair pinned tightly in a bun.

“You must be Amelia,” she said, looking me over quickly before glancing at Lily. “And this must be your daughter.”

“Yes, ma’am,” I replied quietly.

“I’m Mrs. Jones, the head housekeeper. You’ll be reporting directly to me. Follow the rules, keep your head down, and you’ll have no problems.”

“Yes, Mrs. Jones.”

She led us through the endless corridors until we reached a smaller wing of the house. Compared to the rest of the mansion, it was modest, but still larger than any place Lily and I had lived in. Two small rooms with plain white walls, simple beds, and polished wooden wardrobes.

“This will be yours,” Mrs. Jones said briskly. “Meals are at specific times in the staff dining area. Children are not usually allowed, but… an exception has been made in your case.”

“Thank you,” I murmured, hugging Lily’s shoulder.

Her gaze sharpened. “But, Amelia, understand this—under no circumstances are you or the child to wander into the main quarters uninvited. The master values his privacy. He does not like disturbances.”

I swallowed hard. “Of course. We’ll stay out of the way.”

“Good. Start tomorrow morning. Six sharp.”

She left without another word, her heels clicking against the polished floor.

As the door shut behind her, Lily climbed onto the bed and bounced lightly. “Mama! It’s so big here! Bigger than our old place!”

“Shhh,” I hushed her gently, sitting beside her. “We have to be careful here, Lily. This isn’t like before. We can’t make noise, and we definitely can’t bother anyone. Understand?”

Her little face fell. “So… no playing outside?”

“Not yet,” I said, smoothing her curls. “Maybe one day. But for now, we need to be invisible.”

“In-visible,” she repeated slowly, then giggled as though it was a new game.

I forced a smile, though my chest felt heavy. To her, this was an adventure. To me, it was survival.

As Lily drifted off to sleep that night, curled against her blanket, I sat on the edge of the bed listening to the silence of the mansion. Somewhere, deep within these walls, lived the man who owned all this.