Robert was cut off from his train of thoughts when his phone rang. He was lucky the people in the kitchen were quite engrossed with whatever they were doing, so they didn't hear or see him at the door. He smiled weakly, gave them one last glance and silently moved away to answer his call.
As soon as he left, Edith came rushing to the kitchen after her own call had ended. She couldn't wait to drag her son out of that filthy people, she thought. She flung the door open and badged into the kitchen, and she almost had a heart attack from what she saw.
"Jesus Christ, Maxwell!!" Her eyes were on the verge of bursting out their sockets. Her son was in an apron!!!? And that too, not his own, but for one of the workers??!! She rushed to him in an attempt to yank the apron off his body when Maxwell stepped back from her and blocked her hand.
"Mom!! What do you think you're doing?" Maxwell asked all surprised.
"Maxwell, are you... Come on, take that off this instant!!!" She bellowed impatiently.
"What is this, mom? Why should I take it off? I'm here to help with..."
"Help with what?" Edith shot back angrily with a disgusting look, then turned to Gerry, nodding her head slowly. "Oh, I see... So now I pay you, only for you to use my son to work for you?"
Gerry was lost for words. This boy just sent her right into the lion's den. How was she supposed to answer that? She opened her mouth and closed it, like a fish out of water, for she didn't know exactly how and what to say. She cursed inwardly. She should have insisted on sending Maxwell out when he joined them. Now it looked like he lied to her about Edith being aware of him joining them. She wasn't aware at all. And now look what she got herself into. She knew better than to shut up and not respond. After all, the best way to answer a fool is silence.
Edith was seething with anger. She turned to Maxwell again and gestured with her fingers.
"Now you take that filthy thing off, Maxwell, before I lose it!!!"
"Mom, this is not filthy. I picked it from the ones they hanged this very morning after laundry." Maxwell pressed, his tone coming out a little louder this time, becoming impatient himself with what his mother was doing.
Edith pinched the space between her brows and shut her eyes, holding her waist with the other hand. This boy was just testing her patience and giving her a terrible headache.
"Come on, Maxwell, just take it off now, please..." Gerry tried to convince him in a low, calm voice. He was just standing there as if he wasn't hearing what Edith was saying, and Gerry was afraid of what may happen if he didn't badge and remain stubborn. But she didn't even complete her sentence when...
"Oh you shut your mouth!" Edith shot at her. "So you made my son wear these? Huh?" She sneered, sweeping her left hand in front of Maxwell. "Do you want him to get sick!? What were you even thinking making him wear that!?"
"Mom!!! Enough!!" Maxwell stopped her mother on her tracks as she had started approaching Gerry in slow steps. And it seemed to have worked, because she paused and whipped her head across to look at him. "I decided to wear this on my own. Nobody told me to. And this is very clean. Mom, aren't you being too harsh, shouting at Mrs Gerry just because I wore this?"
Edith's jaw dropped in disbelief.
"Did...did you just...talk back at me?"
"Well, I can't let you insult Mrs Gerry for something she didn't do." He shrugged. "And please leave, we were just about to start working." Maxwell's voice was laced with impatience. This woman was just so overbearing and it had started to freak him out.
"What is going on here?" A deep voice resounded in the kitchen and everyone turned to the door, to the source of the voice. Robert had just finished his call when he heard voices from the kitchen. But unlike before, these voices weren't happy voices. He sensed some strong voices and some tension. So he approached the kitchen again, only to see Edith in her full condescending mood, shouting at them like they were all some kindergarten kids.
"Why are you shouting like that, Edith?" Robert asked softly as he approached them.
"Oh thank goodness you came." Edith breathed, drew closer to him and pointed an accusing finger at Gerry.
"That woman...She made MY son..." pointing at herself, "wear that." and swept her hands over the white apron on Maxwell. Maxwell snorted and looked away. This woman is so dramatic. Bravo! She needed an award for best actress in the mansion, he thought, sarcastically.
Gerry pursed her lips tight. She was getting angrier by the minute. If something wasn't done soon she would possibly erupt in anger. She took deep breaths to calm herself down as she looked away.
"Hey, calm down..." Robert came closer and draped his arm over her shoulder, dragging her slowly, unknown to her, towards the door. He looked back and shot an apologetic look towards Gerry, and she could only nod with a wry smile.
"How can I calm down?! He is wearing someone else's clothes and you want me to calm down?!"
"See, he's just a kid, and he wants to explore. What's so wrong with that?" Robert asked calmly. He had managed to walk her out of the kitchen now, shut the door behind him and stood at the door.
"How clean are the aprons, Robert?" Edith shot back in disbelief. "So you're okay with him mingling with people like that? What if he catches a cold, or...or worst case, contracts some deadly infection? What if..." she kept ranting on and on till Robert cut him off in his ever so calm voice.
"There are no what ifs here, Edith. They are just like you and I." Robert gestured his fingers pointing to her and then himself, and drew closer to her, their faces close as he had bent down a little to her level, looking straight into her eyes with a smile. "Nothing different just because they don't own mansions and they don't have so much money, like you."
Edith frowned slightly, trying to comprehend what Robert just said. Wait... was he trying to tell her.. She was being mean to them right now?
"What are you saying?" She finally said when Robert straightened up and was about to turn and leave. "I am just concerned about my son's health. What is so wrong with that?"
"You are concerned about your son's health..." Robert echoed and looked down at her. "...And that too making other people feel miserable because you make them look...filthy and unhealthy? For Christ's sake, Edith, you made them go through so many checkups to ensure they were clean and healthy before you hired every.single.one of them. You mean now, that you don't trust your doctors? Don't you think you're being too overbearing?" Robert couldn't help but talk sense into the mind of her stubborn wife.
Edith looked at him, speechless. She didn't know what to say to refute him. She thought he was done with her, but what he said next left her paralyzed.
"I wish you were just a quarter concerned about your own daughter like you are with your son." With this, Robert turned and left her at the door. If she goes in again to cause trouble, then he could finally conclude that Edith doesn't have a heart.