"How dare you!" Grace was about to rush up to Maya and give her the beating of her life when her mother quickly gripped her blouse from behind.
"Please, don't, Grace. Leave her alone. She's Miss Zoey's personal maid. She has a high status in the family."
"Mom…" Grace bit her lip as she stared at her mother, her eyes brimming with tears. Was this the humiliation her mother had been enduring for over those years? Grace was unreconciled. She glared at Maya, if only eyes could kill.
"Hmm… the maids on the Wright estate no longer follow the family rules, huh?... This is interesting." Valarie casually stated as her gaze darted around the beautifully decorated living room as though she was searching for something. She suddenly got up and headed for the kitchen.
Maya watched Valerie leave and snickered. As expected, Valerie was useless. The maid had thought that when Valerie returned, she would seek revenge for what they made her go through, but it seemed that Valerie lost her memory or had chosen peace after going through hell outside for six years.
"What a weakling," Maya snorted a laugh.
At that moment, Ruby, who had been minding her business, playing games on her phone, suddenly lifted her head and asked, while staring at Maya, "Aunt Grace, isn't she a maid?"
Grace nodded, smiling.
Ruby hardly opened her mouth in public, but whenever she did, it was to spit venom.
"Do maids these days behave like the boss?" The child seemed genuinely curious, but unfortunately, she wasn't. They had a few maids at home, in North Xoria, so she understood how maids should behave.
"No, but a few do this to get accolades from their masters." Grace played along. Although she wasn't sure where the child was going with this, she knew it wouldn't end well.
"What is an accolade?" Ruby asked, frowning slightly.
"Praise." Grace answered.
"Oh!" As if realizing something, Ruby beamed, "Just like a dog!"
Grace wasn't expecting that. She let out a boisterous laughter and nodded, "That's right. Dogs, when they achieve something, they run to their owners and wiggle their tails and stick out their tongues to receive a complimentary caress." Saying that, Grace's gaze landed on Maya and, as expected, Maya's eyes were shooting flames of fury.
"No wonder. I thought I saw a wagging tail behind her just now." Saying that, Ruby shouted out to Maya, "Hey, doggy, turn around, your tail is wagging!" A look of mockery crossed her eyes and she smiled, amused.
The child seemed to be enjoying every bit of it, like a bully.
Grace roared with laughter again and even Aunt Martha couldn't hold back her smile.
The child is sharp tongued, the old woman thought.
Maya was so enraged that her face blushed with shame. Even though she had Zoey backing her up, she couldn't just hit Valerie's daughter, but she could take it out on Grace.
Glaring furiously at Grace, she yelled, "Grace—"
Maya had just called her name when the child interrupted her.
"Aunt Grace, shouldn't a maid be getting guests something to eat or drink? Is the Wright family poorer, or is the maid looking down on guests?"
With a thoughtful expression and a finger placed on her jaw, Grace responded. "The Wright family is very wealthy. So, I think it's the latter."
"Is the maid looking down on us?" Ruby tried to narrow her beautiful doe eyes, but she failed to achieve the serious expression she thought of, "Then, I should post it on Instagram and let everyone know that maids on the Wright estate don't serve guests, and they also talk badly about guests after they leave. I should take a picture of this dog and give her fame."
"You dare not!" Maya screamed, frightened by the threat. The child's phone was posed in a way that it appeared she was about to take a picture of her.
Hearing that, Ruby snapped, "Then, what are you standing there for, go on your knees and apologize to Aunt Grace and Grandaunt Martha, now!" Ruby meant to scream but her voice and facial expression was just too cute to be taken seriously.
Maya scoffed. She'd rather die than obey a child, or apologize to those two.
"Ignoring her threat would be a big mistake," Grace warned. She couldn't wait to see Maya kowtowing to her mother.
"Watch your tongue, Grace! Because you follow Valerie everywhere like a sheep does not mean that your status is higher than mine!" Maya retorted angrily. She may not be able to talk to Valerie and her daughter, but she could release her pent-up anger at Grace.
Clapping, Grace uttered, equally enraged. "Wow, Maya, you sure are something. Thanks to my mother, you got a job as a maid in this family. Not only have you bitten the finger that fed you, you now see yourself as a big deal because you work for Miss Zoey. In case you're forgetting something, Miss Valerie is the heiress of this family!"
"You– "
"Did my daughter's order fall on deaf ears?" Valarie suddenly returned from the kitchen with a cup of piping hot tea, cutting Maya off.
Stirring the tea, her gaze was fixed on Maya. The lady still refused to obey. Valerie scoffed, and her lips curled up. "Before you disrespect the masters of the house, be sure you're… ouch!" she suddenly 'slipped' and the cup flew out of her hands, and the contents landed squarely on Maya.
"Ahhhh!" Maya screamed as the scorching tea burnt her skin. As she tried to run to the kitchen to get help, Valerie kicked Maya's knees from behind, causing her to fall on her knees with a dull thud.
"Ugh!" Maya winched in pain. She tried to wrestle her way out of Valerie's hold but failed. This left Maya in utter shock, because Valerie wasn't this strong years back.
Valerie grabbed Maya by the hair and slammed her forehead hard on the floor, much to everyone's surprise. Grace widened her eyes in horror and quickly picked Ruby up, then hurried outside. As much she would love to watch Maya's suffering, Ruby was too little to be made to watch violent scenes.
"Aunt Grace, why is Mommy hurting the dog? Didn't she say violence is bad?" Ruby questioned as they left the living room.
Grace smiled, "That's not violence, it's called, kowtowing... Your Mommy is making the dog kowtow as an apology for her disrespect."
However, the child didn't think so. Maya's loud screams did not sound like one apologizing.
Meanwhile, Valerie was still slamming Maya's head on the cold tiles as scenes from six years ago resurfaced in her mind.
Young Valerie was seen sitting on the dirty floor in a dilapidated building. Her legs and hands were tied, and her mouth was gagged and sealed with aluminum foil tape. She looked worn out and sick.
Maya, in her maid uniform, stood over Valerie. "Hey, heiress, how do you see your new home? You like it, right?" she asked, her tone dripping with sarcasm.