NIGHT, ADAMS MANSION
Anna walked down the stairs feeling down; it was already midnight, and Adams was yet to return. Initially, she was supposed to be happy he wasn't home to upset her, but somehow she wasn't. She felt lonely; only a few of the maids paid much attention to her. The chief maid kept acting all grumpy, making Anna wonder if they had met somewhere. Her physical expression indicated she wasn't happy to see Anna around, but who cared? Anna ignored her.
"Ma'am, do you need anything?" Anna turned to look at the maid.
"Yes, please," the maid walked up to her. "What should I help you with?" "Strawberry," Anna replied almost immediately. The maid left and shortly returned with a bowl filled with strawberries. "Here you go, ma'am." Anna took the bowl from her and then muttered a thank you. "What's your name?" "I'm Sarah, ma'am," the maid replied, bowing. "You can call me Anna; stop with the 'ma'am' thing; I don't like it." The maid waved her hands in disapproval. "I'm sorry, ma'am, but I can't call you that," she insisted. Anna, who understood what she meant, waved it off and continued munching on her strawberry.
"What are you still doing there? Go back to your work!" the chief maid, who introduced herself as Vivian, barked at Sarah.
Anna glared at her. Even a fool could tell the maid was up to no good. She had been acting all bossy since Anna arrived. All she did was order the maids around and yell at them at every slightest provocation. Anna wondered if she was indeed a maid or the lady of the house. Anna had to put her in her place before she turned into something else. "Excuse me, ma'am," the maid tried to walk away. "Wait!" The maid halted in her spot, panting hard. The so-called chief maid walked up to Anna, glaring daggers at her. "And what right do you think you have to order her around?" Anna questioned angrily. "I'm the chief maid, so I believe I have the right to order whoever I feel like ordering around." She rolled her eyes. Anna balled her fists, trying hard to keep her cool. "What guts!" Anna spat. The whole time, Vivian kept throwing deadly glares at Sarah.
Her guts were way too daring for Anna; only God knows what would happen next if she repeated such a silly act. Anna might just have to vent her frustrations on her.
"If you have nothing else to say to me, I'm leaving," she tried to walk away. "If you walk out, just go straight to your room and pack your things, 'cause I can guarantee you won't spend the next five minutes under this roof!" Anna threatened. "As what? Who do you even think you are to order me around?" Vivian yelled, pissed off by Anna's behavior. "If you must know, I'm your boss's fiancée. I'm sure you know what that means. From today onward, it's no longer your duty to order anyone around. I'm here, so I don't think there's any need for a chief maid. And your uniform—I think it's high time you change it. I wouldn't want to see you in this dress tomorrow, that's if you still love your job. You are no longer Adam's personal maid; he has a fiancée now. I wouldn't want you parading around him half-dressed, 'cause I might just rip off your skin, and I'm sure you wouldn't want that. I'm done talking; you can leave now." Vivian balled her fists and then stormed out angrily. "You don't have to be scared of her anymore; she's not worth it," Sarah smiled and then walked out.
*****
"Oh, stop it! I warned you, but you refused. We both know Adams would stop at nothing to fish out the guy who tried killing his fiancée! If this gets any hotter than this, you all should exclude me!" Tricia yelled fearfully.
"Quit the pretense! You just don't expect me to sit back and watch her rip everything we've been working for; it's impossible!" Drake, the youngest, chimed in. "We? Like you've been doing anything? Adams has been the only one running the whole show while Arnold goes about partying; all he does is spend the money. Don't make it look like you've been contributing anything to Dad's wealth!" Tricia was interrupted by a slap on her right cheek from Arnold. "I wouldn't stand and watch you say trash about me! Why not make Adams your brother if you fancy him so much? This should be the last time you ever compare me to him!" Tricia sniffed. "I hate you! Having you as a brother is the worst thing that ever happened to me! You know, sometimes I wish Adams was my brother instead of you! Adams is a hundred percent better than you, and there's nothing you can do about it!" Tricia ran out in tears while their mom sighed tiredly. She had been there seated quietly, watching them hurl insults at each other.
****
Adams walked into the room, looking around for any sign of Anna, but she was nowhere to be found. It was when he heard the shower running that he realized she was in the bathroom. He sat patiently on the bed, waiting for her to come out, and almost immediately, she walked out with a towel wrapped around her waist. Adams was lost staring, and she had to cough to call him back to reality.
"You are back... welcome," Anna stuttered. His eyes on her skin wasn't funny. If she took another step, she might just fall due to his intense glare.
"Hmmm," Adams swallowed hard. Anna quickly picked up her stuff from the bed and then rushed back into the bathroom. Sooner, she was done. "Have you had dinner?" Anna nodded, avoiding his gaze; she was still trying to digest the fact that she had to live under the same roof with the demigod seated in front of her. "What happened between Vivian and you?" Adams scratched his hair, trying not to sound as caring as possible. He didn't want Anna to feel he was taking sides with Vivian; he just wanted to know since she complained to him. Vivian had been serving him for the past three years, in every way possible, including warming his bed. Getting her to succumb to his fiancée would seem kind of impossible. "Do you want to beat me on her behalf?" Adams was taken aback. "I'm sorry if I annoyed you; I'm only trying to fix things." Adams ruffled his hair in frustration. Anna was set to make a big deal out of it, and funny enough, he wasn't ready for her drama.
He reluctantly stood up from the bed and began walking out of the room. "I know you brought me here to suffer; I just asked a harmless question, and you are already leaving me to go sleep with your mistress. Is that how cheap you can be?" Anna fired, forcing him to halt in his spot.