Chapter 7 - The Summit of Arrogance
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Rosa didn't move an inch. She stared directly into Valeria’s cold, gray eyes.
"I am not making you tea, Madame," Rosa stated clearly.
Valeria gasped, taken aback by the blatant insubordination. "What did you just say to me?"
"I said no," Rosa replied, her voice echoing through the quiet hallway. "Because I know what you have been doing in this house."
The colour drained from Valeria’s perfectly sculpted face for a fraction of a second, but she quickly recovered, masking her shock with a sneer of supreme contempt.
"Have you lost your mind, old woman?" Valeria stepped onto the top landing, invading Rosa’s personal space. "You are a maid. A nobody. If you don't shut your mouth and get to work, I will have Fernando throw you into the street before nightfall!"
Lentally, deliberate in her movements, Rosa reached into her apron pocket.
She pulled out the folded, crumpled sheets of paper and held them out in front of Valeria's face.
"The St. Jude Children’s Hospital," Rosa said, her voice shaking with righteous anger. "The cancer funds. The offshore accounts in Zurich."
Valeria’s eyes darted to the papers. She recognized the red logo instantly. Her breath caught in her throat.
"You stole millions meant to save dying children," Rosa continued, tears of disgust welling in her eyes. "You took Don Fernando’s trust and threw it in the gutter to pay for your gambling debts and your lover in Europe."
The silence that settled over the top of the staircase was absolute.
May you like
Outside, a massive bolt of lightning illuminated the sky, followed instantly by a deafening clap of thunder that shook the glass windows.
Valeria stared at the papers, her mind racing at dangerous speed. Her entire life of luxury, her social standing, her fortune, and her freedom were hanging by a thread—held in the frail, calloused hands of a sixty-eight-year-old housekeeper.
