Chapter 2 - The East Wing
The East Wing of the Sterling estate was a stark contrast to the cramped, windowless room next to the laundry where Elena and Lily had lived for years. Here, floor-to-ceiling windows overlooked the sprawling manicured gardens and the infinity pool. The bed was large enough to fit five people, draped in Egyptian cotton and silk.
Lily walked onto the plush white carpet, her bunny slippers sinking into the fibers. She looked around in absolute awe, clutching her worn-out plush bear. "Mommy, is this heaven?"
Elena fought back tears, kneeling to eye level with her daughter. "No, baby. It's just a new room. Everything is going to be okay."
Downstairs, a tempest was raging. Alexander had summoned his head of security, his personal assistant, and his mother, Beatrice Sterling, who had flown in via helicopter from her Santa Barbara estate the moment Alexander demanded her presence.
Beatrice sat in the formal living room, sipping Earl Grey tea as if she hadn't a care in the world. "Alexander, darling, why this sudden emergency?"
Alexander threw a stack of archived security logs onto the glass coffee table. "Five years ago, a woman named Elena tried to contact me. She was turned away by my security, and a check was issued from your personal slush fund. Explain."
Beatrice’s aristocratic features hardened. "I was protecting you. You were on the verge of taking your company public. You were young, brilliant, and vulnerable. A waitress from your past claiming she was carrying your child? It would have been a PR nightmare, Alexander. I handled it."
"You stole my daughter!" Alexander roared, the sound vibrating through the crystal chandeliers. "You let her live in my own house, scrubbing my floors, while my child slept in a closet!"
"She took a job here to manipulate you!" Beatrice shot back, standing up. "And now Victoria is in tears. You are ruining a billion-dollar merger with the Kensington family over a maid!"
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"The engagement is over," Alexander said with a cold, absolute finality. "Victoria will be out of this house by noon. And if you ever step foot near Elena or Lily, I will personally strip you of every share you hold in Sterling Enterprises."
Outside the heavy mahogany doors, Victoria listened. The merger. The engagement. Everything she had worked for was crumbling because of a dirty little four-year-old. She pulled out her phone, dialing a number she hadn't used in years. "Marcus? I need a favor. I need you to dig up dirt on a woman named Elena. And if there isn't any... manufacture some."
