CHAPTER 2 — THE SILENT MAID WHO SAW WHAT A BLIND KING COULD NOT
CHAPTER 2 — THE SILENT MAID WHO SAW WHAT A BLIND KING COULD NOT
The morning after Dominic Vale dropped the gun, Ravenhill Estate pretended nothing had happened.
The rain had stopped.
The pine forest outside shimmered beneath a pale gray sunrise, but inside the mansion the air remained heavy with secrets.
Meline entered the master suite carrying breakfast.
Fresh coffee.
Warm sourdough.
Eggs cooked exactly the way the old medical report in Dominic's file recommended for someone recovering from severe trauma.
She had spent an hour making sure everything was perfect.
When she pushed open the door, Dominic was already awake.
He sat beside the enormous fireplace, dressed entirely in black.
His dark glasses hid the ruined eyes beneath them.
His silver cane rested against the chair.
He looked exactly like the legendary mafia king again.
Until she noticed his hands.
They were trembling.
He heard her footsteps.
"They sent someone new?"
Meline set the tray down softly.
No answer.
He gave a humorless laugh.
"Right."
"The silent one."
His head tilted slightly.
"You were the girl from last night."
She nodded before remembering he couldn't see.
A moment later she gently tapped twice on the wooden table.
Yes.
Dominic remembered.
The little squeezes.
The hand against his.
The warmth that had kept him alive.
"You should've let me finish."
Meline immediately shook her head.
He smiled bitterly.
"I've buried men for less disagreement."
She reached into the pocket of her apron and removed the small notebook she always carried.
Tearing off one page, she wrote carefully before placing it into his hand.
Because someone once refused to leave me too.
Dominic slowly traced the raised pressure of her handwriting with his fingertips.
His throat tightened.
"You write."
She nodded again.
Another tap.
"Then tell me."
His voice became almost dangerously quiet.
"Why save a monster?"
Meline looked at him for several long seconds.
Then she wrote again.
Because monsters don't cry when they're alone. Broken people do.
For nearly a full minute...
Dominic said nothing.
Finally he folded the paper carefully instead of crushing it.
It was the first thing in months he treated as if it mattered.
Downstairs...
Mrs. Gable watched from the dining room doorway with narrowed eyes.
"What was she doing up there so long?"
One of the younger maids shrugged.
"The boss actually ate breakfast."
Mrs. Gable's expression darkened.
"He never eats."
Another servant whispered,
"And...he asked for the quiet girl again."
Silence spread through the room.
Mrs. Gable slammed a teapot onto the counter.
"No."
"That little mute doesn't get promoted because she played nurse one night."
She lowered her voice.
"If Mr. Cross finds out someone is getting close to Dominic..."
She didn't finish.
She didn't have to.
Everyone knew who truly controlled Ravenhill.
Not Dominic anymore.
Damian Cross.
That afternoon Dominic insisted on walking through the west garden.
Alone.
The guards exchanged amused looks.
"Five bucks says he falls into the fountain."
Another snickered.
"Ten says he walks into the statue first."
Neither noticed Meline quietly following twenty feet behind.
Dominic's cane clicked steadily across the stone path.
Tap.
Tap.
Tap.
Then—
Crunch.
Loose gravel.
His foot slid.
The ground disappeared beneath him.
The old retaining wall overlooking the ravine had partially collapsed during last night's storm.
Dominic stepped directly toward empty air.
Meline sprinted.
Without thinking.
She threw herself forward.
Her shoulder slammed into his chest.
Both of them crashed backward onto the grass only inches from the cliff's edge.
Several rocks tumbled into the valley below.
The sound echoed for nearly five seconds before disappearing.
Dominic's heartbeat thundered.
"What—"
His hand searched blindly.
Instead of dirt...
He found Meline's arm.
It was shaking violently.
She had scraped both palms bloody trying to stop him.
Only then did the guards finally run over.
"Boss!"
"You alright?"
Dominic's face hardened instantly.
"Where were you?"
No one answered.
"I asked..."
His voice turned icy.
"Where..."
"Were..."
"You?"
The oldest guard stammered.
"We...we thought..."
"You thought I'd be fine?"
Silence.
Dominic slowly stood.
His clothes were covered in mud.
Blood stained Meline's sleeve.
He pointed toward the cliff.
"I nearly walked off the estate."
"Not one of you moved."
"But she did."
Every guard lowered his eyes.
Dominic spoke one sentence that froze every heartbeat nearby.
"From today..."
"Meline Carter answers directly to me."
Mrs. Gable, watching from a second-floor window, nearly dropped the silver tray in her hands.
This was impossible.
Everything Damian had planned depended on Dominic remaining isolated.
Hopeless.
Weak.
Not trusting anyone.
The mute maid had just become a problem.
That evening...
Mrs. Gable disappeared into the servants' corridor carrying her phone.
She locked herself inside the linen room before dialing a number saved only as D.C.
The call connected after one ring.
A calm male voice answered.
"Report."
Mrs. Gable swallowed nervously.
"Sir..."
"The blind man isn't giving up anymore."
A pause.
"What changed?"
"...the maid."
"What maid?"
"The mute."
Another silence.
Longer this time.
Then Damian Cross laughed.
Softly.
Dangerously.
"One servant?"
"You're afraid of one servant?"
"You don't understand," Mrs. Gable whispered.
"He listens to her."
The laughter stopped.
Completely.
"Name."
"Meline Carter."
Papers rustled on the other end.
Keyboard clicks followed.
Then...
"Hmm."
"I have her file."
Mrs. Gable frowned.
"You do?"
"I have everyone's file."
His voice turned colder.
"Ohio."
"Five years ago."
"Parents murdered."
"Witness disappeared."
"Lost her voice."
Another pause.
Then Damian quietly asked,
"Does Dominic know who her father was?"
Mrs. Gable blinked.
"...Father?"
"No."
"He doesn't."
Damian smiled.
"Excellent."
"Keep it that way."
"If she becomes inconvenient..."
He spoke the next words as casually as discussing tomorrow's weather.
"Kill her."
The call ended.
Mrs. Gable stood frozen.
She had stolen.
She had lied.
She had abused servants.
But murder?
Her hands began to shake.
Outside the linen room...
Unseen by everyone...
Meline had returned to collect fresh towels.
She couldn't hear every word.
Only the last three.
Kill her.
The towels slipped silently from her arms onto the wooden floor.
For one terrifying second...
She realized saving Dominic Vale had just signed her own death warrant.
And somewhere, nearly three hundred miles away in New Harbor...
A forensic investigator reopened the evidence box from the Pier 19 explosion.
Inside the melted remains of a shattered luxury watch...
He discovered a tiny encrypted microchip no one had noticed before.
May you like
The label attached to it read only four handwritten words.
FOR DOMINIC VALE ONLY.
