CHAPTER 2 – THE WOMAN WHO REMEMBERED NOTHING
The ballroom was so quiet...
The sound of Oliver crying echoed off the marble walls.
The little boy refused to let go.
"No!"
"She's my mommy!"
The maid gently stroked his hair.
Her own hands were shaking.
"I'm sorry, sweetheart..."
"I think you have the wrong person."
Oliver looked up.
His cheeks were wet with tears.
"You sing the moon song."
The woman froze.
"What?"
"The one about the little bear."
Damian's heart skipped a beat.
That lullaby.
Eliza had written it herself.
No one else knew the words.
No one.
Oliver began singing in his tiny voice.
"Little bear, close your eyes..."
The maid unconsciously whispered the next line.
"Morning always finds the brave..."
She stopped.
Her face drained of color.
"I..."
"I don't know how I knew that."
Damian was already standing in front of her.
His voice barely worked.
"Look at me."
She slowly lifted her eyes.
The closer he looked...
The more impossible it became to deny.
The same green eyes.
The same dimple on her left cheek.
The same scar beneath her ear.
"Eliza..."
She stepped back.
"My name isn't Eliza."
"It's Anna."
"I've worked here for four months."
Victoria suddenly walked between them.
"This has gone far enough."
She forced a laugh.
"Children imagine things."
She grabbed Oliver's hand.
"Come on, sweetheart."
Oliver screamed.
"No!"
He pulled away so violently that Victoria lost her balance.
The entire room gasped.
Oliver ran back into the maid's arms.
"She smells like Mommy."
Victoria's face hardened.
"Damian."
"This woman is manipulating your son."
The maid immediately shook her head.
"No."
"I've never met him before tonight."
An elderly guest slowly stood.
"I remember Eliza."
He stared at the maid.
"If that's not her..."
"Then she has the most unbelievable resemblance I've ever seen."
Victoria snapped,
"Enough!"
For just a second...
Her voice was louder than she intended.
Everyone looked at her.
Even Damian.
She quickly forced another smile.
"I only mean..."
"We shouldn't upset Oliver."
But Damian wasn't listening anymore.
His eyes never left the maid.
"Who hired you?"
The housekeeper answered nervously,
"Miss Victoria did."
Every head turned.
Victoria stopped breathing.
"And..."
the housekeeper continued,
"She specifically requested this maid."
Damian slowly looked at his fiancée.
"Why?"
Victoria opened her mouth.
No words came out.
At that exact moment...
The maid suddenly grabbed her head.
Pain shot across her face.
Images flashed through her mind.
Rain.
A winding mountain road.
Headlights in the mirror.
A woman screaming...
"Push the car!"
The tray she'd dropped earlier wasn't the only thing about to shatter.
She whispered one name.
"Victoria..."
May you like
Then she collapsed.
End of Chapter 2...
