Chapter 257 A second blow
Jonathan helped Liliana wash up.
Not unexpectedly, she thrashed when touched, and he had to talk to her and calm her.
He took a quick rinse while carrying her in his arms.
He placed her on the couch and changed the sheets.
He lay her on the bed and covered them both with blankets. He did not bother with their clothes.
When he looked at the time, it was already 5 am.
Ideally, he would be waking up at this time. He turned off the alarms on both their phones and spooned his Lil before drifting off to sleep.Content provided by NôvelDrama.Org.
On the other side of town!
Lester, Rose, and Lydia arrived back in the Aprice mansion to see the butler waiting for them.
Other than him, a few maids and other workers were also in the living room.
Lester acutely sensed that those were the people he had hired.
He had gotten that Villa as his wedding home with Anne.
It was a wedding gift from her parents. It had come with all the maids, workers, and a butler.
After Leon passed away, he replaced the butler and hired a few new staff. Otherwise, he had kept the rest.
That evening after thirty years, he realized that the Villa had never belonged to him in the first place.
Seeing the people waiting up for him in the living room, a sense of foreboding rose within him.
Lester sat on the couch and asked, “What is it?”
The butler was embarrassed, but he had to report it to him. He bit the bullet and replied, “Earlier this evening, everyone other than us submitted their resignation. Effective immediately! They had everything in order – the original contract, the amended contract that showed Miss Liliana as the employer, a letter of clearance from the employer, and the approved termination from Miss Liliana. I objected, but they showed the property rights which belonged to Miss Liliana.”
He added in a low voice, “I had no legal reason to stop them. Moreover, one of the security guards confessed that they had been receiving their salary from the Petrovas all this time and received very generous severance pay. They wouldn’t need to work anymore and could start something small on their own – like a small shop or a food cart in their hometown.”
A maid added, “The other maids said they would return to their family homes in their hometown or move to a smaller town with their children and build a small house in the outskirts.”
The jealousy and remorse in her voice were evident.
All these years, the master and mistress had treated her better since they had hired her.
But suddenly, she came to know a shocking truth.
The other maids were receiving way better compensation than her, and now, they had the chance to get out of their life of servitude and build a home.
They all had health and life insurance and scholarships for kids who performed well.
She felt frustrated. But she couldn’t do anything about it.
Lester was too stunned to react.
Rose felt a chill run down her spine.
‘How powerful was Anne? And Liliana was even worse. She showed her hand today, and they got caught off guard.’
Lydia could not take another harsh blow on the same night.
She bellowed, “What do you mean? How could they leave just like that? My parents have been paying them the entire time. We will sue them for fraud.”
The butler answered, “Miss Aprice, the Villa belongs to Miss Liliana, so technically, we can’t sue them. Moreover, all employees in the house get paid directly from the company account – the company also belongs to Miss Liliana.”
Lydia shook her head.
“No, that’s not possible. That lowly servant can’t be the owner of everything. How dare you spread lies?”
Lydia’s hysterical cries woke up Lester.
He said, “Go to bed, everyone. I will deal with this tomorrow.”
Rose did not say a word.
Her soul had flown out.
The ashes she had dumped in the dustbin belonged to her child.
She had reared her enemy’s child all these years.
These thoughts consumed her mind and heart.
She couldn’t wait to verify things.
She went straight to Leonardo’s room.
It had nothing of value.
She frantically looked at the sheets, but the maids had already washed them.
She looked at the dressing table and hair brush but couldn’t find a single strand of Leonardo’s hair.
She rummaged through the room and found one stray strand in the back of his chair by the study table.
She put it in the ziplock bag and sat in his room, waiting for the morning to come.
On the other hand, Lester lay on the bed, reeling from the shock.
He took a shower and went to his study.
He opened his safe and took out his old marriage certificate. Besides, it was a photo frame of their wedding photo.
Looking at Anne’s innocent face and clear eyes, he couldn’t help but sneer.
‘How could she be innocent? She was scamming him from her grave.’
They all stayed in separate rooms trying to process the events from the evening.