Part 3His Discarded Maid Married His Master

The jade pendant swayed lazily from Lachlan’s fingertips, catching the bright glare of the chandelier.

I stared at his knuckles, my heart feeling as though it were being slowly crushed by an iron vise.

"Lachlan," I breathed, my voice trembling from the sheer weight of my fury. "Don't you dare."

His lips twisted into an ugly, triumphant smirk. He loosened his grip by a fraction of an inch.

"I’m counting to three, Elise."

"One."

Around us, the crowd broke into quiet, vicious giggles. Kiki crossed her arms, leaning forward with an eager grin. Tinsley nestled against Lachlan’s shoulder, looking down at me with the theatrical pity one reserves for an insect under a glass.

"Two."

His fingers slipped further. The pendant dropped half an inch.

I squeezed my eyes shut, drawing in a jagged breath that felt like breathing broken glass.

Between my pride and the only physical proof that my mother had ever walked this earth, there was never a choice.

Slowly, deliberately, my stiff legs began to bend.

Amid the low murmurs and cruel snickers of the room, I dropped down.

I didn't kneel on both knees. I dropped onto one single heel, a tight, rigid crouch—the absolute bare minimum of submission, the last barricade of my soul.

I grabbed a linen napkin from a nearby bistro table and mechanically blotted the red stain soaking into Tinsley’s silk slipper.

Every second felt like an eternity stretched over barbed wire. The heat of fifty mocking stares burned into the back of my neck, peeling away my flesh.

"Gently, sweetie," Tinsley purred from above, deliberately nudging her toe forward so the dust from the bluestone terrace smeared across the back of my knuckles. "These were custom-made for me in Milan."

I said nothing. I threw the stained napkin into a nearby urn and stood up straight, my eyes locking onto Lachlan.

"It's clean," I said hollowly. "Give it to me."

Lachlan looked down at me, a dark, complicated rush of pleasure flickering in his gaze. He loved this. He loved seeing me ground into the dirt where he thought I belonged.

"See, Elise? Was that so hard?"

He began to pull his hand back. I reached out, my fingers desperate to reclaim the stone.

Before my skin could touch the silk cord, Lachlan’s wrist smoothly pivoted.

With an effortless, fluid motion, he draped the jade pendant around Tinsley’s neck, fastening the clasp behind her blonde chignon.

The vibrant green stone settled right against the bare, pale hollow of Tinsley’s throat.

A roaring deafened my ears. My vision went white.

"Lachlan! What are you doing?"

I lunged forward, reaching out with both hands to rip the heirloom from her neck.

"Restrain her!" Lachlan barked.

Two massive private security guards lunged from the sides, their heavy hands slamming down onto my shoulders like lead weights. The impact drove the wind from my lungs, pinning me in place.

"Tinsley has been suffering from migraines lately," Lachlan said, adjusting his cuffs with an air of complete detachment. "Her holistic practitioner said an antique stone with natural resonance would help center her energy. It’s an insignificant trinket, but it looks charming enough on her. As for you, Elise—if you want things from me, you need to demonstrate genuine loyalty first."

My vision swam in blood-red rage as I fought against the iron grip on my arms.

"That belonged to a dead woman!" I screamed. "Tinsley, don't you dare wear that—it will choke you in your sleep!"

"Smack."

Kiki lunged forward, her palm cracking across my cheek with brutal force.

"Shut your filthy mouth!" she hissed. "How dare you put a curse on my future cousin-in-law? You're nothing!"

The sting was sharp and blistering; the metallic taste of copper filled my mouth.

Tinsley touched the jade at her throat, feigning terror as she shrank behind Lachlan’s broad back. "Lachlan, she looks feral... Did I make her angry by wearing this? Maybe I should just give it back. I don't want to come between your old memories."

Lachlan wrapped an arm protectively around her waist. "Don't be ridiculous. It's just a rock. What could she possibly do about it?"

He turned back to me, his features hard as granite.

"This is what happens when you don't listen, Elise. Today was a mild lesson. Tinsley is generous enough not to press assault charges."

Tinsley signaled to a personal assistant waiting nearby, who stepped forward holding a black leather portfolio.

"Elise," Tinsley said smoothly, stepping out from behind Lachlan. "Since you’re moving into the carriage house, we need ground rules."

She slapped a document titled "Private Residence Staff Conduct and Non-Disclosure Agreement" against my chest.

"Sign it. You’ll be my dedicated personal assistant. You’re going to learn how to serve people properly instead of clinging to this absurd, lower-class pride."

The clauses were printed in stark black and white: "Absolute availability. Zero personal rights. Unconditional obedience to every directive of Tinsley Radcliffe."

It wasn't an employment contract. It was an indenture.

Pinned down by the two guards, I glared at the couple before me. A profound, suffocating darkness threatened to drown my chest.

Around us, the guests were softly chuckling—the polite, muffled amusement of the wealthy watching a lesser creature struggle in a trap. In this world, the truth didn't exist. Only leverage did.

Seeing me refuse the pen, Lachlan’s expression turned utterly merciless. He gave a nod to the guards.

"Since her wrists are so stiff, help her loosen them."

The guard on my left wrenched my arm backward in a brutal lock. A ragged gasp of agony tore from my throat.

"Sign it, or don't," Lachlan’s voice hissed in my ear like a viper. "Your choice, Elise."

I bit clean through my bottom lip, blood dripping down my chin, my eyes fixed on the green stone.