Ch 0001

"Come back here! Where is the dessert I asked for?! And how many times have I told you that mother doesn't like her kiwis cut this way?! Are you going to be dumb forever?" Audrey, the first daughter-in-law of the Meyer family, yelled at the beautiful young lady who was multitasking as she served different dishes in front of different people at the same time and pace.

The hardworking lady had woken up at 4:00 am to get started in the kitchen, while preparing the different dishes that were eaten by each member of the Meyer family. And she had to make sure she served it fast and got back to work, which included fixing Aaron's school uniform for the day and whatever errand they all wanted her to do.

There were a variety of Fresh berries, Granola for crunch, Poached eggs on English muffins, Canadian bacon, smoked salmon, sautéed spinach and kale for general feeding, and on the other hand, for the saucy sisters, there were bagels with cream cheese, burrito, omelet, and baked buffalo wings.

"She is too dumb to make corrections. Always wrong," Ivy spat with derision, as she took her time to take the first bite of food into her mouth, so that she would scream a complaint at the top of her voice if she sensed any displeasure while eating the food. However, there was always nothing to say. The food was always perfectly made.

"I am so sorry. I will fix it right away," Zoe rushed to take the plate of kiwis immediately with the thought of making another one and replacing them. The irritated mother-in-law just held her lips without saying anything for the first time in a while, to also scold Zoe harshly.

Isla slapped her hand aggressively as she was about to pick the plate of kiwis up, "Just get out! Has our wealth rubbed on your impoverished self so much that you want to waste food at any slightest chance?!" She rolled her eyes irritably, as she passed taunting remarks to the poor lady.

Without minding what Ivy had said to her since she was used to it, Zoe apologized instantly and quickly began to serve the final fruit toppings for breakfast as side dishes for everyone's plate. She paid extra attention to Irene's plate, who was her mother-in-law, so that she would not receive a deafening slap without warning for something she had no idea of.

"Where are my clothes? I cannot find them!" Aaron, the fourteen-year-old grandson of the house whined grumpily from the stairs where he was standing, with a huge frown etched visibly upon his face.

"I hung them on the door of your dressing room after ironing them this morning. Your shoes are placed carefully beside the bed too," Zoe answered immediately when she heard him, and rushed over to his usual sitting spot in the dining room to begin serving his food instantly.

"And my food?!" He demanded brusquely with a grumpy tone as he made his way down, and sauntered into the dining room where they were all sitting. The grand dining room of the opulent mansion stood as a piece of evidence of the great elegance and refined taste, and the perfect set of tables and chairs, blended in with the rustic vibe of the painting.

"I served them alrea……."

"I asked for Avocado toast, not French!" Aaron yelled as he slapped his palm emphatically on the glass table as soon as he set eyes on the food that was served on the table for him, taking everyone by surprise at the outburst of the spoiled teenager.

"You said you were tired of eating avocado toast yesterday, and that I should make fresh toast instead," Zoe tried to defend, wondering if she had heard him wrongfully the previous day after he complained bitterly and wasted his food.

"Did what I say even matter?!" He shot in anger and cocked an eyebrow, only to meet the cold gaze of Isla, who was staring at him intently with every suppressed urge to lash out. More than anything, she loathed hearing noise whenever she was eating.

Aaron's lips froze immediately as he took his seat with a big grumble, knowing that things might not be easy for him if he got into his Aunt's bad side that morning. She didn't like him already anyway.

"I am sorry for missing that. I will go buy some avocados now, and make another one for you," Zoe apologized, hoping that it would placate him a little bit because she was too tired already.

"Whatever," he mouthed angrily and rolled his eyes as he put a piece of toast into his mouth instantly, before putting his headphones across his head and he began to play games on his phone immediately. It was one of the few times she didn't have to make breakfast again.

Zoe sighed tiredly as she finally made her way into the kitchen while pushing the food trolley, and slouched languorously upon the counter top with her arms. Her body was aching already.

Because of her endless job, which included carrying out everyone's chores in the house, the maids in the mansion had reduced in number, with the few around having nothing much to do.

The next thing she had to do after breakfast preparation was to clean the kitchen first, and then go purchase groceries next, while checking out rooms that needed to be cleaned again. Before she realized it, hours had passed already before she finished her job for the first half of the day.

Zoe's eyes rolled to the silver watch that was wrapped around her wrist as soon as she completed her job for the day, and she let out a weary sigh again because she knew that she would be late if she didn't get out of the house to fetch Ivy's newly made custom dress at the fashion house.

Sadly, she had to hire a cab because everyone in the house wanted to take different cars from the house that day. She was not allowed to drive the other cars except the assigned one meant for shopping because, according to them, a leech like her was not allowed into such limited-edition cars like them. To make things worse for her, she had to walk miles from the main mansion to the gate because of the long distance.

"Good morning. I have come to collect the new clothes under the name Ivy Meyer," Zoe struggled to catch her breath as she made her way inside the deluxe clothes shop, with a cue of where to go straight to get the clothes.

"Some minutes, please," Zara, who was the only shop attendant that usually answered to her, signaled for her to come inside and take a seat, while she went to check out the ordered piece for her. She came back quickly to offer Zoe a cup of coffee as customer service, and the poor lady was so grateful because she had not eaten anything since the day's break.

"What is this filthy thing doing here?" A woman's loud voice raged as she made her way inside, with her eyes burning down heat straight to where Zoe was sitting, "Get me the manager. Why should I be in the same space with a person like this? Does this place have no standards anymore?!"

The woman, spluttering with rage, donned an expensive, elegant dress, and wore the most recent edition shoes from an A- brand. Her body was well adorned with diamond pieces of jewelry and her face was baked to a beautiful perfection. She exuded luxury.

"We are sorry, ma'am," the sycophant attendants ran up to her to see what she had as a problem, and they knew they had to kick Zoe out of the room immediately.

She had forgotten herself after working for so long, and went out with her casual clothes and slippers. Her hair was tied in a rough bun, and her face was pale and bare. Her lips were chapped too because of how tired she was, since she had not been getting enough rest.

"I will leave now," Zoe stood up after she understood what was going on, and she scurried past the lady as fast as she could.

However, things went wrong.

"You idiot! Do you know how much these heels cost?!" Zoe's cheeks thundered heavily at the slap that was plastered on her face by the obnoxious lady, on whose shoes she had mistakenly spilled coffee.

"I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to," Zoe fell on her knees and apologized immediately, knowing well that it was an action that made pompous elites like Dafne Brown satisfied. It made them feel on top of the world when they saw others kneel before them.

"You are sorry?!" Dafne demanded angrily, as her eyes shot out lasers that were enough to burn Zoe down, "I hate it when maids like you do not even know your place!"

"I didn't mean to spill the coffee. I apologize," Zoe begged again, as she tried to clean the shoes with the hem of her skirt. However, Dafne kicked her away in anger.

"I will not buy anything from here if you do not make this lowlife bitch step outside right now!" She fumed so much as she with displeasure, and they all began to beg while ushering Zoe out aggressively. Dafne Brown was one of the most well-known CEOs of major coffee companies in the city, and she was a wonderful VIP client they could not afford to lose.

"Please. Wait outside to receive your clothes," they told Zoe sternly and pushed her out.

Zara ran after her after she witnessed what happened, and apologized to her for the mistreatment as she gave her the cloth package she went to fetch for her. Zoe thanked the assistant profusely for treating her better, as tears tried not to run down her cheeks the moment she turned away from the clothes store. She was tired of crying already. She had been trampled upon too much.

The skies suddenly became pregnant with water as it rained heavily everywhere, and everyone scampered for safety immediately to avoid getting beaten.

The only person that could be seen running in the rain from the mansion gate to the main house was Zoe, because she had to get the clothes for Ivy as soon as possible. The brat had called her a million times to yell, and cursed her for wasting so much time on picking up her party dress.

"The dress is here," Zoe finally heaved a sigh of relief as she pressed the bell to the front of the house, with every part of her body drenched terribly and dripping incessantly with water. The head maid came out of the house a few minutes later to take the package from her, and locked the door instantly without allowing Zoe to enter as instructed.

Zoe's heart skipped a beat the moment she realized what was going on. They had locked her out because she was minutes late from an errand, and because it was past curfew time according to one of the rules they gave her. So, she had to remain outside.

The wind blew fiercely towards the west following the torrents of rain that poured relentlessly, carrying with it cold and all sorts of nonsense, as Zoe, who stood like a lone figure, shivered uncontrollably with gnashing teeth that were locked into her mouth.

She stood tall with her neck hanging downwards, as her silhouette reflected brokenness on the wall of the mansion as the light in the corridor shone upon her. Her face pictured the wet tendrils of her black hair as raindrops cascaded down her cheeks, with her heart shattering a thousand times more as she thought of how pathetic her life was. Too saddening.

After it had rained cats and dogs for hours, the door finally pushed open as her fragile self walked into the house through the back door, so that she would not drip water on the floor of the house. She could not create an extra job for herself when she was barely hanging on to life.

Luckily for her, dinner must have been prepared by the usual chefs since she ran late on her errand, and just walked to her bedroom with heaviness in her heart. Sitting in the hot tub for minutes didn't help to make her feel better, and she was running a fever by the time she had changed into her casual clothes after bathing.

Zoe sat in front of the dresser as she dried her hair over and over again, while trying not to cry at her forlorn, and loneliness. She stared at the emptiness of her eyes through the mirror as she saw how broken and miserable she looked. How mentally tortured and unstable she had become.

Suddenly, the door to her room pushed open, and her jaws dropped when she watched the tall, regal figure walk into the room, with his usual delicious cologne permeating the air as he trailed in. It was her supposed husband, Malcolm Meyer. She had barely seen him the entire month, and he had never come to her room before.

'Was she hallucinating?'

"Let's get a divorce," she heard.