Chapter 2 - The Forbidden Melody
Elise was a stunning woman in her early thirties, wearing an elegant, form-fitting silver evening dress that sparkled under the chandeliers. She had been desperately trying to secure a wedding ring from Victor for three years, playing the role of the perfect, loving future stepmother.
She quickly knelt down next to the crying boy, wrapping her arms around him in what looked like a comforting embrace.
"Stop crying, sweetheart," Elise pleaded, her voice dripping with artificial sweetness for the guests to hear.
But as she pulled Leo close, her facial micro-expressions shifted into pure venom. Hidden from Victor’s view, Elise’s manicured nails dug viciously into the back of Leo’s small arm, pinching him hard to shock him into silence.
Instead of quieting down, Leo shrieked in pain, pulling away from her and crying even harder, his chest heaving with desperate, jagged breaths.
Victor stepped forward, his dark eyes narrowing with suspicion, but before he could push Elise away, someone else broke the rules of the gala.
A young woman in her twenties, with pale blonde hair tied tightly back, stepped out from the shadows of the catering line. She wore a classic, modest black and white maid uniform. Her name was Clara. She wasn't supposed to speak to the guests. She wasn't even supposed to be in the main ballroom.
But Clara couldn't bear the sound of a child in pain. Her natural maternal instinct completely overpowered her fear of being fired.
Clara stepped in front of Elise, ignoring the furious glare of the woman in the silver dress. The young maid leaned down slightly toward the little boy, her eyes soft and filled with genuine, profound empathy.
She didn't touch him. She just closed her eyes, took a natural, trembling breath, and began to sing softly.
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"Stop crying, my beloved child," Clara sang gently, her beautiful, haunting voice cutting through the heavy silence of the ballroom.
👉 What impossible connection does the little boy have to this random maid's song?
