Maya: Sir... your suit... you got soup on your sleeve.
Gabriel: Don't worry about my suit, Maya. Are your hands burned?
Maya: They sting a little bit, but I'm okay. I'm so sorry about the mess.
Gabriel: You didn't do anything wrong. Stand up slowly.
Maya wiped her cheeks with the corner of her stained apron, her hands still shaking.
She looked toward the grand doors where Victoria had just disappeared into the hallway.
Maya: Miss Victoria is going to be so angry... she told everyone she was becoming the lady of this house today.
Gabriel: She is never stepping foot in this estate again.
Maya: But... your engagement lunch? Your family trust fund agreement?
Gabriel: A trust fund means nothing if I bring a monster into my home.
Gabriel reached into his tuxedo pocket and pulled out a soft silk handkerchief.
He gently dabbed the orange broth away from Maya's chin and hands.
Gabriel: How long has she been treating you like this, Maya?
Maya: It... it doesn't matter, Mr. Gabriel. I'm just the housemaid.
Gabriel: It matters to me. Answer me, please.
Maya: Ever since she moved her luggage in last month. Whenever you leave for the corporate office, she... she finds reasons to shout.
Gabriel's chest heaved as he closed his eyes, holding back a wave of deep guilt.
Gabriel: She put her hands on you before today, didn't she?
Maya: She slapped me last Tuesday when I dropped a napkin... she said if I told you, she'd make sure my father lost his pension.
Gabriel froze, his eyes snapping open with pure fury.
Gabriel: She threatened your father's pension?
Maya: My father worked thirty years as the head gardener for your family estate... he needs his retirement money for his medical care.
Gabriel: Nobody is touching your father's pension, Maya. Your father is like family to me.
A loud screech echoed down the grand corridor outside the dining room.
Victoria marched back through the tall open archway, her white dress covered in orange stains, her makeup smeared across her cheeks.
Behind her walked two elderly women in designer silk suits and a man carrying a leather briefcase.
Victoria: THERE HE IS! LOOK AT WHAT HE DID TO ME!
Aunt Eleanor: Gabriel! What on earth is the meaning of this outrageous behavior?!
Gabriel: Aunt Eleanor, step out of my dining room before you hear something you regret.
Victoria: He assaulted me! He threw food in my face over a worthless servant!