Chapter One: Tainted

Elsie

If I ever leave this mansion, It would be in handcuffs. I don’t care how long it’d take for me to execute my long-perfected plans, but the Lancaster brothers must pay dearly for what they took from me.

I sneezed as dust that rose from the sofa I was dusting made its way into my nostrils.

Before going to bed I left the house in an immaculate condition – one could have eaten off any surface of the room, but waking up this morning and walking into the living room, the entire place looked like a pigsty.

I knew the boys were having some friends over, but I didn’t think they’d leave such a mess. The coffee table in front of the sofa had ten disposable cups on it with varying amounts of different sticky liquids in them, about a dozen wine bottles, and a dented pizza box. There are clothing and garbage strewn all over the living room and the dining table still had the remains of dinner last night.

I spent hours cleaning.

The boys could not have made this house dirtier if they tried. Every room of the house was filthy. I took my time trying to scrub off the sticky whitish foul-smelling liquid on the large black sofa. The liquid smelled like a man’s release. It took thirty minutes of intense scrubbing to get it all clean.

The kitchen was the worst of it. There were more than a dozen beer bottles on both the counter and on the floor. The entire floor was littered with disposable cups. There were two garbage bags in the kitchen, spilling over with their contents. One of the two bags had a rip in the bottom, and when I lifted it to take it outside, all the garbage went everywhere. And it smelled beyond terrible. Who makes such a big mess in one night?

I groaned, planting my hands on my hips as I thought of what to do next. I was already exhausted. It had become a relentless cycle of misery since I started working as a maid in the Lancaster mansion.

But I had to endure. I had to look at the bigger picture – destroying the ruthless sons of Malcolm Lancaster, the most powerful man in the city of Orlan.

Aiden and Jacob never missed a chance to make my life a living hell. It was their mission to ensure I knew my place – beneath them.

Rumors had it that every maid who worked for the Lancaster ended up leaving after a few days. Some were rumored raped, but I don’t know how true that was as none of them ever made advances towards me.

I never understood why no maid lasted until I lived with them.

“Little girl,” A deep voice startled me in the middle of packing the littered thrash into the bin. I whirled around—Aiden was standing behind me, his dark eyes boring into me.

His eyes rake over my mini cotton skirt and tank top. My full breasts and lack of a bra. This was what I slept in. It struck me that I should have properly covered up before leaving my bedroom. But I thought I would be all alone down here.

He cleared his throat and tore his eyes from my body as if it was hard for him to do so, “In the future, I expect you to wear appropriate attire around the house.”

“I’m so sorry,” I said. “I didn’t think anyone would be awake early, regarding that you partied...” I stopped when he furrowed his eyebrows at me.

He doesn’t like it when I try to explain myself. I’m only allowed to say ‘yes or no' to every question.

Aiden made his way to the refrigerator to take out a bottle of water, that’s when I noticed he was in his freaking boxers. And his undershirt material was thin enough that I could see the outline of some very sexy muscles.

He had tattoos all over his upper arms, mostly concealed by his shirt. The name Sarah was etched in a heart on his biceps. It made me wonder who Sarah was.

I should never find Aiden Lancaster attractive, but the demon was undeniably drop-dead gorgeous. His skin was faintly tan, that pale brown that very pale people get after spending a huge amount of time outside.

He caught me staring and it was embarrassing. I quickly bent to continue packing up the thrash and my short skirt rides up, leaving a huge part of my ass exposed.

What is wrong with the stupid skirt? At this point, he might think I want to seduce him but that’s far from the truth. I hated him so much that I wanted to drive a knife into his chest.

I grabbed at the hem to pull it down, but before I could, I noticed Aiden’s heated gaze on me. And when I caught him, he coughed into his hand deliberately and asked, “How long doesn’t it take to finish cleaning one house?”

I was tempted to ask him why he would ask me such a stupid question knowing the condition they left the house in, but I swallowed my resolve. I dare not challenge the Lancaster boys.

I lowered my eyes from his searing gaze. “Ohm.” I began with a stammer, “There was so much to do today…” My eyes met his again as I lifted my head. “But I’m almost done. My apologies.”

His expression was unreadable, his dark eyes expressing nothing more than the fact he was soulless. He finally offered a slight grin and nodded.

He deserved no respect or apologies from me or anyone else, but I was compelled to do whatever he asked of me or risk losing my job.

Shoot! I suddenly remembered I hadn’t made their breakfast. I lost track of time cleaning and now I’m in a lot of trouble.

The house had established rules, including guidelines for serving meals and specific timing. I was required to familiarize myself with these regulations on my first day on the job. Non- Non-compliance with these rules resulted in severe consequences.

Jacob swaggered into the kitchen, his broad shoulders blocking out the dim light that filtered through the open door, his features mirroring those of his brother, as though cruelty ran in their blood. They always had that malicious grin, one that never seemed to leave their faces.

I knew I was doomed with Jacobs's presence in the kitchen. Even if Aiden had forgotten to ask for breakfast, Jacob certainly wouldn’t.

Jacob appears to have a dual personality; one day, he protects me from Aiden, and the next day, he punishes me. He was unpredictable which made him more dangerous.

“Look who is in her element.” Jacob sneered, his voice dripping with contempt, but with the kind of deep baritone that sent flutters into my tummy. He raked his hands through his crop of dark hair, the waves accentuating his chiseled cheeks and full mouth. “I want breakfast.” He demanded.

“She hasn’t made us breakfast.” Aiden said, “She had so much work to do, those were her excuses. Can you imagine that?”

“Isn't that what she is being paid to do?” Jacob asked and Aiden shrugged. He looked at me, his eyes beaming with anger, “Is it true you haven’t made breakfast, little girl?”

I looked up at him, my eyes meeting his blue eyes that looked like ice. I opened my mouth to speak but couldn’t bring a word out. Fear enveloped me as I knew clearly where this was going.

“What time are you expected to serve us breakfast?”

I lowered my gaze to the floor, “9 o’clock.” I said softly.

“You know you’ll be punished for this, right?” Jacob reminded me and I gave a slight nod. “Good. I’ll give you two minutes to choose your punishment or I’ll do that for you.” He crossed his arms over his chest, both of them looking down at me like a giant towering an ant.

I fought back the tears threatening to strip away my resolve. The last time they put me in such a situation, it didn’t end well. I picked a simple punishment and I was made to go to bed on an empty stomach. What saved me was the snacks I used to sneak into my bedroom. 

I hate guys like them. Arrogant, self-obsessed pricks, cruel, I hated them both. I shouldn’t be attracted to them. I wasn’t attracted to them. It didn’t matter how chiseled their jaws were, how their arms flexed when they crossed them over their chest as they stood in front of me, they disgusted me.

"I'll count down from ten to one, Elsie and when I'm done and you haven't chosen your punishment, you won't like what I'll do to you after," Jacob said.