Chapter 4 Behind closed doors
The rain finally stopped later that night.
The mansion remained unusually quiet as Elena finished arranging the last set of dishes in the kitchen.
Most of the workers had already retired for the night, leaving only a few dim lights glowing across the large hall.
"Elena."
She turned immediately.
Martha approached while holding a small stack of folded napkins.
"Madam Vanessa wants tea in her room."
Elena hid her irritation carefully. "Yes, ma'am."
"She's been in a terrible mood all evening," Martha warned quietly.
That was nothing new.
Elena prepared the tea silently before carrying the tray upstairs.
As expected, Vanessa's sharp voice answered immediately after the knock.
"Come in."
Elena entered carefully.
Vanessa sat lazily on the couch scrolling through her phone while expensive shopping bags lay scattered around the room.
Without even looking up, she spoke.
"You workers move too slowly in this house."
Elena placed the tea down quietly. "I'm sorry, Madam."
Vanessa finally looked at her.
Her eyes slowly moved over Elena's appearance before narrowing slightly.
"You're prettier than most maids."
The sudden statement caught Elena off guard.
Vanessa smirked faintly.
"That usually becomes a problem in rich homes."
Elena immediately lowered her gaze. "I'm only here to work."
"You should keep it that way." Vanessa took a sip of tea before grimacing slightly. "Cold."
Elena had just brought it.
"I'll make another one."
"You should."
Vanessa placed the cup down carelessly.
"And stop standing there like a statue. You're making the room uncomfortable."
Elena quietly picked up the tray again.
Just before she reached the door, Vanessa suddenly spoke once more.
"You heard people gossiping downstairs earlier, didn't you?"
Elena's fingers tightened slightly around the tray.
"I don't understand, Madam."
Vanessa laughed softly.
"The baby." Her tone remained careless. "Servants in this house love discussing things that don't concern them."
Elena stayed silent.
Vanessa crossed her legs calmly.
"Listen carefully." Her voice became colder. "Whatever happened in this family is none of your business. Focus on cleaning floors and serving food. That's all you're paid for."
Elena slowly nodded.
"Yes, Madam."
"Good."
Elena walked out quietly afterward.
But the moment the door closed behind her, her expression changed completely.
Vanessa was hiding something.
Elena could feel it.
Not grief.
Not sadness.
Fear.
And for the first time, Elena began wondering if the truth behind her mother's death might be uglier than she imagined.Elena walked downstairs slowly with the empty tray still in her hands.
Her expression remained calm, but her thoughts were unsettled.
Vanessa's words replayed inside her mind.
"Whatever happened in this family is none of your business."
The sentence sounded less like a warning and more like fear hidden beneath arrogance.
The deeper Elena entered the Cole mansion, the more obvious it became that everyone here was hiding something.
As she entered the kitchen again, Martha looked up briefly.
"She complained again?" she asked tiredly.
Elena simply nodded.
Martha sighed as if already used to it. "That woman enjoys making people miserable."
One of the younger maids whispered carefully, "She shouted at the florist this afternoon too."
"Because the roses were the wrong shade of white," another maid added quietly.
Martha shook her head in annoyance.
"Enough gossiping and finish cleaning."
The workers quickly returned to their duties.
Elena remained silent while washing the tea cup Vanessa barely touched.
Her mind wandered back to her mother again.
The old photographs.
The hidden fear.
The way her mother used to lock doors at night before checking the windows repeatedly.
At the time, Elena had thought her mother was simply paranoid.
Now she was beginning to understand otherwise.
Someone had truly terrified her mother before her death.
And somehow, that fear connected back to this mansion.
Later that night, after most workers had gone to sleep, Elena quietly stepped out of her room.
The hallway remained silent.
Only the soft ticking of the large grandfather clock downstairs echoed through the mansion.
She walked carefully toward the second-floor study.
Earlier that morning, she had noticed Adrian entering the room several times. Something told her important documents might be kept there.
Elena stopped outside the door.
Locked.
She frowned slightly.
Of course.
Nothing important in this house would be left open.
Just as she turned to leave—
Footsteps approached.
Elena's heart skipped instantly.
She quickly grabbed a nearby cleaning cloth and pretended to dust the hallway shelf.
Adrian appeared moments later.
His sharp eyes immediately landed on her.
For one brief second, neither spoke.
Then his gaze shifted toward the cleaning cloth in her hand.
"You clean hallways at midnight now?"
His tone remained calm, but Elena sensed suspicion underneath it.
"I couldn't sleep, sir."
Adrian looked unconvinced.
The silence between them stretched slightly.
Standing this close to him again felt strangely intimidating.
Even exhausted, Adrian still carried a quiet authority that filled the hallway effortlessly.
His dark tie had already been loosened slightly, and the sleeves of his white shirt were folded neatly to his elbows.
He looked tired.
Very tired.
But his expression remained unreadable as always.
"You should rest," he finally said.
Elena lowered her gaze politely. "Yes, sir."
Adrian stepped toward the study door before pausing again.
"You're new here," he said quietly. "A piece of advice?"
Elena looked up slightly.
"People survive longer in this house when they mind their business."
Her heartbeat quickened immediately.
Did he know she was investigating?
Before she could respond, Adrian unlocked the study door and entered without another word.
The door closed behind him softly.
Elena stood frozen for several seconds.
Then slowly tightened her fists.
That statement alone confirmed it.
There truly were secrets inside this mansion.
Dangerous ones.
And somehow…
Adrian knew more than everyone else.Elena remained standing in the hallway long after the study door closed.
The silence around her suddenly felt heavier.
"People survive longer in this house when they mind their business."
Those words did not sound casual.
It sounded like a warning.
Elena slowly looked toward the closed study door again before turning away quietly.
But deep inside, her determination only grew stronger.
If the Cole family truly had something to hide, then she would uncover it noElena remained standing in the hallway long after the study door closed.