Mrs. Sinclair snapped her fingers before my face to get my attention.
“Say something, Miss Walter.” She impatiently clapped her hands until I looked directly into her moist, bloodshot eyes. There, I found a tinge of madness and a longing to escape her mundane life. “Please, I am begging you to help me. Name your price. I am ready to give you anything.” I almost jumped when she joined her hands and dropped to her knees. “Please,” she cried.
Nathan’s mother was too desperate to beg a nobody like me. However, her mid-life crisis would get me into deep trouble. How could I claim someone else’s child as mine?
“You’re out of your mind!” I blurted out, causing her expression to grow even more painful. Even though she wasn’t making any sense, I was still in no position to insult her. I made my tone more respectful before continuing. “Look, Mrs. Sinclair. You are not thinking this through. It’s impossible to remain in the middle without making an obvious choice. You can have this child with Doctor Williams or stay with your husband and son.”
“I need time,” she said, panicking. “I only found out about my pregnancy a few days ago. How can I know what I want so soon? I am pregnant with someone else’s child other than my husband!” she shouted. Someone knocked at the door almost simultaneously with her words, and we all screamed at the top of our lungs, including the person behind the door.
“Who is it? Who is it?” we asked each other while in the middle of a panic attack.
We were standing too close to the door, and Mrs. Sinclair had spoken the last sentences too loudly. Someone had undoubtedly heard her secret. Since I was sure it was a man screaming outside with us, I feared it to be Nathan.
Mrs. Sinclair was too chicken to unlock the door and have a look outside, so I had to do it for her. To her good luck, it wasn’t Nathan or her husband. It was someone non-threatening. The man was Nathan’s assistant, Frank.
“Uh, uh,” Frank struggled to speak. The poor fellow looked as pale as a ghost, taken aback by Mrs. Sinclair’s confession. I had discovered her dark truth the day I arrived, but Frank must have seen her as a loyal and loving wife for who knows how long.
Mary Sinclair dragged Frank inside the room by force and locked the door again. “What have you heard? Speak!” she raised her voice at him.
“Nothing!” Frank straight up lied, though his face spoke differently. He wasn’t even slightly hiding his astonishment and disgust.
“Don’t lie to me, Frank. You are not new here, and I know you very well. Did you hear what I say?” she spoke through gritted teeth.
Frank nodded. “Yes. Unfortunately, I did, Ma’am, and I am already deaf and dumb. Your secret is safe with me.”
“Lies.” Mrs. Sinclair seized Frank’s collar, and he squeaked. She stared at him like an angry bull. “The other employees say that you don’t say hello around here without thinking about how it would benefit you. What do you want? Name your price. Don’t play nice with me. And don’t dare say a word to Nathan or anyone else.”
“Those are all rumors spread to ruin my reputation. I am the most loyal person on this property after you,” Frank defended himself poorly. I touched my forehead. Why did he have to give her the worst compliment possible?
“What?! Are you mocking me for being unfaithful already? Is this blackmail?” Mrs. Sinclair snapped at him. She was so patient with me. What did Frank do to receive such horrible treatment? He must have done something to deserve that. That man wasn’t exactly the angel he pretended to be.
“No. You are not getting me. The only loyalty is to one’s heart. If you love someone else and don’t keep his baby, then I would call you disloyal. I have great advice for you if you would listen and trust me,” he requested.
Mary released his collar and folded her arms. “What advice?”
Frank dusted his collar and straightened it. “Well, for starters. Does the father of your child know about this?” She shook her head in a no. “Until you don’t tell him, I am afraid we can’t do anything about this situation. We must know how he feels and wants first.”
“You’re right.” Mrs. Sinclair wiped her tears. “I must tell him.” She left the room as hastily as possible, leaving me alone with Frank.
We shared a look of confusion, which quickly changed to horror and a lot more.
“What the hell is this, Amelia? She is pregnant with her lover’s child, and she is telling a newbie about it. Mrs. Sinclair has officially lost all her brain cells,” said Frank. “Who is the father? Is it that snack of a fitness instructor she has, or is it her tennis coach? Or is it both? They are eye candy. I wouldn’t blame her for having some fun with either of them.”
I didn’t know she had better options lying around her. I wondered what made her choose her son’s doctor to have animalistic sex.
“It’s Doctor Williams,” I answered.
“Why?” Frank’s forehead lines deepened. “Is she in love with him or something? Why didn’t she choose the hottest employee to have sex?”
“I don’t know. I accidentally walked into them having sex in his office on my first day,” I said. “She didn’t say anything about love or lust. All she said was that she was lonely.”
“That’s what they all say.” Frank raised and shook his finger in the air. “It’s the perfect excuse to cheat for them. They’ll never admit to their sins. Why don’t they leave a terrible marriage before committing adultery?”
Again, I had no answer. Mrs. Sinclair was more twisted than I had initially thought. She wasn’t sure about anything. Nathan looked more sorted out than her now.
“She just made a ridiculous request to get pregnant soon so that I can claim her baby as my child’s twin. Or we could replace it with mine in case my child dies before birth,” I revealed.
Frank looked at me with a twisted expression, leaning more towards disgust. “Mrs. Sinclair is more trouble than I thought. I know what we should do.”
“What?” I asked, eager for a quick solution.
“We should tell Nathan’s father and get even a bigger reward. He is finally back in the house,” said Frank.