The Ultrasound on the Marble
Chapter 01 - The Ultrasound on the Marble
The breakfast hall at Ashford Manor had been designed to make ordinary people feel small.
Sunlight poured through windows two stories high. Silver serving carts reflected the crystal chandelier. Every chair carried the carved letter A.
Elena Cruz stood beside the long table in a black maid’s uniform, one hand resting beneath the white apron stretched over her six-month pregnancy.
Victoria Ashford wore an ivory suit and pearl earrings. She looked at Elena as if the young woman were a stain on the marble.
“You were told to leave before my son returned.”
“I need to speak with Mr. Ashford.”
“You will speak when staff are asked a question.”
Elena held a sealed ultrasound envelope against her chest.
Victoria reached for it.
Elena stepped backward.
The bowl in Victoria’s hand tilted.
Hot porridge splashed across the floor and the front of Elena’s apron. Elena dropped to one knee, protecting her stomach as the porcelain bowl shattered several feet away.
Victoria did not apologize.
“Give me the envelope.”
The front doors opened.
Daniel Ashford entered wearing a black suit, followed by two hotel executives. He stopped when he saw Elena kneeling, porridge scattered across the marble, and his mother standing over her.
“What happened?”
Victoria turned immediately.
“She became hysterical when I dismissed her. She threw the bowl.”
Elena looked up.
“No, sir.”
Daniel crossed the hall.
Victoria blocked him.
“She has been telling disgusting lies about this family.”
Elena pulled the ultrasound photograph from the envelope.
Her hands trembled, but her voice did not.
“This baby belongs to your brother.”
Daniel stared at the image.
His younger brother Noah had died eight months earlier when his yacht caught fire off the coast.
At least that was what the Ashford family had announced.
On the bottom of the ultrasound print was a handwritten note:
FOR ELENA ASHFORD — WIFE OF NOAH ASHFORD.
Daniel looked from the photograph to Elena.
“You were married to Noah?”
Before she could answer, a soft chime sounded above the service doorway.
The old kitchen-security camera had activated.
A blue light blinked beneath the chandelier.
May you like
The house had recorded everything.
Victoria’s face finally changed.
