Claim
人
Chapter 3 Doubt
1/2
For some inexplicable reason, Jeremy couldn’t shake the feeling that something was wrong.
Though she wore the same nightgown and still bore the marks on her body, the woman before him exuded an odd vitality, as if she had finally found the confidence to reveal the face she had once kept hidden. It almost seemed like she was eager to show it off.
Her eyes were full of affection for him, yet Jeremy couldn’t shake the sense of insincerity. It was as if her admiration had shifted into something almost obsequious. It felt so different from the warmth she had shown him before.
Jeremy studied Martha silently.
With a blush, Martha playfully complained, “It’s all your fault… Honey, how about we go take a shower together?”
She extended her hand, waiting for Jeremy to take her in his arms. If Stella could receive the attention of this powerful man, why couldn’t she?
Jeremy stood there in silence for a long moment, his expression growing cold.
“Go shower by yourself,” he said. With that, he turned and walked away.
Martha’s panic surged. “Jerry, where are you going?”
Had he discovered the truth?
Jeremy didn’t look back. As he stepped out, he bumped into Stella, who had just emerged from the next room.
She was fully covered in an oversized maid’s uniform, with her hat and mask hiding her face. He walked past her, his body brushing against hers.
As he watched her descend the stairs toward the front door, his voice sliced through the stillness. “Wait.”
Stella’s heart shot into her throat.
What was happening? Wasn’t Martha still in the room? Why was he coming out now?
A cold shiver ran down her spine, and she spoke in a hoarse voice, “Good evening, Mr. Parker.”
Thankfully, her time in her school’s Voice Acting Club had taught her how to control her voice. Though it was soft and gentle, it had remarkable versatility. She could effortlessly shift between voices, whether that of a boy, a woman, a child, or even an elderly person.
Hearing Stella’s aged voice, Jeremy failed to recognize her as the woman he’d just been with. His reason for stopping her stemmed from a different suspicion entirely.
His gaze swept over her from head to toe.
“You’re not a maid of the Parker residence. Who sent you?” he asked firmly.
Stella’s heart lurched, and she instinctively bowed her head. “Mr. Parker, I—”
But before she could finish, a woman’s voice rang out, slicing through the tension. “Jerry! What are you doing?”
It was Martha.
She hurried over and clutched Jeremy’s arm, her voice laced with panic. “Jerry, she’s the maid I brought with me. She used to work for me at the Nord residence.” “Your maid?” Jeremy looked at Martha, his expression unshaken, only a faint smirk tugged at the corners of his mouth. “So she’s the mole… You’re the one who had her cut the power, aren’t you?”
His razor–sharp intuition sent a chill down both women’s spines.
Martha was caught completely off guard, struggling to decide whether to lie or confess. However, Jeremy’s tone left no room for argument. He was certain that Martha had been the mastermind behind the power outage.
If she confessed now, perhaps she could avoid his suspicion of the darker truth that the two women had switched places during the blackout.
Martha clung to her robe, the very picture of a wronged damsel. But not even that pitiful act could warm the frost in Jeremy’s gaze.
There was still something off. Though her figure and face matched, she wasn’t the same woman he had just embraced. But if it wasn’t Martha, then who could it be? A sudden thought struck jeremy, and his gaze shifted to Stella.
Judging by her figure, she appeared to be quite young, so why did her voice sound so raspy and aged?
The realization hit him, and he spoke sharply, “Every maid at the Parker residence is required to be registered. If you intend to keep her, have her remove the mask.
“<
In an instant, Martha panicked, her words stumbling out in haste. “Jerry, this… this isn’t a good idea. She… she’s really unattractive—”
“Take it off.” Jeremy cut in coldly, his eyes glinting with a sharp edge.
As Jeremy advanced, Stella instinctively took a step back
Martha’s heart pounded in her chest. “Jerry!”
“Do you want me to take it off for you?” His voice was low and icy, reverberating in Stella’s ears.
Before she could even process it, he had her pressed up against the stair railing. One more step, and she would be sent tumbling down the stairs.
Jeremy gripped the railing with one hand, his other reaching for her mask.
However, just as he was about to remove it, Stella dropped to her knees with a loud thud.
“Mr Parker, please… save my daughter!” she begged, clutching his pants as her voice cracked into frantic sobs.
2/2
She claimed her daughter had suffered a sudden relapse and was now in the emergency room, battling for her life. If she didn’t leave right away, she might never have the chance to say goodbye.
As Stella spoke, she pulled het mask halfway down. But since she was still kneeling, Jeremy could only catch a glimpse of the swollen, bruised side of her cheek. It was obvious she had been struck recently.
Jeremy quickly put the pieces together. No wonder Martha had been so adamant about hiding her face; it would reveal her as the ruthless heiress of the Nord family. His irritation flared, Jeremy’s obsession with cleanliness made the sight of Stella’s tear–streaked face and the sinear of her runny nose against his silk pajama pants intolerable.
With a flick of his arm, he shoved her aside. “Get out.”
To Stella, it was a brief reprieve. She turned and fled without a glance back.
As she disappeared from the Parker residence, Martha let out a relieved sigh. She knew her eagerness had likely raised some suspicions. Reflecting on Stella’s soft voice and timid demeanor from the phone recordings, she bit her lip.
“Jerry… I’m sorry. Do you hate me now?” Martha asked.
Jeremy frowned, rubbing his temples wearily, “Get some rest. I’ve got things to take care of. I’ll be inside the study.”
With that, he brushed her hand aside and walked away without a glance back.
Soon, the day of the wedding went. It was a new day.
Jeremy’s grandmother, Edith McCain, came to visit the newlyweds, bringing along a carload of gifts and supplements.
As she stepped inside, she immediately noticed Martha’s pale complexion.
The maids soon informed her that Jeremy hadn’t spent the night in the bridal suite but had instead worked through the night in the study.
Edith’s temper flared. She had initially assumed that Jeremy hadn’t consummated the marriage, but the maids quickly reassured her that they had.
There had been quite a lot of noise from the master bedroom that night, including the sound of running water twice. But something must have happened afterward, because it seemed the couple had argued and ended up sleeping in separate rooms.
Now in her seventies, Edith nearly fainted when she heard this. She had never been completely fond of Martha as her granddaughter–in–law, but in that moment, she gripped Martha’s hand tightly, refusing to let go.
She yelled, “Jeremy, this is too much! No matter what, you can’t just leave Martha alone in that room!”
How could he use her like that and then cast her aside as if she meant nothing?
Jeremy wasn’t comfortable telling Edith that something about Martha felt off. Instead, he lowered his eyes and said, “There was an urgent issue at the company.” “is work more important than your wife now?” Edith shot back. “Jeremy, your parents are gone, and you’re not getting any younger. When are you going to give our family an heir? Your grandfather and I are growing old… Who knows if we’ll live long enough to see our great–grandchild?”
She let out a sigh, pretending to wipe away tears that weren’t there.
Jeremy could only shake his head.
“Grandma–” he started, but before he could say more, Edith turned to Martha.
“By the way, Martha,” she said with concern, “have you and Jeremy done your premarital health screening yet?”
