Chapter 6 - Echoes of Sarah
In the grand study, Eleanor stood by the cold marble fireplace, her posture rigid.
"You are losing your mind, Michael," Eleanor declared, her voice laced with stern warning. "I have watched you over the past three months. You are spending less time at the firm, you are letting that girl rearrange Sarah’s nursery, and now you are rolling around on the floor like a child."
"It's called being a father, Mother," Michael said, standing behind his desk. "Something Noah desperately needed."
"Noah needs structure! He needs a mother figure of proper social standing, not a glorified domestic helper with a tragic backstory!" Eleanor snapped. "You are allowing your grief over Sarah to blur your judgment. You are looking at Emily and seeing a substitute!"
Michael felt a surge of anger. "Emily is not a substitute for Sarah! No one could replace Sarah. But Emily brought this house back to life when you and I were busy turning it into a tomb!"
"She is manipulative, Michael," Eleanor said, stepping closer, her tone dropping into a poisonous whisper. "Do you really think it’s a coincidence she hummed Sarah’s lullaby that first day? Do you really think she doesn't know who you are, what you’re worth? She researched this family before she took the job. She used your dead wife’s memory to get close to your son!"
Michael’s heart hammered against his ribs. "That's absurd. She didn't even know who Noah was when she took the basic housecleaning shift."
"Are you so sure?" Eleanor pulled an envelope from her purse and tossed it onto the mahogany desk. "I had my investigator look into her background. Her brother’s medical bills left her family in massive debt. She needed money desperately. And right before she applied here, she searched your foundation's medical grants."
Michael looked down at the paper. The black-and-white printouts showed search histories and financial records. A cold seed of doubt, planted by a year of trauma and paranoia, took root in his mind.
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"She saved Noah's life, Mother," Michael said, though his voice lacked its previous conviction.
"Or she created a dramatic moment to make herself indispensable," Eleanor lied skillfully, twisting the facts to suit her control. "Think about it, Michael. Protect your son. Don't let another woman tear your life apart."
