Suddenly, a deep voice questioned them, breaking the tense silence. Startled, their heads snapped toward the source in unison, eyes wide with surprise.


    Xavier red at the scene before him. Anastasia stood there, covered in food, her expression a mix of shock and humiliation. He didn’t need to ask who was responsible; it was clear she was being bullied. The sight fueled his anger, and he stepped forward, ready to confront the situation head-on.


    "S-sir, t-the thing I-is—-I-i s-saw," the brown-haired maid stuttered, unable to find words. She stared at the food sttered on both the table and Anastasia. Fear gripped her.


    She had assumed Xavier would return veryte at night, giving Anastasia enough time to clean up and erase any evidence of the food incident. But now, caught red-handed, she had no idea how to escape the me. The panic in her eyes was unmistakable as she fumbled for an excuse.


    Xavier walked toward Anastasia and gently lifted her chin, making her look him in the eyes. He expected to see tears, but instead, her eyes burned with anger. His gaze shifted to her clenched fists, recognizing her desire to retaliate.


    "S-sir, she told us that our food wasn’t good and that we cooked nonsense. She picked it up and threw it at us, but Ste caught it quickly and threw it back at her, but we didn’t know that it would pour all over her body," the ck-haired maid said since Ste was still trying to find words to exin her actions.


    The dining room grew silent. The silence stretched on until it became ufortable for both the maids. They weren’t sure if Xavier had heard all that they said which was why they twisted their story before Anastasia would talk, so that it would seem she was lying.


    Xavier released Anastasia’s chin and turned to face the maids. His eyes were as cold as ever, like shards of ice piercing through the room. The two maids swallowed nervously, their fear palpable in the tense silence.


    Ste, still reeling from her earlier impulse, felt her heart hammering in her chest. Her fellow maid shifted uneasily beside her, ncing anxiously at Xavier’s stern expression.


    The weight of his gaze seemed to pin them in ce as they couldn’t move anymore.


    "So, you mean to tell me that you poured food on my wife because she found the food too spicy?" He questioned them, his eyes daring them to answer.


    The two maids nced at each other, shock written all over their faces.


    ’When did he get married?’<i></i>They couldn’t help but wonder.


    "Answer me!!" Xavier yelled, making them flinch, including Ana.


    "W-well, t-thing is w-well I-i umm..." Ste stuttered, almost peeing her pants.


    She never imagined Ana would be the wife of the man she loved. Ste loved Xavier, and when Jake, the driver, came and told her, as the head chef, to prepare a delicious and healthy dinner for the Miss in the guest room, she felt a pang of jealousy.


    Her initial impulse was to poison the meal, but she quickly dismissed the idea, knowing she would be caught immediately. Instead, she decided that spicing it up excessively would be a subtler way to vent her frustration.


    "The both of you, pack your bags and leave this ce. I’m cklisting you so you will never find a job elsewhere," said Xavier, dismissing them.


    The two maids immediately started pleading for forgiveness even though they doubted they would be forgiven.


    "Sir, we never meant to do that. Miss, please forgive us. We are very sorry for what we did."


    Anastasia stared at them, a little shocked that Xavier was going to cklist them. She wanted to stop him, but her eyes fell on the food on her body, her anger surged.


    "You both got what you deserve, now leave this house immediately before I call security and embarrass you even more. I’m only giving you 30 minutes."


    Ste bit her lips before she hastily pulled her fellow maid away from the dining table. She had acted impulsively, not thinking through the consequences of her actions. She should have waited, taking a moment to reconsider her move.


    Now, regret was written all over her face.


    The dining room became silent.


    "I will go take a shower," said Anastasia, breaking the silence.


    Xavier nodded. She climbed the stairs and headed towards her room while Xavier’s eyes burned in her back.


    He had thought that Anastasia would be safe in his house, but it seemed there were dogs he needed to warn first. He realized the threats were closer than he had anticipated, and he would have to take measures to protect her.