I stared at Derek, searching his face for any hint of the man I'd married five years ago. The man who'd held my hand through pregnancy classes, who'd cried when Ellie was born, who'd promised to love us both forever.
"Answer me," I demanded, my voice low but sharp enough to cut glass. "Why didn't you answer my calls about our daughter?"
Derek's eyes flicked to the side, never quite meeting mine. "I told you, phone died."
"In the middle of a medical emergency?" I stepped closer, invading his space. "While our daughter was burning with fever?"
He sighed, running a hand through his perfectly styled hair—hair that hadn't been disheveled by sleepless nights at Ellie's bedside. "Everything's under control, Eva. You didn't need to rush back. The doctor gave her medication. She's sleeping now."
"Under control?" I echoed, disbelief making my voice rise. "Maria said she couldn't reach you for hours. And now there are strange children in our house?"
Derek's jaw tightened. "You're overreacting. It's just—"
"Just what?" I pressed.
Before he could answer, another burst of laughter came from upstairs—bright, carefree, definitely not Ellie's.
Derek's phone buzzed again. He glanced at it, and I caught the corner of a text message: "When is she leaving?"
"Who's here, Derek?" I asked again, my patience wearing thin.
"No one important," he repeated, his tone dismissive. "Look, you should rest. You've been traveling for hours."
I pushed past him toward Ellie's room, my heart hammering against my ribs. "I'm going to see my daughter."
"Eva—" Derek reached for my arm, but I shook him off.
Ellie's bedroom door stood ajar, warm light spilling into the hallway. I pushed it open wider and rushed to her bedside.
My baby lay there, so small against the white sheets, her dark curls damp with sweat. Her forehead burned beneath my palm, her skin flushed an angry red. Small blisters dotted her palms and the soles of her feet—the telltale sign of hand, foot, and mouth disease.
"Ellie," I whispered, gently brushing her hair from her forehead. "Mommy's here."
Her eyelids fluttered open briefly, revealing glazed eyes that didn't quite focus on my face. "M-mommy?" she mumbled before drifting back to sleep.
I counted her breathing—too rapid, too shallow. The monitor beside her bed beeped steadily, tracking her heart rate.
"Where are her toys?" I asked, looking around the room. Ellie's beloved stuffed rabbit—the one she couldn't sleep without—was missing from her pillow. Her favorite books were gone from the shelf. Even the night light she was afraid of the dark without had disappeared.
"Maria probably moved them," Derek said from the doorway, leaning against the frame with casual indifference that made my blood boil. "To keep the room sterile."
I turned to him, fury building in my chest. "This is a child's room, Derek. It's supposed to be comfortable, not sterile."
He shrugged, checking his watch. "I have an early meeting tomorrow. We can talk more then."
After he left, I sat beside Ellie's bed, holding her small hand in mine, careful to avoid the painful blisters. My mind raced with questions that needed answers.
I found Maria in the kitchen, quietly preparing tea with trembling hands.
"Maria," I said softly, closing the door behind me. "What's been happening here?"
She jumped slightly, nearly dropping the teapot. "Mrs. Morgan! I didn't hear you come down."
"Please," I said, taking a seat at the island counter. "Call me Eva. And tell me what's going on. I know something's wrong."
Maria's eyes darted to the doorway, then back to me. She set down the teapot and wrung her hands in her apron.
"It's... it's not my place to say," she began, her accent thickening with emotion.
"Maria," I leaned forward, keeping my voice gentle but firm. "Ellie is my daughter. If something's happening in this house that affects her, I need to know."
The housekeeper took a deep breath, her eyes filling with tears. "There have been... visitors. Women. Children."
My heart sank. "When?"
"During your trips," she whispered. "Mr. Derek brings them here. They stay... they treat this like their home."
"And Ellie?" I asked, though I already knew the answer.
Maria's hands trembled more violently now. "The children... they don't play nice with Miss Ellie. And the women... they don't like her either."
I felt sick, imagining strangers in my home, mistreating my baby while I was thousands of miles away.
"Does Derek know how they treat her?" I asked.
Maria's eyes met mine, filled with a mixture of fear and resolve. "He sees everything, Mrs. Morgan. And he does nothing."
