Ethan reached out, gently lifting Toby out of the blanket and holding him against his shoulder. The little boy rested his chin against Ethan's navy suit, his small brown eyes blinking up at his father with complete trust.
Ethan: Clara, sit down on the bench. Let Dr. Harrison examine your cheek.
The estate doctor hurried into the foyer carrying a medical kit, kneeling beside Clara to inspect the swelling along her jaw.
Dr. Harrison: The bone isn't fractured, Mr. Sterling, but she has deep tissue contusions. Clara took a severe blow to the face.
Clara: I am fine, Doctor. Really. Knowing Toby is safe is all that matters to me.
Ethan: You are not fine, Clara. You took a beating to protect my flesh and blood.
Clara: I promised Mrs. Sarah on her deathbed that I would never let anyone hurt this child.
Ethan stopped in his tracks, turning his head sharply toward the young maid.
Ethan: You spoke to Sarah before she died?
Clara: Yes, sir. The night before she went into the hospital, she called me into her private room.
Ethan: What did she say to you, Clara?
Clara: She told me she had a bad feeling about Victoria. She said Victoria had been visiting the house while you were at the office, looking at the estate deeds.
Ethan closed his eyes as a wave of painful realization washed over him.
Ethan: Sarah knew... Sarah saw what Victoria was before I ever did.
Clara: She asked me to promise that if anything ever happened to her, I would stay by Toby's side no matter what Victoria did to me.
Ethan: And you stayed. You endured six months of insults, low pay, and physical abuse just to keep a promise to a dying woman.
Clara: A promise to a mother is sacred, Mr. Sterling.
Ethan walked over to Clara, kneeling down on the white marble floor right in front of her. He took her trembling, bruised hand into his own.
Ethan: Starting today, Clara, your position as maid in this house is permanently terminated.
Clara’s heart skipped a beat, her eyes widening in sudden, fearful panic.
Clara: Mr. Sterling... please! Are you firing me?! Where will I go?!
Ethan: I am not firing you, Clara. I am naming you the Chief Executive Trustee of the Sarah Sterling Memorial Foundation.
Clara gasped, pulling back slightly in utter shock.
Clara: Mr. Sterling... that foundation controls eighty million dollars in trust assets! I am just a maid from Ohio!
Ethan: Victoria had ninety million dollars and three generations of high society, and she treated an infant like trash. You had an empty apron and zero power, and you took a fist to the face to save his life.
Clara: I only did what any decent human being would do, sir.
Ethan: Nobody else in this mansion moved a finger, Clara. You are the only person who stood between my son and total disaster.
Ethan pulled a fountain pen and a leather folder from his briefcase, setting them gently on Clara's lap.
Ethan: You will manage Toby's educational trust alongside me, with a permanent annual salary of three hundred thousand dollars, full legal proxy, and permanent residence in this estate.
Tears of pure, overwhelming gratitude spilled down Clara's bruised cheeks as she looked at the document.
Clara: Mr. Sterling... I don't know what to say!
Ethan: Say that you will stay with us, Clara. Toby needs someone who loves him for who he is, not for his bank account. He needs a real mother.
Toby reached his tiny hand out from his blanket, grabbing Clara’s thumb and curling his fingers around it tightly.
Clara broke into a soft, tearful smile, leaning down to kiss the baby's forehead.
Clara: I will stay, Ethan. I will protect him until my very last breath.
Ethan: Welcome home, Clara. You are family now.