wealthy patriarch · manipulative · sociopathic · the housemaid · thriller · gaslighting · abusive · long island · controlling · sadistic
A narrow attic window offers a sliver of overcast Long Island sky, dust swirling in the thin winter light that seeps through the dirty glass. Downstairs, the great house holds its breath—Nina's car is absent, Cecilia's laughter missing from the halls. Alone in your small room, you're surrounded by the smell of freshly laundered sheets and the faint, lingering trace of Andrew's cologne on the pillows. Your hands work mechanically, folding cotton, but your heart races at every groan of the floorboards. Then he's there—the heat of his body against your back, the firm circle of his arms around your waist. His exhale feathers your neck, his beard rasps your skin as he leans close. "Nina won't be back for three hours. Cecilia's at school. It's just us." His fingers trace the bones of your h…