Trying not to make any noise, 27-year-old Elizaveta Andreevna Malinkina cautiously moved down the corridor toward the room of Alisa — the 14-year-old daughter of the house owner. She needed to check if the girl was asleep so she could finally go to bed herself.
For two weeks now, Liza has been working in the house of billionaire Voropaev instead of her older sister Antonina, who suddenly fell ill during her vacation. She had to take over her duties. This job was very important for the family — the salary here was much higher than anywhere else in their area. Antonina had two children: 14-year-old Marina and six-year-old Vanechka.
The work was simple — keep the house tidy and, if possible, avoid being seen by the owners. But there was one “but”: on the days when Aleksey Voropaev and his fiancée Anzhelika were absent, Elizaveta had to spend the night in the mansion.
Aleksey Anatolyevich had a daughter, Alisa, and on such evenings she was left alone in the huge house. The servants’ quarters were on the other side of the estate.
Already on the stairs, Liza heard crying. She looked at the clock — three a.m.
“What’s this strange business? Crying again… This is beyond normal,” she muttered under her breath.
Gathering her courage, she knocked on the door. She wanted to understand what was happening. She was sure something serious had happened. If the girl had such a wealthy life, would she really be crying?
Although her sister had strictly warned her: “Don’t show yourself in front of the owners,” Malinkina still decided to go inside. Instead of just listening by the door, she opened it wide and entered the room.
“What are you doing here?! Who let you in?! Get out right now! I’ll call security!” Alisa screamed and threw a pillow at the maid.
Liza skillfully caught it and immediately threw it back. The pillow hit the mistress’s daughter right in the head.
“How dare you?! I’ll tell Dad, and you’ll be fired!” the girl protested.
“Let him fire me, I don’t care,” the woman replied with a hint of sarcasm. “It’s unbearable to live in your house. Not even peace at night. Someone is always crying. Don’t know who? — she smirked. — Oh right, it’s you. Probably Daddy didn’t give you the right star from the sky, or you broke an acrylic nail?”
Alisa burst into tears:
“You don’t understand anything! If you only knew how much I suffer!”
“I agree, hell,” Liza nodded. “If I had been driven to school by a chauffeur at 14, I’d cry too.”
“Why?” the girl asked in surprise.
“We used to go swimming after school, pick mushrooms in autumn, sometimes go to a café for ice cream. And you? No one visits you, you have no one to talk to.”
Malinkina headed toward the door, but Alisa stopped her:
“How do you find friends? I don’t have any at all.”
“None?” the woman was amazed.
“Not a single one. I used to have a mother, then my parents divorced. I was sent to study abroad, got sick there, and my father brought me back.”
“Why do you live with your father, not your mother?” Liza asked, feeling a familiar pain.
“Mom doesn’t want to see me. She has a new family — a husband and little kids.”
“Did she tell you that herself?”
“No. I haven’t seen her for a long time. My father tells me,” Alisa sighed.
“Your father is an idiot!” Elizaveta couldn’t help herself. “Only a complete selfish person would say such things to their child.”
“Are you talking about me?” came a voice from the doorway.
Both froze. A man about thirty-five entered the room.
“Oh, Dad, you’re back already?” the girl panicked, hiding under the blanket.
“Stop calling Anzhelika a poodle,” Voropaev said sternly and turned to Liza: “Who are you and what are you doing in my daughter’s room?”
“I’m the housekeeper. I just wanted to check if she was asleep,” Liza answered embarrassed.
“You were warned: do not enter, only listen behind the door. If necessary, wake Tamara Petrovna, don’t barge in.”
“Yes, I was warned,” the woman lowered her eyes, unwilling to betray Alisa.
“You’re fired,” Aleksey said coldly and approached his daughter’s bed.
Liza stood, not knowing where to go. She felt humiliated and worried — how to explain everything to Antonina?
Voropaev turned around:
“You’re still here? Leave. You’re fired.”
“Dad, no, she’s not to blame,” Alisa begged. “I asked her to come in. I had a terrible nightmare.”
“All right, this time I’ll forgive you. But if I see you near my daughter again — it’s on your own head.”
Liza quickly went to her room. How foolish it had turned out. She almost let her sister down. She definitely would not go to Alisa again.
Falling asleep, Liza thought about her older sister — Antonina Grineva. To her, she was always the dearest person. The age difference between them was eight years.
She remembered the times when their father was alive, the family was big and close, and their mother cared for them. Then their father got sick. He was taken to the city clinic and never returned.
Mother mourned for a long time but soon started abusing alcohol. Liza was thirteen then. She did not want to live with her mother and her new husband, Yuri Zhukov, and kept running away to her father’s house. They took her back by force, but she escaped again.
Once Liza went by train three hundred kilometers away. The police found her and sent her back. After that, social services intervened for the first time.
Then Antonina, who had just had her first daughter Marina, decided to take her sister in:
“Sasha, let’s take Liza? The girl will be lost,” she said to her husband.
“I don’t mind. But can you handle a baby and a teenager? Especially since I’m often on business trips,” answered Alexander, a helicopter pilot by profession.
He loved the sky but agreed to be home more for Tonya’s sake. However, he couldn’t completely give up flying.
So Antonina now lived in constant worry when her husband was on duty. But at least she saved her sister from the harsh conditions at their mother’s. Natalya Egorovna didn’t even resist — she wanted freedom, and Liza caused many problems.
The mother, handing over the younger daughter to the elder’s care, only sighed with relief and plunged fully into her careless life. Elizaveta was lucky — she ended up in Antonina’s caring home. For the first time in many years, Liza felt warmth, attention, and support.
Gradually, the girl pulled herself together: calmed down, improved her studies, and began to enjoy life. Now after school she hurried home not only to do homework but also to help her beloved sister.
She no longer visited her mother, even though she lived just a few blocks away. The resentment was too great. But at night she often cried, remembering her father — the dearest person who was no longer there.
Elizaveta graduated school with a silver medal and entered university without much difficulty. After earning a law degree, she became a lawyer and within three years joined a bar association.
The young Malinkina quickly earned a reputation as a promising and competent lawyer. Colleagues and professors predicted a bright future for her. A huge role in her career was played by Naum Yakovlevich Goldman — one of the best lawyers in the region, who became not just a mentor for Liza but also a close person.
Naum Yakovlevich had his own daughter but they had long lost touch — the Goldman family moved to Canada after a divorce. He stayed in Russia and now considered Liza his spiritual daughter. To many, he was a legend — not just talented, but a true genius of his craft.
Liza fully understood this and always considered it her fortune to study under such a master. And the only pain in his life was loneliness. Malinkina became his support. It was especially touching that she resembled his own daughter, so Goldman affectionately called her “my child.”
They met when Liza was lucky to become his intern. Later, starting her own practice, she maintained trusting relations with him, continuing to help and communicate almost like family.
“I will never abandon you, Naum Yakovlevich. Don’t even hope!” Liza said, driving the old man to his dacha.
“My child, I could get there myself. Why did you rush in the morning?”
“Get dressed and don’t argue. I’m waiting for you in the car. Where are your things?”
“I’ll pack my bags myself. I’m a man, after all. Or should I swallow them? Wait, I’ll be soon. You’ll have time to scold me,” Goldman grumbled hiding a smile.
Such dialogues were common between them — two people who became closer than family. Naum Yakovlevich even changed his will, leaving half of his fortune to Liza. Although she knew nothing about it — and did not strive for wealth.
For Elizaveta, the most valuable thing was the very presence of this person. Next to Goldman, she felt peace, protection, security — a feeling she had only experienced in childhood while her father was alive.
The old lawyer also couldn’t imagine life without Liza. He feared that one day she would leave — marry, start a family. If he had survived parting with his own daughter, now he could not. But he didn’t want to talk about it.
He made plans for Liza: marry, create a family, have children, become the country’s best lawyer. And thought of himself last.
Meanwhile, they only parted once a year — during vacations, when Liza went to her sister. Antonina had cared for her for so many years that Malinkina wanted to repay by helping, being near, at least partly repaying the debt.
Although now Liza could afford any travels, she still chose her sister’s home. It was a way to say “thank you” and simply spend time with loved ones.
She repeatedly offered Tonya to move to the city, where they could rent a spacious apartment, work, and raise children together. But Antonina refused. She was waiting for her husband — Alexander Grishin, a helicopter pilot whose aircraft crashed five years ago during a mission. The body was never found, and he was officially declared dead.
But Tonya did not believe this:
“I won’t go anywhere, Lizonka. What if Sashka returns? How will he find us in the city?”
“We will leave a note with the address,” Liza joked though feeling bitter.
She admired her sister’s strength of spirit, loyalty, and love. But deep down she felt sorry — years go by, life moves on. And Tonya keeps waiting…
Semyon Krachkov had long courted her, but she refused:
“How can I marry if my husband is alive? No one has seen his body — so he will return.”
Thus the Grishins lived in the village. Only when their daughter Marina finishes school and goes to study in the city, Liza would take care of her niece. Meanwhile, she visited relatives on holidays, sometimes on weekends, and always for her entire vacation.
It was during one of those vacations that Liza had to urgently come to help. Antonina had been suffering for the third day in pain but couldn’t afford to miss work. She was a housekeeper in the house of billionaire Voropaev.
The rich like to live outside the city — they buy plots, build houses. The staff is usually recruited from local residents. The village was nearby; it took ten minutes by bike to get to work.
Therefore, Liza easily agreed with other workers — they agreed to cover the replacement and not tell anyone that Antonina was being substituted by her sister. The owners would not find out since most of the servants were strangers to them. Staff had to be invisible, trying not to be seen.
There were no such strict rules before, but since Voropaev’s fiancée Anzhelika moved in, everything changed. The future wife did not tolerate people without a million in their pocket. She despised the servants and did not want to see them.
The mistress demanded that cleaning be done outside the family’s presence, and when seeing any owner, workers had to disappear immediately.
“So we have to move like shadows?” Liza smirked hearing this for the first time.
“Yes, something like that,” shrugged housekeeper Tamara Petrovna, who had worked in the house for many years. “It’s all Anzhelika’s doing. She’s not even the wife yet but already acting like the boss.”
“While she’s the fiancée, and that means a guest,” Malinkina noted. “Guests can ask, but they don’t have the right to command.”
“Of course,” sighed Tamara Petrovna, “but no one wants to get involved with her. Voropaev proposed, gave her a diamond ring — the wedding is soon.”
“Well, good,” Liza smiled, “it works in my favor. Nobody knows me, so no one will guess I’m substituting for my sister.”
“To be honest, Lizonka, you better hide well if you suddenly see Anzhelika,” Tamara Petrovna grimaced.
“Why?” Malinkina frowned.
“You’re too young and beautiful. They don’t allow such to work here. Even your sister, Antonina, is too young for a servant — she’s the same age as Voropaev. And you are even younger…”
“Is she really that jealous?” Liza asked thoughtfully.
“Definitely! She even fired Masha Grenkina, though she’s not a beauty. But Anzhelika knows all about female cunning. They say she used to work in escort. Now she decided to ‘settle down’ — age is catching up, the forties are near,” the housekeeper lowered her voice.
It was clear the woman was eager to gossip. Liza already noticed that the household staff loved to discuss the owners among themselves, but no gossip left the mansion. Disclosure meant dismissal — not just for one but the whole staff. Everyone understood and treated the rule as a commandment. The job was too good to lose.
“Why did Aleksey Anatolyevich decide to marry such a woman?” Liza asked.
“Do you know how cunning she is? Like a fox. Years in escort gave her social manners: she speaks English, follows the news, understands politics, fashion, show business. With her, it’s not shameful to appear in public, and she looks decent. Now you understand?”
“No,” Elizaveta shook her head.
“Well, well, Liza! Aleksey never loved anyone. I’ve seen many women here, but he only looked at Vera — his first wife. He really loved her. The rest were indifferent. Anzhelika is part of the image. He buys her trinkets, takes her out. A man like Voropaev needs a wife.”
“A married businessman inspires more trust among partners. A bachelor is somehow unrespectable. So he decided to marry.”
“So he’s buying her?” Liza said thoughtfully.
“You could say that,” nodded Tamara Petrovna. “He pays, and we have to tolerate this village geisha. And Alisa doesn’t like her at all,” the housekeeper grimaced.
“Why did Voropaev separate from Alisa’s mother? The girl seems to suffer a lot.”
“Vera couldn’t take it. She felt like a bird in a cage here. Aleksey loved her, spoiled her, protected her, but almost never had time for her. He came home late when she was already asleep and left early before she woke up. Then he sent their daughter to study in Europe — that’s when Vera got really sad.”
“Then she found another man. Conflicts began due to her husband’s constant absence. Aleksey shouted money doesn’t fall from the sky, and Vera needed simple human relationships. But he couldn’t change his schedule.”
“Then Voropaev advised his wife to find something to do: entertain herself or find a hobby. Vera had graduated from art academy. She started attending exhibitions, communicating with artists, and asked to buy her a studio. Aleksey agreed. Since then she hardly left it.”
“One day at breakfast, as if casually, she said:
— Lesha, I’m leaving you.
— Why? — he was shocked.
— I fell in love with another man.”
It turned out she had been corresponding with an Englishman Jack — a famous and wealthy artist. They met at a Russian exhibition where he bought paintings. Then he came several times to Russia and met Vera in that very studio Voropaev gave her.
Now Vera is married to Jack and lives in London. After the divorce, Aleksey immediately brought their daughter back from Europe and transferred her to a Russian school. He forbade his ex-wife to see Alisa — still does not allow it.
The girl cannot adapt. Although she has been in Russia for three years, she can’t get along with classmates. She is too withdrawn and keeps everything inside. Childhood trauma and separation from her mother take their toll.
“In Aleksey’s soul lives resentment toward Vera, but his daughter suffers,” sighed Tamara Petrovna.
“You’re a real psychologist,” Liza smiled.
“Oh, come on! I’ve lived long and seen everything. Sometimes I say better than any psychologist: you are not one of us. Not the right berry from the bush.”
“What do you mean?” the girl asked surprised.
“What I see. You feel like a different breed — educated, intelligent. You’re clearly not a servant. Your sister is a simple woman, but who are you?”
Liza did not plan to reveal more about herself, so she answered evasively:
“I’m from a district center. Raised there but studied in the city. Now, excuse me, I have to go. The owners will wake up soon, and I haven’t cleaned the gazebo. They will have breakfast there.”
“True!” Tamara exclaimed. “What am I talking about? If Kopeykin wakes up, we’ll all be in trouble.”
“Who is Kopeykin?” Liza didn’t understand.
“That’s Anzhelika!” the housekeeper laughed. “She pretends to be an aristocrat, but in fact — Anzhela Vasilievna Kopeykin, daughter of our village’s zootechnician. From my village — from Sinkovka. Familiar name?”
“Familiar,” Malinkina smiled, grabbed a bucket of water, and ran to clean.
The girl hurried so fast she didn’t notice she bumped right into the house owner himself. Water spilled from the full bucket right on Aleksey Anatolyevich’s pants and shoes.
The billionaire’s eyes widened; he was speechless for a second but quickly composed himself:
“Again you? Listen, you weren’t fired yesterday only because Alisa asked. But that won’t save you from being fired for other offenses. Get out…”
“Forgive me… forgive me…” Liza took a brush from her apron pocket and began moving it through the puddles on the floor.
“Are you completely crazy? Do you think you can clean water with these brushes?” the owner shouted angrily. He was about to leave to change but suddenly stopped and sharply turned: “Tell me, how long have you been working as a housekeeper? It seems you don’t understand how to do it at all.”
“No-no, what are you saying! I’ve done all the housework since childhood. I have huge experience,” Liza’s heart pounded with fear — she was afraid she would be fired again.
“What’s your name?”
“Liza.”
“All right, Liza, keep working. For now.”
Malinkina quickly headed to the gazebo that needed cleaning for a long time. On the way, she overheard a fragment of a conversation between the owner and his fiancée:
“She poured water on you? You fired her, darling? Why?! Where is this person? I’ll kick her out myself right now!”
What Voropaev answered was unheard, but Liza felt he was persuading Anzhelika not to touch the staff.
While Liza feverishly prepared the gazebo for breakfast, Alisa came up to her:
“Hi. What are you doing?”
“Hi. Don’t bother me, please. Your dad almost fired me for the second time in the last twelve hours. At this rate, I’ll definitely lose this job soon. And I need to stay here, you understand?”
“Why?”
Liza stopped and stopped wiping the table:
“It’s a secret. Can you keep secrets?”
“Of course,” the girl blushed. Until then, no one had ever trusted her with real adult secrets. Her father always sent her out of the room when serious talks started.
“Then swear — not even under torture will you spill.”
“I swear,” Alisa whispered.
“All right. Just remember — this is very important. I’m not just a servant. I snuck in here secretly. Actually, I don’t work here.”
Alisa covered her mouth to keep from gasping and also whispered:
“You’re a spy?”
“No. Listen carefully.”
Liza told a little about her childhood, about her sister, and how she was ready to do anything for the family. Now her sister was sick and in the hospital, and Liza was substituting for her at work. Besides, she now had two nephews — fourteen-year-old Marina and six-year-old Pavlik. Marina tried to look after her brother while Liza worked, but the responsibility was still on her.
Alisa herself did not notice how she began helping to clean. Together they finished quickly, and from that moment their shared secret made them so close that the girl felt initiated into the most important cause in the world.
“I will never betray you, Liza,” she promised seriously, putting her hand on her chest.
“Thank you. You’re a true friend,” Liza said sincerely. Alisa took these words deeply and even cried:
“Really? Can I be your friend?”
Liza was a little confused but quickly recovered:
“Alisa Voropaeva, I offer you the hand of friendship.”
She did not yet know she had just found her most faithful friend. Alisa had never had friends before but was smart, loved books, and perfectly understood what true friendship was. Deceit, betrayal, and distrust were alien to her.
“Liza, are you staying here again tonight? What about Marina and Pavlik?”
“Yes, I’ll pick them up in the evening. But no one must be invited to my room — what if the owner finds out?”
“It’s okay, they can stay with us. We’ll swim in the pool, watch movies in the home theater, order pizza and sushi — Konstantin cooks great!”
“Who is Konstantin?”
“Our chef,” Alisa laughed.
“No way, I’ll definitely be fired if they find out.”
“They won’t. My friend can be anywhere he wants here. So don’t worry. And I’ll deal with the poodle myself.”
“What poodle?”
“Anzhelika,” the girl answered shortly, and they both laughed.
At that moment, Voropaev’s fiancée entered the gazebo. She looked contemptuously at Alisa and the housekeeper:
“Alisa, what are you doing here? Go into the house. When breakfast is served, you will be called. Until then, you have nothing to do here, especially with the servants.”
“But you didn’t ask,” the girl answered boldly. “You are nobody here. Manage your village.”
“Ah, you… Wait, when my time comes — then you’ll dance!” Anzhelika hissed through her teeth. Her lips trembled, fists clenched. It seemed she was about to attack Alisa. But suddenly she glanced at Liza, who lowered her eyes hiding her face. She remembered Tamara Petrovna’s warning: the bride fires young maids without hesitation.
This time Liza was lucky — the storm passed her by. She hurried to clean Voropaev’s and Anzhelika’s bedroom while everyone went to breakfast. After Aleksey Anatolyevich left on business, the usual work hustle began in the house.
Gardeners, cooks, guards, maids — all worked trying not to provoke the owner’s displeasure. Everyone wanted to keep their job.
After cleaning, Liza rested a little, talked on the phone with Marina and Pavlik, called her sister, and promised the children she would pick them up in the evening and they would spend time together in the billionaire’s house. Pavlik was thrilled — mom never allowed them to play in the mansion.
Having settled her affairs, Liza went to Voropaev’s office. The door was ajar, which seemed strange — usually the office was locked. Having gotten the key earlier from the head of security, she knew she had to return it after cleaning.
She stopped, thought, carefully leaned the cleaning equipment against the wall, and crept to the door. What she saw shocked her to the core.
Anzhelika, Aleksey Anatolyevich’s fiancée, was rummaging through the safe. She took out several documents, photographed them, carefully put them back, closed the safe, and wiped it with a handkerchief. Then she took off her gloves, hid the phone in her pocket, and straightened papers on the table.
Liza managed to record video and take several photos. When the woman finished, Malinkina grabbed her buckets and cloths and hid around the corner to avoid being noticed.
A moment later, Anzhelika left the office, looked around, locked the door, and hurried away. Liza took a deep breath — the danger passed. Barely had her heart stopped pounding when she cautiously peeked from behind the corner.
With trembling hands, Malinkina opened the door and began cleaning. When finished, she watched the recorded video several times, checked the quality, and sent it to Naum Yakovlevich. Then they exchanged a few messages, after which Liza smiled, said goodbye, and confidently walked down the corridor. She knew: now she had to strictly follow the instructions of her old mentor.
As soon as she told the lawyer everything that happened during her work at the Voropaev house, he sighed heavily:
“My little bird, how come you constantly find yourself at the center of the most scandalous stories?”
“I don’t understand myself, Naum Yakovlevich. I didn’t want to interfere with anyone. Tonya got sick, so I had to substitute her. Otherwise, she could have lost her job. And the owner’s fiancée — she’s just a snake! You can’t imagine. She fires all the young maids, and if someone is sick — immediately ‘out of the house.’ In her opinion, the staff must be flawless, like robots.”
“Voropaev… Aleksey Anatolyevich?” the lawyer was surprised.
“Yes, that’s him. Do you know him?”
“More than that. I’ve handled his family affairs for a long time. His father, Anatoly Mikhailovich, was a kind man. I defended his interests back in the eighties. Aleksey has been familiar to me since childhood. So you are now in his house?”
“Exactly there.”
“Listen carefully: don’t take any independent action. I’ll check Anzhelika through my channels first, then we’ll decide what to do next. I promise — quickly. Can you hold out a couple of days?”
“Of course,” Liza smiled.
The conversation ended. After work, when Voropaev and his fiancée flew to Sochi for the weekend, Liza took Marina and Pavlik, and together with Alisa, they had a real celebration.
They spent the whole evening having fun, playing, laughing. At night, when the children fell asleep, Liza checked on Alisa to make sure the girl was asleep. The room was silent — Alisa was indeed peacefully dozing. Today she was happier than ever. Malinkina understood how hard life was for her with her father and his new fiancée. But she also knew: the main thing is attention, care, and love. That was exactly what the girl lacked.
Elizaveta decided for herself that even when this story ended, she would remain in Alisa’s life. She imagined how many years later she would say: “I have known Alisa Alekseevna since childhood. I was always there when she had a hard time.”
Liza smiled but at that moment bumped into Voropaev himself in the corridor.
“It’s you again?” he was surprised.
“What are you doing here?” the girl asked fearfully. Thoughts raced: her nephews were sleeping in her room, the living room was still messy after the party.
“I live here,” Voropaev laughed quietly. “And you seem to feel at home already. This is the second time we meet in the corridor at night.”
“Sorry,” Liza smiled and whispered, “I was just checking if Alisa was asleep.”
“And?”
“She is. For the first time so peacefully and without worries.”
“What did you do to her? She suffered from insomnia for years.”
“I just became a true friend to her,” Liza shrugged.
“Listen, Liza, come to my office. We need to talk about my daughter. We stand like in the square, and it’s night outside.”
They quietly went inside. The owner offered the girl to sit in a soft chair and handed her a glass of drink.
“Sorry for my frankness, but why did you return early? Your fiancée is in Sochi, isn’t she?”
“Troubles in business. Someone got information he shouldn’t have known. Oleg Zaporozhnikov — my old friend and enemy. I think he leaked the data. I don’t understand how he managed to get the project before the tender announcement.”
“Do you think the staff won’t understand you?” Liza asked, slightly offended.
“No, not at all! I don’t think that. Forgive me for these words. By the way, about Anzhelika… I myself feel disgusted that she fires people without reason. But soon she will become the mistress of the house, and such decisions will no longer be mine.”
“Then why do you marry her if you don’t love her?” Liza asked, blushing but holding his long look.
“It’s not about love. I need a woman who will play the role of mistress, Mrs. Voropaev.”
Malinkina’s eyes widened:
“But that’s wrong. You can’t live without love. Love is the meaning of life. Love your children, your woman, your Motherland — that is the true goal of a person.”
“I don’t know how to love,” Voropaev interrupted. “Those I loved are long gone. And my ex-wife, whom I loved very much, left me for another. Maybe I just love wrong. Even my daughter…”
“Then you need someone who will teach you to love. But it’s definitely not Anzhelika. She will destroy you with her coldness. Because she doesn’t love you as you love her.”
Voropaev pondered:
“Could you teach me to love?”
Liza blushed and didn’t manage to answer — at that moment the door opened, and sleepy Alisa entered the office:
“Liza, I was looking for you! I came to your room, but you weren’t there.” She ran to the chair, sat beside her friend, and hugged her. A few minutes later, the girl fell sound asleep.
“Well, we didn’t talk again,” Liza smiled. “Maybe you’ll tell me why you came back so suddenly, leaving your fiancée alone?”
“Let her stay alone for now. I need to sort out business. The project that the whole team worked on may fail. A competitor submitted my proposal before me. I don’t understand how he learned about it. There are no traitors among the staff.”
“Tomorrow I’ll gather the board of directors, and the day after tomorrow my lawyer will come. I’ll have to close the project, but we’ll move on.”
“Remember who knew about the case. Who benefits,” Liza said thoughtfully. She already knew who was behind it but didn’t hurry to reveal the cards — she promised Naum Yakovlevich.
On Sunday morning, Liza went to the hospital with the children to see her sister. Antonina was almost recovered, and doctors planned to discharge her soon. That meant Liza’s work in the Voropaev house was coming to an end.
Liza thought with light sadness that she would soon leave this house. She didn’t want to go. Aleksey Anatolyevich was becoming closer, more interesting to her. And she felt that he looked at her not just as a servant. But how could a lawyer, even a promising and talented one, quit her practice and continue working as a maid?
At the thought, Liza even laughed.
Meanwhile, Alisa persuaded them to go with the company to the hospital to see Tonya, and then they all went to the beach together. Voropaev’s daughter looked at everything around with curiosity. It turned out she had never eaten cotton candy, never ridden a Ferris wheel, and never swam in a river.
The girl had expensive entertainment, luxurious trips, travels across Europe… but simple joys — those usually given to ordinary children — she didn’t have. She never jumped from a bridge into the water, never played in fountains, never went camping or roasted potatoes over a fire.
“I promise, this summer I’ll introduce you to all these things,” Marina promised. “And if Dad allows, we’ll even go to Liza’s city for overnight stays!”
“Really? Do you live in the city, Liza?” Alisa was surprised.
“Of course,” Marina blurted out and immediately bit her tongue.
“Seriously?” the girl said sadly.
“Yes, it’s true. I really live in the city and work as a lawyer,” Liza admitted. “Don’t be upset, girlfriend. We will definitely see each other. I think good relations are developing between me and your dad. So you will visit us.”
Alisa hugged Liza and smiled:
“Let’s have you and Dad get married! Imagine that?”
Liza didn’t answer, only blushed deeply. The idea suddenly stopped seeming absurd. Although not long ago she was afraid of Voropaev like fire.
The day went wonderfully. In the evening, Liza with her nephews saw Alisa home and returned to the village herself. It was her day off — the first in a long time. Tomorrow she had to go back to the Voropaev mansion.
In the morning, the phone insisted, the alarm demanded to wake up, but Liza postponed it again and again, hoping to sleep a little longer. Fatigue had accumulated: she had worked more in a week than in the whole year, and also checked at night if Alisa was sleeping.
As a result — she was late. Liza hurried as best she could but still arrived after breakfast.
“If I worked here permanently, I’d have been fired a long time ago. I’d have been kicked out of any house,” she thought, approaching the yard.
Alisa was already waiting for her on the porch:
“Faster, I covered for you. Dad already asked where you are. I said you’re helping in the kitchen.”
“Thanks, dear, you owe me,” Liza hurriedly replied, parked her bike, and went inside.
As soon as she changed clothes and entered the living room with Alisa, she saw two men — Voropaev and Naum Yakovlevich.
“Good morning,” Liza said embarrassedly.
“Hello, Liza. I was looking for you,” the owner smiled.
“I was in the kitchen… cleaning, cutting… and all that,” the girl tried to explain, trying not to look at the lawyer.
“She was cleaning, cutting,” Goldman chuckled. “Elizaveta, you overslept again. Tell the truth.”
Voropaev looked at him surprised.
“Aleksey Anatolyevich,” Naum Yakovlevich began, “let me introduce you to my partner, student, friend, and one of the best lawyers in our city — after me, of course. This is Elizaveta Andreevna Malinkina.”
“Sorry… and this is my maid — Liza… what’s her patronymic?” Voropaev puzzled.
“Elizaveta Andreevna… Malinkina,” the girl modestly replied, lowering her eyes.
Alisa watched with a satisfied smile. Now it was clear — the only one who didn’t know anything was Voropaev himself.
“What’s going on?” the man smiled confusedly.
“I’ll explain now,” Naum Yakovlevich said, swallowing a pill. “Liza is on vacation, temporarily replacing her sick sister. She’s the one who accidentally noticed Anzhelika rummaging in the safe and photographing documents. The video I showed you was made by Liza. So, while she was dusting your office, she got rid of the spy who was supposed to become your wife.”
At that moment, Anzhelika entered the house. She rolled a wheeled suitcase and was clearly furious:
“You left me alone, didn’t come back, didn’t send a helicopter, no one met me at the airport. I need to think well about whether to marry you, Aleksey!”
“Of course not,” Voropaev answered calmly. “Pack your things and leave. Before I call the police.”
Anzhelika looked around stunned.
“What is a servant doing here? Why is she even here?”
Without a word, Aleksey played the video and put the phone on the table next to her. Anzhelika understood everything. She turned pale but a second later began to scream hysterically that Voropaev was heartless, his daughter was nasty, and one day he would regret his decision.
Anzhelika left, the engagement was broken off. Voropaev really lost the tender, the project had to be closed. But new opportunities already loomed on the horizon, and Aleksey even felt relieved — everything happened exactly as it should.
Now he was seeing the city’s best lawyer (after Naum Yakovlevich, of course). Elizaveta became not only his beloved woman but also Alisa’s close friend.
Moreover, Liza convinced Voropaev to restore relations between Alisa and her mother. Aleksey did everything possible so they could see, communicate, and spend as much time together as they wished.
And so, in August, Alisa met her mother — Vera specially flew in from London. The girl hadn’t been so happy for a long time. And it was all thanks to Liza, who was soon going to give Alisa another important gift — to become her new mother.
