As it approached noon, Grace led the impeccably dressed Glaralf family of three away from the clubhouse to a neighborhood near Fifth Avenue on East 92nd Street in the Upper East Side.
The car stopped in front of a townhouse, and as they got out, Grace looked at the townhouse, feeling an inexplicable sense of unwillingness.
The Upper East Side, near Central Park, has many townhouses. Most of these townhouses are only 5 meters wide, looking very cramped from the outside. However, most people work their entire lives without ever being able to own such a house in this area.
The white European-style townhouse in front of Grace, however, had double the usual width. Specifically, it was 12 by 18 meters, with a single floor area of about 200 square meters. It had five floors above ground and one basement level, totaling 1200 square meters of internal space, and even included a rooftop garden.
This was the gilded cage that the little man had prepared for the Glaralf family of three.
Recently, Grace had come to quietly admire this dreamlike mansion more than once.
A luxurious townhouse with double the usual dimensions, located just tens of meters from Central Park in a prime area, with a total of 35 rooms, standard amenities, a gym, a home theater, a private wine cellar, and an indoor swimming pool in the basement.
Grace had inquired quietly and learned that a similar townhouse nearby was worth a staggering $21 million.
It's worth noting that it's no longer seven years ago.
During the 1987 stock market crash, the then-rising Simon Westeros purchased a duplex penthouse on East 68th Street overlooking Central Park. It was said that the owner needed to sell urgently due to financial difficulties, so Westeros got it at a bargain, paying $11 million for a property valued at $15 million.
According to some media reports, that duplex penthouse, which occupied the top three floors of a building right next to Central Park, had a total area of about 1200 square meters.
One notable characteristic of luxury houses in world-class wealthy neighborhoods like the Upper East Side is that, even when the real estate market is down, prices in these areas don't drop much. When the market recovers, the prices of top-end houses rise first.
Seven years have passed, and the price of that penthouse in a diamond-grade location has at least doubled.
Now, if it were to be sold, it wouldn't be hard to find buyers at a price of $30 million.
As for the townhouse in front of her, even though it wasn't in the most sought-after area between East 60th and East 80th Streets, Grace thought that, despite the career resurgence of the Spurlocks thanks to Simon, owning such a house would only be a dream.
A $20 million mansion is not something you can buy just because you have $20 million. To afford such a house, you need to have assets worth at least ten times the house price.
Grace, having visited this house several times before, had even thought of becoming a canary herself.
The Glaralf family of three quickly got out of the car. Grace stopped indulging in pointless sentiments and, with silence, stepped up the townhouse steps, took out a set of keys from her handbag, and opened the door.
There were already people waiting inside the townhouse.
A total of 11 people.
A housekeeper in her forties, six maids, and four female bodyguards who also served as drivers.
These people were not direct members of the Westeros family but were carefully selected professionals with impeccable records, dedicated and discreet, having undergone strict background checks, psychological evaluations, and polygraph tests before employment.
Aware of these arrangements, Grace had once asked out of curiosity during a phone call why such a team was necessary for the Glaralf family.
She felt that having a luxury townhouse in the Upper East Side was already extravagant, and arranging such a team to serve the three women seemed wasteful.
Then, that man said these people weren't serving the Glaralf family but the Westeros family.
Grace later figured it out.
In that little man's mind, the Glaralf women were like the townhouse or the furniture inside it—just objects. Comparatively, he probably valued the service team more.
It was still the power play of the big man.
Just like Grace herself, who, although nominally the vice president of Elite's North American branch, had unknowingly done many things for Simon lately.
And she wasn't even getting paid.
The service team in this house was actually serving the vast interests of the Westeros family. They were on the periphery now, but after passing the test and confirming their loyalty and reliability, they might move closer to the core of the Westeros family, like ABCD.
As for the three vases...
Thinking this way, Grace's envy diminished significantly.
Faced with the professionally uniformed staff greeting them in the living room, even the Glaralf family, who were not used to such a grand setup, felt somewhat restrained. Laura Glaralf quietly looked around for the owner of the house, but a name involuntarily popped into her mind.
Perhaps, the man who noticed her at the party had not forgotten.
The head housekeeper walked up, interrupting Laura Glaralf's thoughts.
Grace sized up the housekeeper in front of her. Probably around the same age, about 1.7 meters tall, wearing a black suit and high heels, with brown hair, a face that wasn't particularly beautiful but with a rather charming figure.
It seemed to fit a certain little man's preference.
Thinking this, Grace introduced Laura Glaralf to the housekeeper: "Laura, this is Angray Davis, the housekeeper of this townhouse. Angray, this is Laura and her two daughters, Cathy and Victoria."
Angray Davis smiled respectfully and shook hands with Laura Glaralf, not forgetting to greet the two girls.
Laura Glaralf felt puzzled. Why was Grace introducing the housekeeper? Shouldn't she meet the male owner?
However, she still obediently shook hands and exchanged pleasantries with Angray Davis.
After a brief greeting, Grace asked Angray, "Angray, is lunch ready?"
The housekeeper nodded, "Of course, Grace. Ladies, please follow me."
She gave a command, and the women in the room dispersed. Angray personally led Grace and the others to the dining room on the first floor.
Once seated, maids quickly served a series of sumptuous dishes, filling the long dining table that could accommodate ten people with a dazzling array of food.
After all the dishes were served, Grace had Angray open a bottle of red wine and pour some for everyone. She then dismissed all the staff from the dining room, and with the Glaralf family visibly dazed, she said, "Today is the first day, so I had them prepare a variety of dishes for you to try. See what you like, and you can order it in the future."
Hearing this, the family of three finally started to come back to their senses. Cathy Glaralf was the first to speak, "Ms. Grace, are you saying all this is prepared for us?"
Grace nodded, "You could say that."
Cathy looked around the room again, with an expression of disbelief and hope, "Then, is this place also...?"
Grace shrugged and picked up her utensils, "You must be hungry. Let's eat first."
She glanced at the table full of dishes and called in two maids to help serve the food.
The family of three, who hadn't had such a sumptuous meal in a long time, quietly started eating. An hour later, Victoria Glaralf burped loudly. Grace, who had long finished her meal and was savoring the wine, frowned and said, "Alright, stop eating."
The family of three paused and reluctantly put down their utensils, clearly still eyeing the table with longing.
Seeing their pitiful behavior, Grace mocked, "If you keep eating like this and ruin your figures, no one will want you even if you all went out together as call girls." She ignored their embarrassed looks and got up, "Follow me."
Leaving the dining room, Grace climbed the stairs to the rooftop garden.
Seated under a trellis covered in green vines, with servants bringing coffee and then retreating, Grace glanced at the three women sitting around the round table. "You're not stupid. You should have guessed by now. Yes, this place is prepared for you by Mr. Westeros."
Laura Glaralf's two daughters didn't know about the opportunity their mother had lost to Grace. Upon hearing this, Cathy Glaralf blurted out, "Simon Westeros?"
Grace nodded, glancing at Laura, "Didn't your mother tell you?"
Both girls turned to their mother.
The relationship between the three had been strained recently, often resulting in arguments. Laura Glaralf couldn't have possibly told them this.
Grace didn't press further, "I'll say this only once. Actually, I didn't want to remind you because I can't afford such a house or enjoy the service of so many servants, so I hope you'll be kicked out. But I dare not go against Mr. Westeros' wishes."
She took a sip of coffee before continuing, "You now have a choice. Accept everything here, and some things should be obvious. If you cross the line, you'll be kicked out immediately, with no chance of even living in a basement."
Finishing, Grace took a credit card from her handbag and placed it on the table, "All expenses in the house are covered. This is your pocket money, $30,000 a month. You might be able to charge more, but I don't know what will happen if you do. You can ask Angray about other things in the house. That's all. I have a lot of work to do. You have tonight to think it over. Give me an answer
tomorrow morning, whether to stay here or return to the East Village basement with me."
Hearing the word "basement," Victoria Glaralf visibly shuddered.
Who would want to return to hell after reaching heaven?
Laura Glaralf stood up to follow Grace, who picked up her handbag and prepared to leave, asking, "Grace, what about... Mr. Westeros?"
Grace understood and replied, "Simon is busy. He'll see you when he can, maybe tomorrow, maybe in a month, maybe even a year. Who knows? Oh, even if you stay here, Cathy and Victoria's modeling careers will continue and expand, as per Simon's wishes. As for you, keep being their assistant."
With that, Grace left.
Laura Glaralf escorted Grace to the stairway, stopping as she was blocked by the agent.
After a while, confirming Grace had left the townhouse, Laura returned to the round table. She immediately noticed the credit card left by Grace was gone, glaring at her daughters, "Where's the card?"
The younger daughter looked at her sister.
Cathy Glaralf ran toward the stairs, her mother shouting, "Cathy, stop!"
Cathy didn't stop, "I'm keeping the card."
"I'm your mother."
"FU."
"What did you say? Say it again."
"F—U!!!"
"I'll beat you!"
Watching her mother and sister disappear in a shouting match, Victoria sat at the table, sipping her coffee and nibbling on a cookie. Remembering what Grace had said at lunch, she forced herself to stop.
Looking around, she saw a button on a vine-covered pillar. Understanding what it was, she pressed it.
A maid quickly appeared, "Miss?"
Victoria ignored her mother and sister, saying, "I want to sleep."
The maid asked, "Which bedroom, Miss?"
Victoria replied, "The master bedroom, the largest one."
The maid gestured, "Please follow me."
As they walked, Victoria asked, "What's your name?"
"Lisa Lockhart."
They reached a master suite on the fifth floor with an additional living room overlooking the street.
Entering the bedroom, Victoria looked at the soft bed, feeling a lump in her throat. She hastily took off all her clothes and dove into the bed, burying her head in the pillow, pulling up the thin quilt, finding a comfortable position, and looked at the maid, "Lisa, wake me for dinner."
The maid nodded, "Yes, Miss."
With that, Lisa tidied Victoria's clothes and shoes, then glanced at the bed. The young girl was already asleep, her face perfect and delicate, like a sleeping beauty hard to wake.
_________________________
[Check out my Patreon for +200 additional chapters in all my fanfics! $5 for all!!]
[w w w . p a t r e o n .com / INNIT]
[+50 PowerStones = +1 Chapter] [+5 Reviews = +1 Chapter]