Throughout the day, the adults of the family spent their time talking to each other, while Vinoria watched over the children. For her, it was much better to talk about imaginary friends with the kids, than hearing the parents discussing politics. 

The kids liked her, too. During these visits, they would also prefer the company of the servant rather than with their parents. “We like your last name, Miao, it sounds like a cat!” They always say to Vinoria. And often, the conversation would be the topic about cats. “When will dad give us a pet cat? I want a cat.” 

As the day slowly came to an end, Meira, one of the youngest children, spoke up to Vinoria. “We’re bored!” she complained while tugging on the edge of the servant’s sleeve, “Tell us a story, Kitty!” 

Lucca, another child, spoke up as well. “Tell us a scary story, one that will make us really, really scared!”  The boy was always quite fond of the servant.

  Vinoria tilted her head and took a few seconds to think of a story to tell. “Scary, you say? Then I’ve got one for you.” She then waited for the children to gather around to begin.

  “Once upon a time,” she started the story off, “There was a poor little boy who lost his parents, and was mistreated by his uncle. Because he didn’t get to go to school, he could only do low-class jobs and earn very little pay. He would sometimes have to do two jobs just to get by. And the money he earned? It was all given the relatives, people who acted like they owned him, as a master would own a slave…” 

  “Years went by, and the oppression and mistreatment had brought the boy to a boiling point. Something in him snapped one day! And he refused to return home, insisting on staying the night sleeping in the streets. He was noticed by some wealthy drunk man. The man might not have recognized the boy, but he does. The boy remembers his face well. One of the people who scammed his family and threw them into debt. One of the people responsible for the life he has now…”

  “The older man was, while drunk, generously offering the boy a job. He accepted and went with the flow, being placed as a servant of the servants of a wealthy family. The chef didn’t like the boy, and often gave him more work than the other servants. He stayed there for a while, learning some tricks and cheats from the other staff…” 

  “One day, he heard that the family was hosting a party and would invite friends over. Those ‘friends’ are also a part of the scam group that the boy dreamt of getting revenge on. So he made up a plan to get rid of them once and for all.”

Vinoria then lowered her voice, making it sound deeper and more ominous. 

“He used his charm to get access to the things he wanted, planned everything carefully, and made sure no one knew what he was up to…”

“One night, during dinner, he was asked to take the food to be prepared. He did as he was told, but before passing it on, he poisoned the food, which caused the ones who wronged him to die in their sleep. The servant then planted the vial in the pantry, making sure to wear his gloves when doing so. The blame was then placed on the chef, as revenge for their nasty remarks towards him…”

“What made it easy was that the family and their friends didn't dare to call the police, for they had dirty secrets of their own, and refused to have them revealed. What remained of the family that he had served had to dismiss the rest of the staff after giving them their last payment…”

“That seemed to be the end of this vengeful servant,” Her voice returned back to normal, and let silence fill the air, building suspense, before lowering her voice once more. Vinoria ended the story with, “But they say that this spooky servant is still out there, seeking for his next target!” The servant raised her voice at the last sentence, causing some of the younger children to jump with fear. 

The kids were somewhat shocked and scared by the tale, wondering if they would one day employ such a person. “That can never happen!” said Gabriel with disbelief. 

“Oh, but it can!” Zackery then spoke up. “When I was little, I heard mom talking to her friend about an article in the newspaper, something about a family being poisoned by some chef.”

The servant looked at their fearful little faces and smiled. “Right, time for bed, my little angels. Let’s go.” She helped them off the ground and tucked them into their beds. 

“Vinoria,” Meira called out, tugging on the woman’s sleeve, begging her to stay. “If that scary man comes to our house, you will protect us, right?”

Vinoria smiled warmly. “Of course, I will.” She gave the girl a little peck on the forehead and pulled the sheets to her neck. Once she was sure that all the kids were in their beds, she quietly stepped out of the playroom and headed downstairs to attend to the rest of the family.

As she was making her way down, the hallways felt dark and foreboding, as if there was something looming in the shadows, waiting for the right time to strike at her. Vinoria’s breath quickened as her eyes darted around every corner of the hallway, making sure that she didn’t take one step out of line to give anything or anyone a chance to catch her off guard. Quickly, but quietly, she rushed down the stairs. When she was close enough to hear the other members of the family talk and could see the light coming from the living room, her nervousness slowly faded away.