Page 12 of Hotel Mallois

"In any case, Marjorie," Katherine doesn't let her answer, "I remind you that your job is to ensure not only that my hotel's housekeeping service works, but also that the workers are well. I live here because I like to havecontrol of my businesses and know my employees' needs up close. I won't tolerate disrespect or injustices in my hotel."

Katherine's expression is so harsh that Marjorie doesn't want to tempt fate. So she decides to show submission and accept what her boss says.

Katherine Taylor leaves the office with a sensation she's never had in her life. She's always been one of those businesswomen who analyze everything that has to do with their businesses, thinks with her head and never lets herself be carried away by an outburst, but she's been about to fire Marjorie Garcia because, apparently, she has it in for the girl who's starting to own all her thoughts, and that's starting to worry her a lot.

Chapter 8

Like most of her rare days off, Jodie takes the opportunity to visit her mother at the nursing home. Every time she crosses the threshold, she feels a knot in her stomach because, out of the last fifteen visits, Amanda Claris has only recognized her daughter twice. During the others, sometimes she looked at her as if she were just another piece of furniture in the room, and other times she screamed, thinking she was a stranger coming to attack her. The doctors warned her these situations would come, but Jodie can't get used to them, and each time it happens, she leaves the facility in tears.

"How is she today?" she asks one of the caregivers in passing, head down.

The woman, somewhat plump with skin so dark that Jodie always finds herself fascinated by the contrast with the pure white of her eyes, has been caring for Mrs. Claris since she arrived and has witnessed several times when she didn't recognize her daughter.

"She's more lucid than I am," she responds, winking at Jodie, who stops dead in her tracks while feeling her heart pound.

"Really?" she asks hopefully.

"Very really, honey, so don't waste time talking to me and go see her."

"Thanks, Gladis," Jodie says before running down the hallway.

Indeed, as soon as she opens the door to the room, her mother recognizes her immediately, and when Jodie hugs her, she feels as if they've gone back in time. For a moment, she loses herself in memories of those years when her brother wasn't hooked on drugs and the whole family worked harmoniously running the family restaurant.

"You're thinner, honey, are you sure you're eating well?" her mother worries.

"Yes, I'm just a bit stressed with work, you know."

Her mother sighs, and Jodie can tell by the sadness reflected in her gaze that she's very aware of their current family situation. Again, she thinks of her brother and has that mix of conflicting feelings. On one hand, she misses him, and on the other, she hates him because she considers him responsible for everything that happened after his death.

Marvin Sinclair entered the world of drugs, and from there everything went downhill for the entire family. They tried everything possible to help him, but addiction turned her brother into a liar who knew how to manipulate and handle them as he wished. By the time they realized hewasn't just stealing money from the restaurant but had mortgaged it, it was too late, and within months, they entered an unstoppable spiral that ran toward a precipice that ended with Marvin's death by overdose, the loss of the family restaurant after selling it to avoid losing the house a few weeks later, and their father's suicide within a few months.

Jodie and her mother were also left with several debts that Jodie still pays today, but the worst part was that her mother let herself be overcome by sadness and dimmed in such a way that she became another burden for her daughter, until Alzheimer's also arrived a few months ago and Jodie had no choice but to place her in a nursing home.

"But I'm fine, Mom," Jodie adds immediately, taking both her mother's hands while drawing a genuine smile. "I'm not working at that bar you hated anymore."

"Really?" Amanda's eyes widen as she asks.

"Really," Jodie confirms. "The owner of the hotel where I work in the morning offered me to clean her penthouse in the afternoons. Just imagine the change - I went from being behind that filthy bar surrounded by creeps while serving drinks non-stop to get paid always late, to being in a luxury penthouse, cleaning what's already clean, working fewer hours, earning three times more and..."

Jodie stops just in time before saying she works next to a stunning woman.

"And what?" her mother demands to know with great interest.

"Nothing, just that Mrs. Taylor is lovely, nothing like that bunch of perverts."

"You make me so happy, Jodie," her mother sighs. "You're fighting so hard and you don't deserve what you've had to live through."

"It is what it is, Mom, none of us chose it, but it's what happened and now you and I are still here," Jodie says with her lower lip trembling.

"I know," her mother smiles and hugs her.

"With this new position, I think I'll be able to save a bit to try to cancel the debts as soon as possible. Today I asked Mr. Kumar to let me do overtime in the afternoon at Mrs. Taylor's penthouse and he gave me permission," Jodie smiles.

"No wonder you're so thin," her mother huffs.

"I'm fine, Mom, besides, I told you everything's very clean. I just have to maintain it and do basic things like the bedroom, bathroom, or kitchen."

An hour later, Jodie enters the Mallois hotel radiating happiness from every pore after visiting her mother. Not even running into Marjorie before reaching the elevators and having her almost pierce her with her gaze manages to dampen the joy that spending quality time with her mother has produced.

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