ROOSEVELT’S POV

The house was quiet.

I sat on the living room sofa, holding a cup of warm tea as I watched the woman across the room.

Mina was on her hands and knees, her hair was tied back in a messy knot, she held a wet cloth, scrubbing the baseboards near the fireplace.

She didn’t look up, she just scrubbed the wood intently.

For the past two days, this had been her entire life, she woke up before the sun, cleaned the house, washed the clothes, and kept her head down. As soon as her chores were done, she ran back down the stairs to the basement and locked...