The Housemaid's Secret
by Freida McFadden
Contents
Chapter 13
Overview
Xavier attacks Millie in the stairwell, sexually threatening her and trying to force her inside. Millie fights back with mace and sends him tumbling down the stairs, leaving him badly hurt but alive.
Although she lashes out in anger and briefly considers finishing him off, Millie stops herself to avoid returning to prison. She calls 911, signaling a turn toward legal consequences instead of violence.
Summary
On the stairwell of Millie Calloway’s Bronx building, her neighbor Xavier clamps a strong hand around her arm and pins her against the wall, cutting off her scream by covering her mouth.
Xavier taunts Millie for previously rejecting him and presses his body into hers, making his sexual intent explicit as he tries to force her inside an apartment.
Millie uses the arm Xavier grabbed to pull out her mace and sprays him in the face, then shoves him. Xavier tumbles down the steep stairs, hitting hard and landing in silence.
Millie rushes down, fearing she has killed him, but sees Xavier still breathing and groaning. Furious, she kicks him repeatedly, briefly fantasizing about making him fall further.
Millie stops herself, remembering she already spent ten years in prison and refuses to go back. She calls 911, choosing to seek justice through the police rather than killing Xavier.
Who Appears
- Millie CallowayFends off Xavier’s assault with mace, nearly escalates, then calls 911.
- XavierMillie’s neighbor who attacks her in the stairwell and is injured falling down stairs.