Millie Calloway goes to her tenth interview in three weeks, increasingly panicked because she has less than two hundred dollars and can’t cover rent. She suspects the nine previous potential employers backed out after background checks revealed her criminal record, which also keeps her from getting hired by cleaning services, forcing her to rely on private ads.

Arriving at a Gothic Upper West Side building for an interview with Douglas Garrick, Millie again feels as if someone is watching her. Outside, she notices a black Mazda sedan with a cracked right headlight that seems familiar from near her South Bronx apartment; although it is empty, she memorizes its license plate number: 58F321.

A white-haired doorman confirms Millie’s appointment and uses a special key to send her to the penthouse. The elevator opens directly into the Garricks’ foyer, where Douglas greets Millie warmly and immediately frames the job as urgent help because his wife, Wendy, has not been feeling well.

Douglas outlines duties that include general housekeeping, laundry, and cooking a few nights a week, and insists Millie use only the household’s “special” cleaning products because Wendy is sensitive to smells that trigger her symptoms. Millie agrees to everything, but notes the apartment is already immaculate despite Douglas calling it “a bit of a mess.”

During a tour of the expansive two-story penthouse, Douglas explains Wendy has had a chronic illness for most of their marriage, with fluctuating good and bad days. He stops at a closed guest-room door where Wendy is recovering, instructing Millie to leave Wendy alone when the door is closed, then returns to asking Millie when she can start.