The Hidden Phone

“Stop throwing tantrums! Your father will be home soon and he’ll see what kind of girl you really are!”

The furious voice echoed from the second floor of the mansion.

Paloma, the new housemaid, froze at the back door.
She could hear a child sobbing — loud, desperate cries that made her heart ache.

“No one can stand you anymore! Stay there and cry until you learn your lesson!”
A door slammed shut with a loud bang.

“My God… what a mess,” murmured Célia, the older maid who had welcomed Paloma that morning.
“The lady of the house is having another of her fits.”

“The lady of the house?” Paloma asked quietly.

“Mrs. Verônica — the girl’s stepmother.”

More crying filled the halls, breaking the uneasy silence.

“And the father?”

“Mr. Augusto? Traveling, as always,” sighed Célia. “Listen, dear… this job won’t be easy.”

But Paloma didn’t hesitate.
She ran up the stairs, following the sound of the child’s sobs.

At the end of the hallway, a blonde woman — elegant dress, perfect makeup, cold eyes — came out of a room, slamming the door behind her.

“You must be the new maid,” said Verônica, smoothing her hair with a forced smile.
“Good. I have to go out. The girl’s just being dramatic. She’s fine — she always exaggerates.”

Without waiting for a reply, Verônica grabbed her purse and left the house, leaving only the fading trail of her expensive perfume.

The First Meeting

Paloma took a deep breath and knocked softly on the closed door.
“Hey, sweetheart… can I come in?”

The sobbing grew quieter.

“I promise I’m not here to scold you.”

She slowly opened the door.

Inside, a little girl with brown hair was sitting on the floor, hugging her knees.
Her face was streaked with tears, her eyes swollen and red.

“Hi, sweetheart,” Paloma said gently. “What’s your name?”

The girl hesitated.
“Camila.”

“Camila… what a beautiful name. I’m Paloma. Why were you crying?”

Camila pointed at her stomach.
“It hurts.”

“Are you hungry?”

The girl nodded.

“When was the last time you ate?”

“I don’t remember… Verônica forgot again.”

Paloma checked the clock — it was one o’clock in the afternoon.
No food, no breakfast.
Her heart broke.

“How can anyone forget to feed a child?” she thought, fighting back tears.

“Come on, let’s find you something good to eat, okay?”

Camila hesitated for a moment, then reached out and took her hand.

A Growing Bond

Three weeks passed.
Since that first day, Paloma had become the only person who could make Camila smile.
The little girl began to eat better, sleep peacefully, and laugh again — a sound that slowly brought life back to the house.

But one rainy afternoon, while folding clothes in the master bedroom, Paloma made a discovery that changed everything.

While organizing Mr. Augusto’s desk drawer, she found an old cell phone hidden under a pile of papers.
Next to it was a small bottle of unmarked pills.

Curious and uneasy, she turned on the phone.
There were dozens of deleted messages — but one remained.
And what she read made her blood run cold:

“She won’t remember a thing. Keep giving her the pills every morning. Once the process is done, the inheritance will be ours.”

It was signed: Verônica.

Paloma’s hands trembled.
The pills.
Camila’s constant fatigue, the dizziness, the stomach pains.
Everything suddenly made sense.

The Truth Uncovered

That night, Paloma waited for Augusto to return from his trip.
When he arrived, she approached him with urgency.
“Sir, please — you need to see this.”

She handed him the phone and the bottle of pills.

Augusto frowned, confused, and began to read the messages.
As the words sank in, his face turned pale.
It was his own old phone — the one that had gone missing months ago.

“My God… Verônica…” he whispered, horrified.

At that moment, Célia appeared in the doorway holding Camila’s hand.
The little girl looked scared, but when she saw her father, she ran straight into his arms.

Augusto knelt, hugging her tightly.
“I’m so sorry, my love… I didn’t know.”

Within days, Verônica was arrested — her plan fully exposed.
She had been drugging Camila to keep her weak and dependent, ensuring control over the family’s fortune.

Paloma stayed by Camila’s side through it all.
And when everything was over, Augusto did something no one expected:

He offered her a permanent place in their lives — not just as an employee, but as part of the family.

Camila hugged Paloma and whispered with a smile,
“Now I have two people who take care of me.”

👉 Moral of the story:
Sometimes the truth hides in the smallest details —
and real love doesn’t come from power or wealth,
but from those who truly care.