# Chapter 5: The Weight of Secrets and the First Day at the Garricks
Hello everyone, it’s me again! How are you all doing? Today I will continue to walk with you and review Chapter 5 of *The Housemaid’s Secret*. And trust me, this chapter is a quiet storm—full of hidden fears, tender moments, and the creeping sense that something is not quite right behind those elegant penthouse walls. So, let’s dive in, shall we?
We begin in a university lecture hall. Professor Kindred is explaining a dark, infamous case: the murder of Kitty Genovese, a woman attacked and killed while dozens of bystanders supposedly did nothing. It’s meant to illustrate “diffusion of responsibility,” but for Millie, it’s not just a theory. She sits there, squirming, imagining what she would do if she saw a man attacking a woman. She wouldn’t just watch—she’d call 911, grab a knife, even if she never used it. Deep down, she knows she has a powerful itch to help people in trouble. But as she later reflects, that itch has gotten her into trouble before. And Brock has no idea how complicated that really makes her.
After the lecture, Millie nearly walks right past her boyfriend. Brock has to chase after her, grabbing her arm. They have dinner plans—of course they do. He’s all charm and gleaming white teeth, grinning at her like a toothpaste commercial come to life. Millie manages a smile, apologizes, and then tells him about the lecture. Brock immediately recognizes the case, but he also knows something more: the Kitty Genovese story was sensationalized by the *New York Times*. There were fewer witnesses than reported; most of them couldn’t see what was truly happening, many thought it was a lovers’ quarrel, and some did call the police. One neighbor even cradled her when the ambulance arrived.
Millie feels slightly inadequate, a familiar pang she gets whenever Brock reveals he knows more than she does. Honestly, it happens a lot. Brock seems to know everything. He’s almost perfect. And that perfection is part of the problem.
He wraps an arm around her shoulders, and as they walk, Millie catches their reflection in a store window. They look good together—like the kind of couple who would invite five hundred guests to a wedding, buy a house with a white picket fence in the suburbs, and fill it with kids. It’s a beautiful picture. But Millie knows that picture isn’t the full story. Brock teases her for being “too nice,” and she laughs it off. If only he knew. She’s not as nice as he thinks. The truth is far heavier.
As they head toward dinner, Brock asks about her new job. Millie fills him in on the extraordinary Garrick penthouse—the second floor, the incredible view, the location. Brock lets out a low whistle. He estimates the apartment must’ve cost at least twenty million dollars. When she tells him Douglas Garrick hired her, he snaps his fingers. He knows Douglas! The CEO of Coinstock—a genuinely nice guy, according to Brock, whose law firm once helped him with a patent. Millie agrees that Douglas seemed nice. But even as she says it, she can’t shake the image of that closed door on the second floor. The wife who never came out to meet her. Something about that feels wrong.
Then Brock drops his little hint. The penthouse is only five blocks from his apartment. Hint, hint. Millie squirms. Brock has become a dog with a bone—he wants her to move in with him, and he won’t let it go. But Millie can’t shake the feeling that if he truly knew her, he wouldn’t want that at all. She loves being with Brock. She doesn’t want to ruin it.
She tries to deflect with a soft “Brock…” He rolls his eyes, backs off a little, but then he hits her with something bigger: “My parents would like to meet you.” Millie nearly throws up. And then he adds, “And I’d like to meet your parents as well.” Oh no. This is the moment she should tell him she’s estranged from her family. But the words just won’t come.
Brock is so perfect. Perfect job, perfect health, perfect smile. He wants to settle down, get married, have kids while he can still enjoy it. But Millie isn’t there yet. She’s still in school, still figuring herself out. She’s not ready for marriage. She just… can’t.
As they stand there in the middle of the sidewalk, a man nearly crashes into them, but Brock doesn’t care. He stops, looks deep into her eyes, takes both her hands, and says, “I’m crazy about you, Millie.” Then, with a vulnerability she’s never seen before, he adds: “Actually, I kind of love you.”
Her heart skips a beat. He’s never said that before. Not even with the “kind of” modifier. She opens her mouth, not sure what she’s going to say—but then she feels it. A prickling sensation at the back of her neck. Like someone is watching her. Is she losing her mind?
She finally manages: “Well, that’s kind of sweet.” She can’t say it back. She’s not ready to take that step when there’s so much about her that Brock still doesn’t know. Thankfully, he doesn’t push it. He just says, “Come on, let’s go get some sushi.”
And even then, Millie knows she probably needs to tell him one more thing: she doesn’t even like sushi.
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The next day is her first day working for the Garricks. Douglas has already arranged for the doorman to let her in and left her a key—a special key that fits into the elevator slot. The elevator creaks and groans as it climbs twenty stories. Well, nineteen. The building skips the thirteenth floor. No bad luck here, Millie thinks wryly.
As the doors open, she finds herself once again in that impressive, almost unreal penthouse. Douglas said they’d need her services several times a week, but the place hardly looks like it needs cleaning. It’s a little dusty—that’s normal for the city—but otherwise fairly tidy. Millie calls out, “Hello? Douglas?” No answer. She tries again. “Mrs. Garrick?”
Still silence.
She ventures into the living room, and once again, she feels like she’s stepped into a home from a century or two ago. One piece of this antique furniture would probably cost more than anything she owns. It’s beautiful. It’s uncomfortable. And as she stands there, surrounded by all that old-money elegance, she can’t help but wonder: What is really going on behind those closed doors?
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**Reader’s Impressions & Star Rating:**
This chapter is a masterclass in slow-burning tension. Freida McFadden gives us just enough romance to warm our hearts and just enough mystery to make our skin prickle. I loved seeing Millie’s internal conflict—her love for Brock, her fear of revealing her past, and her growing unease about the Garricks. The Kitty Genovese lecture isn’t just a psychology lesson; it reveals Millie’s protective instincts—and that’s clearly going to become very important. The ending, with Millie alone in that strange, silent penthouse, feels like a held breath. Something is coming. I can’t wait.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Rating: 4.8 / 5 Stars
**Next Chapter Prediction:**
I think Millie is about to hear something she shouldn’t—or see something she can’t unsee. That closed door on the second floor can’t stay closed forever, and the mysterious Mrs. Garrick will soon become impossible to ignore. Maybe Millie will accidentally open the door, or perhaps she’ll hear a cry for help. Either way, her instinct to help people in trouble is going to collide headfirst with the secrets of the Garrick household—and that’s when the real trouble begins.
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