Mark adjusted his dark grey suit jacket while standing in the center of the marble foyer.
The morning sunlight streamed through the tall glass windows of the estate.
He had spent millions on this property to give his eight-year-old daughter, Lily, a peaceful life.
Ever since his wife passed away six years ago, Mark had focused entirely on expanding his technology firm.
His massive business empire brought him unimaginable wealth, but it also left him feeling profoundly lonely.
That loneliness made him vulnerable to the charming charms of Victoria Sterling.
Victoria was a prominent socialite who always wore designer dresses and expensive jewelry.
She seemed like the perfect partner to help him raise his motherless child.
Mark looked up at the grand staircase where his daughter was standing in a small blue skirt.
Lily looked small and fragile against the vast background of the high-ceilinged hall.
Victoria stood directly behind the young girl, wearing a vibrant emerald green gown.
On the surface, they looked like a happy, high-society family preparing for an upcoming lavish wedding.
However, the tension hanging in the cool morning air was thick enough to cut with a knife.
Mark noticed how quiet his little girl had become over the past few weeks.
Lily barely ate her meals and constantly hid in her bedroom whenever Victoria visited the estate.
Mark assumed it was just normal childhood anxiety about gaining a new stepmother.
He trusted Victoria completely, believing she was acting out of pure affection for the child.
He did not realize that Victoria saw Lily as a obstacle to controlling his massive estate.
Victoria wanted the full attention of the family fortune without any rival heirs in her way.
She stepped closer to the child on the top marble step with a tight, artificial smile.
Her sharp heels echoed loudly against the white polished floor below.
Mark paused near the front door to check his smartphone for urgent work messages.
He missed the cold, hateful glare that Victoria directed at the small girl's back.
Lily turned around slowly, her little fingers tightly gripping the glass banister.
Her small shoulders were shaking as she looked up at the older woman.
Mark put his phone back into his pocket and walked toward the center of the hall.
He wanted to take both of them out for a family breakfast before his morning meetings.
Instead, he heard the low, venomous harsh tone of Victoria's voice ringing through the house.