One warm Tuesday afternoon, Mark finished his office assignments much earlier than usual downtown.
He decided to surprise his family by coming home early to make a big dinner.
He parked his dark sedan in the driveway and walked quietly toward the heavy front door.
The front porch was decorated with lovely summer flowers that Brenda had planted last week.
Mark unlocked the wooden door smoothly and stepped inside without making any loud noise at all.
He expected to hear the television playing or the sound of joyful laughter in the kitchen.
Instead, the entire downstairs area was completely silent and unusually cold for late afternoon hours.
Mark set his black leather briefcase on the entryway table next to the mail stack.
He heard faint, muffled sounds coming from the top of the carpeted second floor stairs.
It sounded like a small child sniffling softly behind a heavy wooden door upstairs somewhere.
Mark walked up the padded stairs very quietly, his heart pounding with sudden deep worry.
He walked down the long hallway toward his daughter's brightly painted pink bedroom door.
He noticed that the shiny brass bolt on the outside frame was fully clicked closed.
Mark reached out his hand and turned the cold metal knob with a gentle turn.
The bedroom door was firmly held shut from the outside hallway by the slide bolt.
He quickly pulled back the heavy brass latch and pushed the heavy wooden door open.
Lily was sitting on the edge of her small bed with tears streaming down her face.
She looked up at her father with wide, frightened eyes as he entered the quiet room.
Mark dropped to his knees right beside the bed and wrapped his strong arms around her.
Mark: Sweetheart, why was your door locked from the outside like that?
Lily: Brenda told me I had to stay in here until nighttime came, Daddy.
Mark: Why would she lock you in your own bedroom, my sweet girl?
Lily: She said I was talking too much while she was watching her shows.
Mark felt a sudden wave of ice cold shock ripple through his entire body then.
He gently patted his daughter's soft hair while trying desperately to keep his voice calm.
Mark: Has this ever happened before today, Lily? Tell me the whole truth.
Lily: She locks the door almost every afternoon while you are away at work.
Mark gripped his hands tightly into firm fists as anger began building deep inside him.