High heels clicked rapidly on the white marble stairs leading down to the foyer.
Evelyn rushed down the steps while clutching her lavender gown with trembling hands.
Her face was completely pale as she looked at Richard holding his young daughter.
Evelyn: Richard, it was an accident! She slipped!
Evelyn: I tried to grab her dress, but she was too heavy!
Richard stood under the American flag while his expression turned into sheer rage.
His jaw clenched tight, and his eyes locked onto Evelyn with terrifying focus.
He could hear the fake panic in her high-pitched, desperate voice clearly now.
Richard: You did this on purpose!
Evelyn: No! How could you say such a terrible thing to me?
Evelyn: I love Maya like my own child, Richard!
Richard: I heard what you said on the phone about the trust fund!
Evelyn stopped dead in her tracks on the bottom step of the staircase.
Her eyes went wide, and her lips began to quiver with sudden guilt.
She stepped closer to Richard to try to grab his arm gently.
Richard stepped back sharply and raised his hand to block her path completely.
Richard: Never touch my daughter again!
Evelyn: Please, you have to let me explain what happened!
Richard marched toward her and pushed her back toward the front door hard.
Evelyn lost her balance on her high heels and fell onto the marble floor.
She clutched her hip in shock as she looked up from the ground.
Evelyn: Ah! Stop!
Richard: You are a monster, Evelyn!
Evelyn: Please listen to me!