The sound of keys jingling sharply alerted Mark to his wife's quick movement.
He turned his head fast and saw Sarah heading straight for the front door.
Mark: Where do you think you are going right now, Sarah?
Sarah: I am leaving before he comes here to collect the rest!
Mark: You are not walking away from this mess you created today!
Mark stepped over the coffee table quickly to intercept her at the front entryway.
Sarah grabbed her heavy leather coat from the brass coat rack near the door.
Sarah: If I stay here any longer he will come inside this house!
Mark: Let him come so I can call the police and end this!
Sarah: If you call the police I will go to jail for fraud!
Mark: You should have thought about that before stealing from our own child!
Sarah grabbed the metal doorknob and twisted it with all her physical strength.
Mark reached out quickly and slammed the door shut before she could step outside.
The loud bang made the small glass window panels rattle in their white frames.
Mark: You are not running away like a coward while Lily suffers!
Sarah: Let go of the door right now, Mark!
She swung her handbag hard toward his face in a sudden fit of panic.
Mark dodged the heavy bag easily and grabbed her by both wrists firmly.
He held her hands down safely so she could not strike him or hurt herself.
Mark: Calm down and listen to me very carefully right now!
Sarah: Get your hands off me right this second!
Mark: I am saving our family while you are trying to destroy it!
Sarah struggled against his firm grip for a moment before bursting into loud tears.
She sank down onto her knees on the light wooden floor of the bright hallway.
Mark released her wrists carefully and stepped back two paces to keep distance.
Sarah: He wants another fifty thousand dollars by five o'clock today!
Mark: We do not have fifty dollars left because you emptied our accounts!
Sarah: He said he would take Lily if I did not pay him!
Mark felt a wave of icy horror wash over his entire body at her words.
The threat against his innocent daughter changed everything in a single fraction of a second.
He knelt down quickly in front of his weeping wife and grabbed her shoulders.
Mark: Did a man actually threaten to kidnap my daughter today?
Sarah: Yes, he called me thirty minutes before you came home!
Mark: Why on earth did you not tell me the moment he said that?
Sarah: Because I was terrified you would leave me if you knew!
Mark stood up immediately with a look of pure determination on his face.
He walked straight to the living room table and picked up his smartphone.
Mark: The time for keeping secrets in this house is officially over.
Sarah: What are you doing with your phone right now, Mark?
Mark: I am dialing the local police department and the federal authorities.
Sarah: They will arrest me if you make that phone call!
Mark: I care about protecting my daughter, not keeping you out of prison!
He pressed the green call button and placed the phone securely against his ear.