Mark dropped to his knees on the cold floor beside his tiny crying son.
He wrapped his strong arms around Leo and lifted him off the cold marble floor.
Leo buried his dirty face deep into his father's navy suit jacket.
The little boy was shaking from head to toe in deep sadness.
Mark wiped the rice and tears from his son's pale wet cheeks gentle.
Mark: Daddy is right here, Leo. You are safe now, my sweet boy.
Victoria smoothed down her expensive blazer with visibly trembling hands.
She put on a fake smile and stepped closer to the angry father.
Victoria: Darling, you are completely overreacting to a very normal situation.
Victoria: Kids throw tantrums all the time when they eat their meals.
Mark: He is sitting in a mess on a freezing floor while you ignore him!
Victoria: I was just giving him space to learn self independence today!
Before Mark could reply, a woman stepped out from behind a large stone pillar.
It was Elena, the house maid who had worked there for ten long years.
Elena had tears streaming down her own face as she held her mobile phone tightly.
Elena: Mr. Mark, please do not listen to a single word she says to you!
Victoria: Elena, leave this room right now or you are fired instantly!
Mark: Stay right where you are, Elena. What is going on here?
Elena walked past Victoria with absolute determination showing in her eyes.
She unlocked her phone and turned the screen around toward Mark.
Elena: I recorded everything on my camera for the past forty minutes, sir.
Elena: She locked his food away and made him sit on the floor like that.
Elena: She told him that nobody cared about him anymore in this house.
Victoria's face turned completely ghost white as she stared at the maid.
Victoria: She is lying to you, Mark! She just wants extra money from us!
Mark: Press play on that video right now, Elena.
Elena tapped the glass screen and holding the phone directly in front of Mark.
The clear audio recording began to play loudly inside the high vaulted room.
Victoria's cruel voice echoed off the white walls with terrifying clarity.
Mark listened to every single awful word with rising rage inside his soul.