David sat on the edge of Lily's bed for nearly an hour.
He rocked her back and forth until her soft crying finally stopped.
The little girl held tightly onto her father's grey suit jacket.
Outside the bedroom door, the house was completely silent and still.
David felt a deep ache in his heart as he thought about Clara.
He had trusted her with his home and his only daughter.
Now he felt like he was living with a dangerous stranger.
He set Lily down gently on her soft pink blanket.
David: Are you hurt anywhere else, sweetie?
Lily: My arm hurts a little bit, but you caught me.
David: You are safe now, nobody will hurt you again.
Lily: Is Clara gone forever?
David: She will not be staying here anymore.
David kissed his daughter's forehead and stood up slowly.
He stepped out of the bedroom and walked downstairs to the front foyer.
The front door was wide open, letting in a cold draft of evening air.
Clara was gone, but her handbag still sat on the kitchen counter.
David walked over to the counter and noticed several papers sticking out.
He pulled out a thick envelope stamped with a legal seal from a law firm.
It was a legal document regarding a large sum of money from his estate.
David felt his anger flare up higher than before as he read the title.
He assumed Clara was trying to change the life insurance policy in her name.
He grabbed his phone from his pocket and called his head security guard.
Security Guard: Good evening, Mr. Vance.
David: I want Clara removed from the property access list immediately.
Security Guard: Understood sir, we will update the gate security right now.
David hung up the phone and rubbed his forehead in deep frustration.
He went back up the stairs to check on Lily once more.
The bruise on Clara's face kept flashing through his mind again and again.
He wondered how she got that bruise during the scary incident on the balcony.
Did she trip before Lily fell over the railing?
Or was there something else that happened before he arrived home?
David sat down in his home office, staring at the security monitor on his desk.
He realized the hallway security camera had been recording the entire afternoon.