Carter stared down at the bright screen, his angry look slowly fading into confusion.
Carter: Chloe, what am I looking at right now?
Chloe: The high-definition camera you installed in the foyer ceiling last month.
Victoria's eyes widened slightly as she took an anxious step toward the young girl.
Victoria: Carter, this is ridiculous. We do not need to review security tapes right now.
Victoria: The maid is obviously guilty, and we need to handle this quietly.
Chloe: Why are you so nervous, Victoria? It is just a quick video clip.
Carter held up a hand to quiet his fiancée, his eyes fixed on the moving image.
The video on the tablet showed the upper landing of the grand staircase clearly.
The footage was crisp, showing the morning sunlight pouring through the large stained windows.
In the video, Elena was seen setting the stroller's safety brake near the wooden banister.
She walked away toward her supply cart, which was parked near the hallway entrance.
A few seconds passed on the digital clock counter in the lower corner of the screen.
Then, another figure stepped out from behind the decorative marble pillar on the upper floor.
It was a woman wearing a distinctive burgundy dress and high heels.
Carter watched in absolute silence as the burgundy figure approached the unattended stroller.
The woman reached out her manicured hand and deliberately clicked off the small brake pedal.
She gave the leather handle a firm push directly toward the top of the steep stairs.
As the stroller began to roll, the woman stepped back into the shadows of the pillar.
The camera captured her face clearly for a split second as she turned around.
It was Victoria, watching cold-heartedly as the stroller tipped toward the dangerous drop.
The video showed Elena hearing the rattle, turning back, and sprinting down the steps with absolute terror.
The clip paused on a clear frame of Elena catching the stroller at the bottom.
A heavy, suffocating silence fell over the wide marble foyer of the large mansion.
The digital display glowed brightly, exposing the dark truth behind the chaotic accident.
Carter's face went completely pale, all the color draining away in a matter of seconds.
He looked down at his crying baby, then at the tablet screen, and finally at Victoria.
His jaw tightened so hard that a sharp muscle twitched along his pale cheekbone.
Victoria took two steps backward, her hands shaking as she tried to compose herself.
Victoria: That... that video is altered! It is an electronic fake, Carter!
Chloe: The cloud system records live, Victoria. You cannot fake a real timestamp.
Elena: Oh my goodness... you pushed her on purpose.
Elena sank back against the wall, her hand still resting against her swollen, reddened cheek.
She had almost lost her freedom because of a calculated lie told by an envious woman.
Carter stood frozen in place, his mind racing to process the terrible reality before him.
The person he had planned to marry had put his baby daughter in extreme physical danger.
And he had just struck the brave woman who had saved his precious child's life.
The weight of his terrible error pressed down on him like a massive stone block.
He turned his head slowly toward Victoria, his eyes cold with unbelievable fury.