Adrian stood frozen on the cold basement floor.
He could hear Brenda's fast footsteps coming down the stairs.
Adrian: You told me Richard was dead!
Brenda: He was supposed to be gone, Adrian!
Richard: She hid me here to save my life.
Adrian: What kind of life is living in the dark?
Brenda: He was heavily in debt to dangerous people!
Richard: They were looking for me everywhere, sir.
Brenda: If they found him, they would have hurt him.
Adrian: So you faked his death three years ago?
Brenda: It was the only way to protect him!
Adrian looked from Brenda to the pale man standing nearby.
The truth hit him like a cold splash of water.
His entire marriage to Brenda had been built on lies.
She had used his money to buy food and supplies.
She had kept her former husband hidden under their floor.
Every night when Adrian was asleep, she visited this room.
She brought him home-cooked meals and clean clothes.
She had even taken out a large life insurance settlement.
That settlement money had paid for this very mansion.
Adrian felt a deep surge of anger in his chest.
Adrian: You committed fraud, Brenda.
Brenda: I did it out of fear, not greed!
Adrian: You brought my daughter into a house of crime.
Richard: She never wanted to hurt you or Mia.
Adrian: Be quiet, both of you!
Adrian turned around and walked quickly toward the stairs.
Brenda grabbed his arm with desperate, crying strength.
Brenda: What are you going to do now, Adrian?
Adrian: I am calling my lawyer right now.
Brenda: Please, they will send me to prison!
Adrian: You should have thought of that before marrying me.
He broke away from her grip and climbed the stairs.
The bright light of the sunroom blinded him for a second.
Mia was sitting quietly near the large glass window.
She looked up at her father with worried eyes.