The morning sun poured through the high arched windows of the quiet suburban home.
Ten-year-old Lily walked down the long carpeted hallway holding her favorite stuffed bear.
Her mother Sarah was busy in the home office upstairs working on client legal files.
The house was usually full of soft humming from the floor cleaners every Tuesday morning.
Elena had worked as the family housekeeper for nearly eight months without any major issues.
She was always polite and kept her head down while finishing her daily duties.
However, Sarah had recently noticed small amounts of cash missing from her bedside drawer.
She assumed she had simply misplaced the bills while running quick errands in town.
Lily stopped near the quiet turn at the end of the second-floor corridor.
She heard a strange metallic clicking sound coming from behind the heavy wooden decorative mirror.
The mirror was attached to a hidden wall safe that held important family trust papers.
It also contained a rare diamond necklace left by Sarah's late grandmother two years ago.
Lily stepped closer on her soft canvas shoes without making any loud noise.
She peeked around the corner and saw the mirror swung open wide on its hinges.
Elena stood directly in front of the dark metal door with a small steel key in hand.
Her grey uniform shirt was tucked tight, but her fingers were trembling as she worked.
Lily: What are you doing?
Elena gasped loudly and jumped backward against the pale beige hallway wallpaper.
Her face flushed red before turning completely pale within a few fast seconds.
Elena: You scared me, Lily.
Elena: I was only dusting behind the frame like your mother asked me to do.
Lily: That safe is supposed to stay closed all the time.
Lily: Mom said nobody touches that wall frame except her.
Elena: The latch was stuck, so I was fixing it for Sarah.
Lily looked down at Elena's right hand tightly clenched behind her official grey apron.
A thick leather velvet pouch was visible right under the edge of her palm.
Lily: You have the jewelry box in your hand right now!
Elena: You are mistaken, sweetie.
Elena: Go back to your playroom and keep playing with your toys.
Lily: No, I'm telling Mom!