Mark stood inside the massive foyer of his empty suburban mansion.
The bright morning sun streamed through the high glass windows.
He looked down at his tiny son who was screaming loudly.
The baby had been crying for nearly two straight hours.
Mark gently rocked the infant in his tired arms.
Nothing he tried seemed to bring the infant any peace.
His wife had left weeks ago after a bitter divorce.
The court had awarded Mark full custody of their baby.
He possessed millions of dollars inside his personal bank account.
Yet he felt totally helpless as a brand new single father.
He walked quickly down the gleaming white marble hallway.
Footsteps echoed sharply against the quiet pristine walls of the house.
An American flag hung proudly beside the large front doorway.
Mark wiped a drop of sweat from his anxious forehead.
He checked the formula bottle but it was completely empty.
The little child turned red as his cries grew louder.
Mark felt a wave of deep panic rise inside his chest.
He was a successful CEO used to solving every complex problem.
Now he could not even comfort his own sweet son.
He paused near the base of the massive floating staircase.
Suddenly he heard fast footsteps coming from the long service corridor.
Elena emerged into the light wearing her neat burgundy maid uniform.
She had worked for the grand estate for almost two years.
She kept her head lowered usually while doing her daily cleaning.
Today her brown eyes were wide with intense worry and fear.
She stopped right in front of Mark with an outstretched hand.
Her breath was quick as she stared directly at the crying baby.
Mark braced himself as the baby continued to wail loudly.
He felt like he was failing his young child completely.
He looked at Elena and saw tears welling in her eyes.
She took a step closer without asking for his permission.