Victoria: "Brandon, don't look at that! It's forged! She's trying to set me up!"
Brandon: "Shut up, Victoria! Just shut your mouth!"
Maya: "It's not forged, Mr. Sterling. I found those files hidden in her private safe while cleaning the master suite yesterday."
Brandon: "This paternity test... it says Sophie isn't my biological child. But that's impossible. We did the IVF treatment at the clinic in upper Manhattan!"
Victoria: "Because it's a fake document, Brandon! She typed it up to blackmails us!"
Maya: "Keep scrolling, Mr. Sterling. Look at the second page. Look at the lab stamp."
Brandon's thumbs swiped across the glass screen, his face draining of all color[cite: 1]. The document contained full certified lab records from New York Presbyterian, accompanied by signed affidavits from the former head of chief embryology.
Brandon: "The donor sample wasn't mine... You swapped the clinic samples four years ago?"
Victoria: "Brandon, listen to me—"
Brandon: "You swapped my DNA sample with Arthur Vance's?!"
Maya: "She did it so Arthur Vance could claim the Sterling family trust fund through the baby once your father passed away."
Victoria: "You stupid, ignorant maid! You don't know anything about high finance!"
Brandon: "So all this time... for three years... you let me raise this little girl believing she was my flesh and blood, just to funnel my family's estate to Arthur Vance?!"
Victoria: "Your father's will was unfair, Brandon! He left eighty percent of the real estate portfolio to a child that didn't even exist yet! I did what I had to do to secure our future!"
Brandon: "Our future?! You lied to me every single day!"
Maya held little Sophie tighter as the baby began to whimper, disturbed by the loud yelling echoing off the high ceilings[cite: 1].
Maya: "Shh... it's okay, little one. You're safe."
Victoria: "Give me that tablet, Brandon! Give it to me!"
Victoria lunged across the marble island, reaching for the screen, but Brandon slapped her hand away with a harsh crack that rattled the crystal glassware nearby.
Brandon: "Touch that device again and I'll have security drag you out of this building in chains!"
Victoria: "You wouldn't dare! Think of the press! Think of the stock price for Sterling Global!"
Brandon: "I don't care about the stock price! You put a lighter to a baby's hand, Victoria!"[cite: 1]
Maya: "She was threatening to burn her, Mr. Sterling. She thought Sophie knew where the drive was hidden because I hid it inside her stuffed bear."
Brandon: "You monster... You were going to hurt an innocent child over money?!"
Victoria: "She's not your daughter anyway! Why do you care so much about her?!"
Brandon froze, his chest heaving as he stared at his wife[cite: 1]. His eyes slowly shifted to Maya, who was gently bouncing Sophie on her hip, whispering sweet words to keep the baby calm[cite: 1].
Brandon: "I changed her diapers. I stayed up with her when she had a fever. I taught her how to take her first steps right on this floor. She IS my daughter, Victoria. DNA or no DNA."
Victoria: "You're a fool, Brandon. A weak, emotional fool!"
Brandon: "And you're a criminal."
Brandon picked up his personal cell phone from the counter, dialing three quick digits before placing the phone on speaker mode.
Dispatcher: "911, what is your emergency?"
Brandon: "My name is Brandon Sterling. I need police officers dispatched immediately to the penthouse at 432 Park Avenue."
Victoria: "Brandon, hang up that phone right now!"
Brandon: "I am holding my wife, Victoria Sterling, at location. She has committed child endangerment, fraud, and attempted extortion. Please hurry."