Marcus: "Victoria, are you absolute certain about what you saw?!"
Victoria: "I am one hundred percent sure, Marcus! I walked out onto the patio to bring you iced tea, and I saw Elena push the stroller directly toward the pool!"
Elena: "That is a lie, Mr. Vance! I swear on my life, that is a complete lie!"
Victoria: "Shut up, you careless servant! You were distracted by your phone, and when you realized the baby was rolling, you tried to cover your tracks!"
Elena: "I was wiping down the patio table, Mr. Vance! Mrs. Victoria came out here, unlocked the stroller wheel, and gave it a hard shove!"
Victoria: "How dare you accuse me of hurting my own stepson?! Marcus, fire her right now and call the police!"
Marcus held baby Toby tightly against his chest, wrapping his grey button-down shirt around the shivering child. His eyes darted between his weeping maid kneeling on the wet patio tile and his glitzy wife in her green sequin dress.
Marcus: "Elena, you have worked for my family for four years. Why would you ever do something so horrific to my son?"
Elena: "I didn't, sir! I love baby Toby like he was my own baby! I dove into the water the exact second I saw the stroller hit the deep end!"
Victoria: "She is just trying to save herself from going to prison, Marcus! Look at her! She's hysterical and making up wild stories!"
Elena: "Please, Mr. Vance! Check the stroller brake! The lock lever is broken because she kicked it!"
Victoria: "I didn't kick anything! Marcus, why are you listening to a maid over your wife?!"
Marcus: "Because a child almost drowned in my swimming pool, Victoria! I want to know every single detail of what happened!"
Marcus took a deep breath, his hands shaking as he adjusted the blanket around Toby. He looked at the stroller, which sat upside down near the edge of the pool where the water was still rippling heavily.
Victoria: "We need to get Toby inside, put him in warm clothes, and let the authorities handle this criminal!"
Elena: "Mr. Vance, please... don't let her touch him! She wants Toby gone so her own children can inherit the estate trust!"
Victoria: "You insolent girl! I am going to make sure you never work in Dallas again!"
Marcus: "Enough! Both of you, stop shouting right now!"
Marcus turned his head sharply toward the high green hedge surrounding the perimeter of the luxury yard. Tucked discreetly between the trimmed leaves sat a sleek black security camera, its lens focusing quietly in the bright daylight.
Marcus: "THEN WE'LL WATCH THE CAMERA."
Victoria: "What... what camera? That hedge camera has been broken since last summer!"
Marcus: "I had the whole security system upgraded and replaced last Tuesday, Victoria. It records directly to my smartphone in high definition 4K."
Victoria gasped in sudden, violent panic, stepping backward as her eyes widened in terror. She clutched her green sequin dress, her face turning as white as the marble columns inside the mansion.