Victoria: Ethan! I... I didn't see you come in! It was an accident, I swear!
Ethan: An accident? You pushed a pregnant woman down a flight of marble stairs!
Victoria: She tripped! She was rushing toward me with those papers and lost her footing on the landing!
Clara: She pushed me, Ethan! She put her hands on my chest and shoved me backward!
Ethan: I saw her hand touch you, Clara. I saw the whole thing from the foyer door.
Victoria took two steps back from the edge of the landing, her red dress rustling as her hands shook uncontrollably. The smug superiority she had carried for months was completely gone, replaced by pure terror.
Victoria: Ethan, listen to me. She's hysterical right now. The pregnancy is making her confused. You know how unstable she gets!
Ethan: Shut your mouth, Victoria. Do not say another word to my wife.
Victoria: I am the mistress of this mansion! Your father gave me full management of the estate before he passed away!
Ethan: My father gave you a home out of charity, and you repaid him by trying to ruin his daughter the moment he died.
Clara: The papers, Ethan... Look at the papers on the stairs.
Ethan gently lowered Clara onto a soft velvet bench near the entryway. He kept one hand on her shoulder, giving her a reassuring squeeze before leaning down to pick up several white sheets scattered across the bottom steps.
Ethan: What is this? This is a deed transfer for the family trust fund.
Clara: She hired a crooked lawyer while you were away in Chicago. She told the bank I was mentally unfit to handle my father's inheritance and forged my power of attorney!
Ethan: Is this true, Victoria?
Victoria: It's a legal safeguard! She was going to throw away millions of dollars on reckless investments! I was protecting the Vance family name!
Ethan: You were stealing from my wife while she was carrying my child!
Victoria: I built this estate's reputation! Without me, this company would have fallen apart years ago!
Ethan: You didn't build anything. You spent my father's money on designer clothes and gambling trips to Monaco while my wife grieved her father alone in this house.
Ethan pulled his phone from his pocket, his fingers tapping the screen with cold precision.
Victoria: Who are you calling?! Ethan, don't do this! We are family!
Ethan: You stopped being family the second you put my wife and child in danger.
Security Guard: Mr. Vance? Is everything alright in the main hall?
Two large security guards in black suits entered through the side doors, looking between the scattered papers on the floor and Victoria trembling at the top of the stairs.
Ethan: Escort Victoria to her guest room immediately. Lock the doors from the outside and make sure she doesn't touch a single phone or computer.
Victoria: You can't lock me in my own room! That's illegal! I'll call the police!
Ethan: Go ahead and call them. I've already got the security camera footage from the foyer being uploaded to the police department right now.
Victoria's jaw dropped. She looked up at the tiny black dome camera mounted in the corner of the ceiling, a cold sweat breaking out on her forehead.
Victoria: Ethan, please! We can talk about this! Think of what the press will say if this gets out!
Ethan: I don't care about the press. I care about my family. Take her upstairs now.
The two security guards marched up the marble staircase, placing themselves on either side of Victoria. She thrashed against their grip, but they firmly guided her down the long hallway toward the guest suites.
Victoria: You'll regret this, Ethan! I'll take half of everything in court!
Ethan: You won't take a single cent.
Ethan turned back to Clara, kneeling beside her bench and taking her ice-cold hands in his. He smoothed her hair back, looking into her tear-filled eyes with deep tenderness.
Ethan: Are you hurt anywhere, Clara? Did you hit your head?
Clara: No... you caught me in time. But my stomach feels so tight, Ethan. I was so scared...
Ethan: We're going to the hospital right now. The car is outside. I'm not leaving your side for a single second.