Vanessa: Ethan, you're hurting my arm! Let go of me right now!
Ethan: I said, you touched my son.
Vanessa: That crazy maid is making up stories! I was just picking Toby up because he was throwing a tantrum on the floor!
Ethan: I have eyes, Vanessa. I stood in that doorway and watched you drag my helpless baby across the hardwood like a piece of trash.
Vanessa: It wasn't what it looked like! He slipped, and I was trying to pull him up quickly so he wouldn't hit his head!
Ethan released her arm with a sharp push that made her stumble backward against the marble pillar. He immediately dropped to his knees on the hard floor, gently scooping the crying baby into his broad chest.
Ethan: Hush now, Toby. Daddy's got you. You're safe now, my sweet boy.
Toby: Waah! Waah!
Ethan: Shh, it's okay. Daddy is right here.
Clara slowly pulled herself up from the floor, resting a trembling hand against the wall while keeping her head lowered in fear.
Clara: Mr. Vance... I tried to stop her. I swear I tried to stop her as soon as I heard him crying in the hallway.
Ethan: Look at me, Clara.
Clara: I'm so sorry, sir... I couldn't save him fast enough.
Ethan: Did she hit you?
Clara: It doesn't matter about me, sir. The baby... this isn't the first time this has happened when you go out of town.
Vanessa: Shut your mouth, Clara! You are fired! Get out of my house this instant!
Ethan: You don't fire anyone in this house, Vanessa. I own this estate, I pay the salaries, and I make the rules.
Vanessa: I am your wife, Ethan! You are going to take the side of a maid over the woman you married six months ago?
Ethan: You are the woman I foolishly brought into my home after my late wife passed away. But you are clearly not a mother.
Vanessa: I am trying my best! Toby rejects me every single day! He cries every time I try to hold him, and it drives me crazy!
Ethan: He cries because he senses the malice in your heart!
Ethan stood up slowly, cradling Toby securely in his left arm while pointing a stern finger directly at Vanessa's pale face.
Ethan: Marcus! David!
The two security guards who had entered with Ethan immediately stepped forward, their faces stone-cold and professional.
Marcus: Yes, Mr. Vance?
Ethan: Stand by the front doors. No one leaves this hall. Not until I get to the absolute bottom of what has been happening in my absence.
Vanessa: Ethan, you can't hold me prisoner in my own home! This is illegal!
Ethan: This is my property, bought and paid for through my family trust. And right now, you are a prime suspect in a child abuse investigation.
Vanessa: Child abuse?! Are you insane?! I just pulled him by his wrists!
Clara: She locked him in the dark nursery for three hours yesterday, Mr. Vance! She turned off the baby monitor so no one would hear him screaming!
Vanessa: You lying little snake!
Vanessa lunged toward Clara with her fingernails clawing at the air, but Marcus moved swiftly, stepping directly into her path and blocking her with his broad shoulder.
Marcus: Stand back, ma'am. Do not make another aggressive move.
Vanessa: Get your hands off me, you oversized brute! Ethan, tell your guard to back down!
Ethan: Clara, tell me everything you've seen. Don't leave out a single detail.