Mark walked through the heavy front doors of his estate after a long day at the office.
The sunlight streamed bright through the tall glass panels of the entrance.
He expected to hear the quiet routine of a calm afternoon.
Instead, he heard a sudden loud crash echo off the white marble floors.
Mark: What was that noise?
He dropped his leather briefcase onto the polished entryway floor.
A heavy metallic rattle rolled down the grand central staircase.
Mark hurried toward the open foyer to see what had happened.
An empty baby stroller landed hard against the bottom step.
The frame bounced across the smooth tile and came to a sudden rest.
Elena: Oh my goodness, sweetheart!
Mark saw his housemaid Elena kneeling beside the bottom landing.
She held his six-month-old son tightly in her arms against her navy uniform.
The baby gasped softly in surprise but remained completely unharmed in her safe embrace.
Mark: What happened here?
Mark: Who did this?
Mark rushed across the wide floor to reach his family.
His heart beat fast against his chest in sheer terror.
Elena kept her arm wrapped securely around the small child.
She looked up toward the top balcony with clear anger in her eyes.
Elena: She threw it down the stairs!
Elena raised her right arm and pointed directly toward the top landing.
Mark turned his head quickly to follow her line of sight.
His mother Victoria stood beside the top railing wearing a silk dress.
She clutched her gold necklace as her face turned pale.
Victoria: Don't listen to her!
Victoria: It was a complete accident!
Mark stared up at his mother with disbelief in his eyes.
Mark: Get out of my house!
His voice echoed loudly off the massive double-height ceiling.
Victoria took a step back from the edge of the balcony.
She gasped loudly at his sharp tone of voice.
Victoria: How dare you speak to your mother like that?
Mark: Look at what just happened on these steps!
The silence in the foyer felt cold and heavy.
Mark reached down and carefully took his son into his arms.
The child placed his little head gently on Mark's shoulder.
Elena stood up slowly from the marble floor and adjusted her white apron.
Elena: I saw everything from the side hallway, sir.
Victoria: She is a liar who wants to save her job!
Mark turned a cold stare back toward the upper floor.
Mark: We are going to settle this right now.