The morning light poured through the tall glass windows of the estate.
Ten-year-old Lily sat on the soft rug beside her younger brother Tommy.
They were looking at an old picture of their birth mother.
Their mother had passed away three years ago after a long illness.
Their father Mark was a wealthy businessman who traveled for work often.
Last year Mark married Victoria to give his children a mother figure.
Victoria: What are you two doing on the clean rug?
Victoria stood in the doorway with her arms crossed tightly.
She wore an expensive maroon dress that sparkled under the light.
Lily: We are just quietly looking at Mom's old photograph.
Victoria: That dusty trash does not belong in my clean living room.
Victoria stepped forward and snatched the photograph right out of Lily's hands.
Tommy: Hey, give that back to my sister right now!
Victoria: Do not speak back to me, Tommy, or you will regret it.
She dropped the photograph into her dress pocket with a cruel glare.
Victoria: Where is the golden locket your father left on the counter?
Lily blinked her wide eyes and shook her small head quickly.
Lily: I do not know what locket you are talking about.
Victoria: It was worth fifty thousand dollars and now it is missing!
Tommy pulled his sister's sleeve and began to cry softly.
Tommy: We did not touch any expensive locket today, stepmother.
Victoria: You are lying to protect your little brother, Lily!
Victoria walked over to a nearby table and grabbed a heavy stick.
It was a polished wooden pointer Mark used for his blueprints.
Victoria: Someone is going to confess to stealing before noon today.
Lily: Please, don't accuse us! We didn't do it!
Lily held out her hands to shield her little brother.
Victoria: If neither of you confesses, I will call the police.
Tommy: I am scared, Lily! What is she going to do?
Lily: Stay behind me, Tommy, everything will be okay soon.
Victoria stepped closer and pointed the stick directly at Tommy.
Victoria: Tell me where you hid it, Tommy, right this second!
Lily: Please don't accuse my brother, accuse me instead!
Victoria smiled a cold smile that did not reach her eyes.
Victoria: So you admit that you are the thief in this house?
Lily: No, I am saying we are both innocent of this crime!
Victoria raised the stick high in the air above their heads.
Victoria: Your father trusts me completely, so no one will believe you.
She slammed the stick down hard onto the low marble table.
The sharp wooden crack made both children jump back in terror.
Tommy: I want my daddy! Call our daddy right now!
Victoria: Your daddy is on an airplane and cannot help you today.
She reached down and grabbed the wooden heirloom box on the desk.
The box belonged to their birth mother and held her private letters.
Victoria: Since you stole my locket, I will destroy your mother's memory.
Lily gasped and dropped to her knees on the marble floor.
Lily: No, please, leave our mother's chest alone!
Victoria lifted the heavy wooden stick high over her shoulder again.