Victoria stomped out of the kitchen with heavy, angry steps echoing behind her.
The sound of her bedroom door slamming upstairs shook the light fixtures slightly.
Sarah sat down on the leather barstool and held Toby gently.
Mark brought over a warm wet towel to wipe Toby’s wet cheeks.
Mark: I am so sorry I was not home earlier to stop this.
Sarah: She has been getting more hostile over the last few weeks.
Sarah: I thought she was just frustrated about her job hunt.
Mark: Something else is going on here, Sarah.
Mark pulled out his smartphone and opened the home security application.
He rewound the digital footage from the kitchen camera to earlier that morning.
What they saw on the screen made both of them freeze in place.
Victoria had not been looking for accounting jobs on her laptop at all.
She had been opening the drawers in Mark’s private home office earlier today.
The camera caught her taking clear photos of sensitive financial documents with her phone.
She was taking pictures of the family trust fund papers and estate wills.
Sarah: Why would she be photographing our personal legal documents?
Mark: She isn't just looking for a simple place to stay.
Mark: She is working with someone who wants access to the estate.
Sarah felt a fresh wave of panic hit her chest.
She remembered seeing Victoria talking hushedly on the patio yesterday afternoon.
Victoria had quickly hung up the call when Sarah walked into the garden.
Sarah: Do you think your uncle sent her here?
Mark: My uncle Richard has been contesting my father’s will for six months.
Mark: He lost the lawsuit last month in court.
Mark: He must have used Victoria to find a way inside our home.
The sound of heels clicking down the spiral staircase alerted them both.
Victoria walked back into the hallway carrying a large designer suitcase.
She had changed into a sharp black jacket and carried an expensive purse.
Her face was set in a cold sneer as she walked toward the front door.
Mark: Hand over your house key and the office access key card.
Victoria: Take them, I don't want anything from this miserable house anyway.
Victoria tossed the brass key chain onto the hard console table.
Mark: And delete the photos of my legal files off your smartphone right now.
Victoria froze with her hand firmly on the brass front door handle.