The warm water ran from the bathroom faucet as Maya washed the red wine from her face and hair. Marcus stood in the doorway of her bedroom, holding a warm navy blue blanket and a glass of fresh water. His mind was racing as he remembered the cruel smirk on Victoria's face when he had opened the hallway double doors.
Marcus: Here, Maya. Wrap this blanket around your shoulders.
Maya: Thank you, Father.
Marcus: How long has she been treating you like this?
Maya: Ever since you took the CEO position in London six months ago.
Marcus: Why didn't you call me? Why didn't you tell me on the phone?
Maya: She took my phone, Father. She changed the security passcodes on the estate Wi-Fi and told the staff that I was mentally unstable.
Marcus: She did what?
Maya: She told the butler and the housekeepers that I was taking medication and that they shouldn't believe anything I said about her.
Marcus clutched his fists so hard his knuckles turned white. He walked over to Maya's vanity table and sat on the small wooden chair beside her.
Marcus: Is that why the butler looked so nervous when I walked through the front gate tonight?
Maya: Yes. Victoria told Mr. Henderson that if he spoke to you about her behavior, she would fire his daughter from the estate management team.
Marcus: She threatened my staff?
Maya: She threatened everyone, Father. She said she was going to marry you next month and take full legal control of the Sterling family business.
Marcus: That gold-digging snake... She thought she could isolate my daughter in my own home!
Maya: She also brought a lawyer here yesterday while you were on your flight from New York.
Marcus: What lawyer?
Maya: A lawyer named Vance. They were sitting in your private study for two hours. I heard them talking about my mother's estate trust.
Marcus: Arthur Vance? The corporate bankruptcy attorney?
Maya: Yes! He had a red leather briefcase. They were printing out documents using your private office computer.
Marcus: She was trying to transfer the estate deeds while I was in the air...
Maya pulled a crumpled, damp piece of paper from her pocket and handed it to her father. It was a formal legal notice stamped with a notary seal.
Maya: I managed to grab this off the printer tray before she locked the study door. Look at the signature at the bottom.
Marcus unfolded the paper under the warm desk lamp. His eyes widened in absolute shock as he read the lines. His own signature was stamped at the bottom of the page, granting Victoria full power of attorney over Maya's inheritance fund in the event of his absence.
Marcus: This signature... it's a forgery. She used my digital signature stamp from the company server!
Maya: She told lawyer Vance that you signed it before you left for London.
Marcus: This is grand larceny! This is a federal crime!
Maya: She said that if I tried to show you this paper, she would make sure you never saw me again.
Marcus: That woman is not leaving this estate tonight without handcuffs on her wrists.
Maya: But Father... Vance said that without physical proof that she forged the documents, it's just my word against hers in court.
Marcus: Your word is enough for me, Maya!
Maya: But the board of directors won't believe us without evidence. Victoria told them I was lying about my mother's trust fund last week.
Marcus paused, staring down at the forged document in his hands. Then he looked up toward the corner of the bedroom ceiling, his eyes catching the subtle glint of a dark glass dome.
Marcus: She forgot one very important detail about this mansion.
Maya: What detail?
Marcus: Two years ago, after your mother passed away, I installed a closed-circuit security system throughout every single hallway and study in this house.
Maya: Victoria told the staff she had the cameras disconnected when she moved into the master suite!
Marcus: She disconnected the local monitoring screens in the kitchen. But the master control feed streams directly to a secure cloud server in my private office.
Maya looked at her father, a small glimmer of hope returning to her tear-stained face.
Maya: So the hallway camera was working tonight?
Marcus: Every single camera in this house was recording, Maya. Let's go check the security room.