Julian stepped forward into the hallway with slow, heavy footsteps.
His dark suit looked sharp, but his face was deathly pale.
Sarah wiped her tear-stained cheeks and wrapped her arms around Leo.
She stood up carefully while keeping the frightened child behind her.
"Mr. Vance, please do not be angry with him," Sarah begged.
"The statue fell, but it was just a total accident," she added.
Julian ignored the broken bronze horse lying on the polished floor.
His burning gaze was fixed entirely on the terrified young boy.
"Why did you say that name, Leo?" Julian asked sternly.
"Where did you ever hear the name Mateo inside this house?"
Leo hid behind Sarah's grey dress and refused to look up.
Sarah felt a sudden surge of motherly protection deep in her heart.
"He is just a child who is frightened," Sarah said protective.
"He lost his parents and he is grieving his lost life."
Julian took a crisp white handkerchief from his front coat pocket.
His hands were trembling as he wiped cold sweat from his forehead.
"You do not understand what is happening here, Sarah," Julian said.
"That name belongs to a past I tried to bury forever."
Sarah looked at her employer with growing confusion and deep suspicion.
She remembered the terrible night eight long years ago very clearly.
Her baby boy had been taken from a municipal hospital nursery.
The police had closed the kidnapping investigation after only two years.
She had taken this housemaid job simply to support her life.
She never dreamed her wealthy boss was connected to her heartbreak.
Julian looked down at the shattered bronze horse on the floor.
Inside the hollow base of the metal sculpture was a papers roll.
The fall had cracked open a hidden compartment inside the bronze.
Sarah noticed the old yellowed legal paper resting in the debris.
Julian reached down quickly to snatch the hidden documents away.
But Sarah reacted faster and grabbed the folded paper first.