Elena pushed open the heavy wooden kitchen door and immediately locked it from the inside.
She sat Leo down on a soft chair near the island and poured him a fresh glass of milk.
The boy drank the milk greedily, wiping his mouth with the back of his dirty sleeve.
Leo: Is the angry lady going to put me back in the dark box?
Elena: No, Leo. Nobody is ever going to put you in that dark space again.
A loud bang rattled the heavy kitchen door as Victoria pounded her fists against the wood.
Victoria: Open this door right now, Elena! You are ruining everything!
Richard’s loud voice boomed from the hall as he argued with his wife outside.
Richard: Step away from that door, Victoria! The police officers are already on their way!
Elena sat down next to Leo and took his small, cold hands in her warm palms.
Elena: Leo, how long have you been staying in that hidden room behind the wall?
Leo: Since the snow melted. The lady gave me toys, but she locked the iron grate every morning.
Elena felt tears prick her eyes as she realized the boy had been hidden for months.
She heard sirens echoing in the distance, growing louder as they approached the front gate.
The kitchen door lock clicked, and Richard stepped inside using his master house key.
He walked over to the table with a stack of thick legal papers in his hand.
Richard: Elena, I need you to stay as an official witness to what happened today.
Elena: What is going on here, Mr. Sterling? Why was your child living in a wall?
Richard looked down at his shoes with a heavy sigh that shook his broad shoulders.
Richard: Five years ago, my late wife passed away and left her entire estate to Leo in a trust fund.
Richard: The terms of her legal will state that the money remains under my control only while Leo lives with me.
Richard: When I married Victoria two years ago, she hated that the trust fund didn't belong to her.
Elena looked toward the hallway door where Victoria was being questioned by arriving officers.
Elena: She hid him away so she could claim he went missing or ran away?
Richard: Worse. She was preparing to file for divorce and claim the entire inheritance for herself.