Mark walked back toward the messy puddle on the floor and noticed something shining under the fallen cabinet.
He bent down slowly while keeping his sharp eyes fixed on Evelyn's visibly nervous face.
Beneath the heavy carved table leg lay a tiny silver flash drive soaked in red flower water.
Evelyn gasped softly before quickly covering her mouth with her delicate trembling hand.
Mark picked up the small metallic device and wiped it clean using his cotton handkerchief.
This drive matched the custom security drives he used for storing sensitive legal contracts and bank records.
He remembered placing this exact drive inside his locked wall safe early that morning before leaving for work.
He looked directly at Evelyn and asked why his private financial records were out in the open room.
Evelyn claimed she had found it on the rug and simply tried to place it on the shelf.
She said the heavy vase slipped from her hands when she tried to move the wooden frame aside.
Mark knew that explanation made absolutely no sense given the position of the heavy furniture.
He walked over to his laptop computer resting quietly on the kitchen marble counter top.
He inserted the wiped drive directly into the port to see what had been modified or downloaded recently.
The timestamp on the file transfer history showed activity from just ten short minutes ago.
Someone had been trying to transfer his life insurance policy details onto an untraceable offshore server.
He stared at the bright screen while feeling his trust in his marriage evaporate into thin air.
Evelyn began pacing back and forth across the white marble floor while speaking in fast desperate sentences.
She blamed the software glitch on a potential cyber attack targeting high profile corporate executives like him.
She even suggested that Maria's brother who worked in basic computer repair might have done it.
Mark raised his hand firmly to stop her constant flood of dishonest excuses and accusations.
He recalled how hard Maria had worked to care for their home and defend their peace over the years.
Maria had never once asked for extra money or shown any interest in their complex family finances.
He decided it was time to check the hidden security camera hidden inside the wooden flag frame display.