Operator: Sir, stay calm. Are officers dispatched? Is the suspect still dangerous?
David: The suspect is injured on the floor. Send officers right now. The entire incident is captured on our internal security feed.
Martha: Tell them... tell them he pushed me! He threw an old woman off the stairs!
David: Shut your mouth, Martha! You pushed a pregnant woman first!
Operator: Units are en route, sir. Keep your wife safe until officers arrive.
I hung up the phone and set it on the glass coffee table, keeping one hand wrapped firmly around Chloe's waist[cite: 1]. Chloe was sitting back down on the plush couch, her face pale as she stared at the maid writhing in pain near the front door[cite: 1].
Chloe: David, what did she mean about your stepmother? Why would Victoria want to hurt me?
David: Because my father's original will states that if I have a biological heir, seventy percent of the family trust fund unlocks automatically on the baby's birth.
Chloe: Seventy percent? That's... that's tens of millions of dollars!
David: Exactly. And if I don't have a child, Victoria remains the sole executor of the estate for another ten years, collecting management fees and living in this mansion rent-free.
Chloe: So she paid Martha to make sure our baby was never born...
David: That's why Martha was hired two months ago. Victoria insisted on sending her here to "help" with the pregnancy. It was a setup from day one.
Martha: You can't prove anything! Victoria will deny everything! She has the best defense lawyers in Texas!
David: Is that so, Martha? Let's take a look at your phone.
I walked over to where Martha lay on the floor and pulled her smartphone out of her apron pocket[cite: 1]. She tried to grab for it, but she winced in pain and fell back onto the cold marble[cite: 1]. I used her thumb to unlock the screen and immediately opened her text messages[cite: 1].
David: Let's see here... "Contact: Victoria Vance."
Chloe: What does it say, David?
David: Listen to this, Chloe. Yesterday at 8:00 PM: "Make sure it looks like an accident on the stairs. The wire transfer of two hundred thousand dollars will hit your account as soon as the hospital confirms the miscarriage."
Chloe: Oh my god... she wrote that down in a text message?!
David: She thought she was untouchable. She thought a simple maid would take the fall while she sat back in her penthouse.
Martha: Give me back my phone! That's illegal search!
David: You just committed attempted double homicide on camera, Martha! Your privacy rights are the least of your concerns!
Outside, the loud wail of police sirens began to echo down the long, private driveway of our Dallas estate[cite: 1]. Red and blue lights flashed through the tall glass windows, illuminating the gold accents and the framed American flag on the hall wall[cite: 1].
David: They're here. The nightmare is over, Chloe.
Chloe: Make sure they arrest Victoria too, David. Don't let her get away with this.
David: Oh, I won't just get her arrested. I'm going to take away every single dime she ever took from my father's estate.