Elena adjusted her apron as she walked through the huge front doors of the Vance estate.
The sunlight poured through the floor-to-ceiling windows and lit up the pale marble floor.
It was her first day as a live-in maid, and the house felt far too quiet.
She carried a stack of fresh towels toward the grand staircase near the main hall.
Arthur Vance was a wealthy man who inherited his family fortune and built a large shipping business.
He lived in the house with his new wife, Victoria, and his baby son, Leo.
Elena loved children and was eager to help take care of little Leo.
She heard sharp voices coming from the second floor near the indoor balcony.
Elena stopped in her tracks and looked up toward the upper railing.
Victoria stood near the balcony edge wearing an expensive gold dress that caught the morning light.
She was holding baby Leo, who was wrapped tight in a white knit blanket.
Victoria did not look like a happy mother holding her young child.
Her face looked tense and cold as she stared down at the hard floor below.
Elena felt a sudden chill run down her spine as she watched Victoria step closer to the edge.
The baby started to squirm and whine in the heavy silence of the grand foyer.
Victoria raised her hands slightly, holding the baby loosely over the polished wood railing.
Elena dropped her armful of towels onto the marble floor without thinking.
She sprinted forward across the slick floor as fast as her legs could take her.
Victoria opened her hands, and the white blanket slipped over the top rail.
Elena slid on her knees across the smooth marble floor with her arms stretched high.
She caught the small wrapped bundle snugly against her chest just inches above the hard stone.
The baby began to cry loudly in shock from the sudden quick movement.
Elena held little Leo tight against her shoulder and caught her breath.
Her heart pounded against her ribs like a heavy wooden drum.
She looked up at the second story balcony with wide, angry eyes.
Victoria was leaning over the top rail with a pale, shocked look on her face.
Neither woman said a word as the baby's cries echoed through the tall ceiling.
Elena patted the baby's back to calm him down while standing up slowly.
She knew in her heart that what just happened was no normal accident.
A dark secret was living inside this beautiful home, and Elena was now right in the middle of it.