Arthur looked back and forth between his pale wife and the trembling maid.
He saw the precious family heirloom held tightly in Elena's defensive arms.
Arthur: What on earth is going on here right now?
Victoria: Oh, thank goodness you are home early, my dear husband!
Victoria put her hand over her heart and let out a fake sob.
Victoria: This clumsy girl almost broke your mother's precious antique!
Elena: That is not what happened at all, sir!
Victoria: She was trying to move it without permission and dropped it!
Elena shook her head firmly, her voice steady despite her trembling hands.
Elena: She pushed it off the balcony railing on purpose, Mr. Sterling!
Arthur's face turned pale, then darkened with sudden, deep anger.
He looked up at the empty pedestal near the top of the stairs.
Then he looked back down at the maid kneeling on the polished floor.
He walked closer to them, his heavy leather shoes clicking against the marble.
Arthur: Elena has worked here for three years and never damaged a single thing.
Victoria: Are you taking the word of a servant over your own wife?
Arthur: I am asking for the honest truth about what happened here.
Elena: Check the hallway security camera near the ceiling, sir.
Victoria froze instantly as soon as those words left Elena's mouth.
Her face lost all its color in less than a second.
She had completely forgotten about the small security camera hidden near the chandelier.
Arthur noticed his wife's sudden silence and growing panic.
Arthur: Is there something you want to tell me, Victoria?
Victoria: It was just a complete misunderstanding, I swear!
Arthur: We will look at the video footage together in my office right now.