David: Turn off that water, Clara. Take the baby off your back and sit down.
Clara: I... I don't want to get in trouble, sir. Mrs. Evelyn said she would fire me without my final paycheck if I didn't clean every dish from the party.
David: She doesn't have the authority to fire you, Clara. Turn off the sink.
Clara wiped her eyes with the back of her wet hand, reaching behind her to unbuckle the cloth carrier holding her sleeping son.
Evelyn slammed her porcelain teacup onto the marble table, making the fine china rattle loudly.
Evelyn: David, you are crossing a major line! I hired Clara to clean up after your sister's baby shower!
David: My sister's baby shower had fifty guests, Evelyn! You forced Clara to work a sixteen-hour shift yesterday, and then made her start at six o'clock this morning!
Evelyn: She agreed to the hours when she took the job!
David: She agreed to clean the kitchen, not to carry her sick child on her back while your friends threw trash on the floor!
Evelyn: Her child is not my responsibility. If she couldn't find a babysitter, she should have stayed home and forfeited her wages.
Clara: My son had a fever last night, Mrs. Evelyn... I couldn't leave him with a stranger. I brought him here because I couldn't afford to lose today's pay.
Evelyn: Then you should be thanking me for allowing a filthy child into my pristine white kitchen!
David: Lower your voice, Evelyn! You speak about her like she's trash, yet she works harder in one morning than you have in your entire life!
Evelyn: I am the mistress of the Sterling family estate! I don't have to work!
David: My father built this estate with his own hands, Evelyn. You married him three years before he died and immediately tried to take over everything he worked for.
Evelyn: Your father left this house to me in his original draft!
David: Key word, Evelyn: draft. The final, signed will is being unsealed at the probate office in downtown Dallas at noon today.
Evelyn's smug smile faltered for a fraction of a second, but she quickly smoothed down her beige blouse and straightened her posture.
Evelyn: It doesn't matter what the probate court says. I hold the power of attorney over all property assets until the final distribution.
Clara: Mr. David... please, I don't want to cause trouble between you and your family.
David: You're not causing trouble, Clara. Evelyn has been terrorizing the household staff for six months, and today it ends.
Evelyn: You think you can intimidate me, David? I have three corporate lawyers on retainer!
David: And I have the truth on my side. Clara, go put your son down on the soft velvet sofa in the library.
Clara: Are you sure, sir? Mrs. Evelyn said the staff isn't allowed off the tile floors.
David: The library is my personal room. Go rest him on the sofa, Clara. That's an order.
Clara nodded timidly, cradling her sleeping boy against her shoulder as she walked out of the kitchen toward the back hallway.
Evelyn watched her leave, her eyes burning with cold hatred as she turned back to David.
Evelyn: You are making a huge mistake, stepson. When the lawyer arrives, I will have you both thrown out through the front gates.