Arthur set Maya down softly on the leather sofa near the corner of the dark room.
He gave her a glass of cold water and wiped the tears from her red cheeks.
Arthur: Stay here for a few minutes while I look through these filing cabinets, okay?
Maya: Is Victoria going to make us leave mommy's house, Daddy?
Arthur: Nobody is making us leave this house ever, my sweet girl.
Arthur opened the lower drawer of his late wife's oak desk using his small silver key.
He knew his original marriage agreement with Victoria kept his former wife's property fully separate.
However, Victoria had spent the past month meeting with private financial advisers behind his back.
He pulled out a thick stack of blue tax forms and recent bank mortgage statements.
A loose letter fell onto the floor between his feet, showing a high balance trust account.
The signature on the bottom line did not match his late wife's neat handwriting at all.
Arthur felt a sudden surge of anger as he realized someone had forged important legal records.
Arthur: This signature was created just two weeks ago by a professional signing service.
Maya: I saw Victoria in this room last Tuesday while you were at work, Daddy.
Arthur: Did she touch any of these locked wooden drawers when she was inside?
Maya: She had a ring with silver keys and was putting paper into her bag.
Arthur took a deep breath as the terrible truth began to unfold before his eyes.
Victoria had not married him out of love or a desire for a happy home family.
She was deep in debt from failed real estate investments across the nearby city area.
She wanted control of Maya's inheritance fund before the girl turned ten years old next month.
A loud knocked echoed against the heavy wooden paneling of the locked study door right then.
Victoria: Open this door right now, Arthur, or I will call the local police department!
Arthur: Go ahead and call them so they can review these forged signatures right now!
Victoria: You do not have any proof of anything you are claiming against me!
Arthur slid the forged documents safely inside his inner jacket pocket and unlocked the door.
Victoria stood in the hallway with a sharp lawyer standing right behind her silk gown.
The lawyer carried a black briefcase and looked at Arthur with an uncomfortable expressions on his face.
Lawyer: Mr. Arthur, we need to discuss the title transfer of this residential property immediately.
Arthur: You have no legal standing to request any property transfer in this building today.
Victoria: My lawyer has court papers showing you agreed to name me sole trustee last month!
Arthur stepped into the brightly lit hallway and pulled his cellular phone from his jacket.
He knew he needed his own legal team before Victoria attempted another dangerous scheme tonight.