The entire bathroom fell into a dead, suffocating silence. Richard froze, his hands trembling as he held his daughter's face between his palms.
Richard: What did you just say, Lily?
Lily: She killed mommy... I heard her talking to the doctor on her phone yesterday!
Evelyn: She's lying! She's traumatized and making up wild stories!
Richard: I said shut your mouth!
Richard stood up from his knees, his face twisted in absolute fury. He stepped directly up to the edge of the garden tub where Evelyn sat dripping wet.
Before she could pull away, Richard raised his right hand and delivered a forceful slap straight across Evelyn's face. The sharp crack echoed off the marble walls like a gunshot.
Evelyn's head snapped sideways, a loud gasp escaping her lips as her cheek turned bright red. She clutched her face, staring at Richard in utter shock.
Evelyn: You... you hit me?
Richard: You burned my daughter's head with a hot iron, and you think a slap is bad?
Evelyn: I was disciplining her! She was disobeying me!
Richard: What did Lily mean about her mother?
Evelyn: Nothing! Your ex-wife died of natural heart failure two years ago! Everyone knows that!
Officer Davis: Mr. Sterling, take a look at the secondary audio file uploaded to the tablet three minutes ago.
Officer Davis stepped forward, tapping the tablet screen. A clear, recorded phone conversation began playing through the tablet speaker.
Evelyn's voice rang out crisp and distinct from the recording, speaking to a man named Dr. Harrison.
"The medical examiner signed the certificate without asking questions, Dr. Harrison. The monthly payments will continue as long as Richard believes it was a weak heart."
Evelyn's face drained of all color. She scrambled backward in the tub, splashing water over the marble floor.
Evelyn: That audio is fake! It's an AI voice generator!
Officer Davis: That recording came directly from the encrypted cloud server linked to your private phone, Mrs. Sterling.
Richard: You poisoned Sarah... You poisoned my wife so you could marry into this estate!
Evelyn: Richard, please! I loved you! I did everything for our family!
Richard: You didn't love me! You wanted the fifty-million-dollar Sterling trust fund!
Elena stepped forward, pulling a small plastic bag from her grey apron pocket and handing it to Officer Davis.
Elena: Here is the bottle of liquid sedatives I found hidden inside Mrs. Evelyn's private vanity drawer this morning, Officer.
Evelyn: You sneaking little thief! You searched my private drawers?!
Elena: I searched the room because I noticed Mr. Sterling's tea tasted strange every night after you prepared it.
Richard: You were poisoning me too?
Evelyn: No! Richard, don't listen to them! They're framing me!
Officer Davis set the tablet on the marble counter and unclipped a pair of heavy steel handcuffs from his utility belt.
Officer Davis: Evelyn Sterling, step out of the bathtub slowly and place your hands behind your back.
Evelyn: Get away from me! Do you know who my family's lawyers are?!
Officer Davis: I don't care who your lawyers are, ma'am. Step out of the tub right now.