Isabella: Arthur, darling, calm down immediately. This is not what it looks like at all.
Arthur: Not what it looks like?! My six-year-old boy was hidden inside a hollow wall compartment!
Ethan: Dad! Dad, help me!
Ethan broke away from Elena and ran toward his father, throwing his arms around Arthur's legs. Arthur dropped to his knees, wrapping his arms around his son while glaring up at his wife with pure fury.
Arthur: Look at him, Isabella! He is covered in dust and shaking! How long has he been trapped in there?!
Isabella: He was just playing a game, Arthur! The boy loves hiding in small spaces!
Elena: That is a lie, Mr. Sterling! She locked him in there from the outside! I saw her slide the brass latch before the gala guests arrived!
Isabella: Shut your mouth, you ungrateful maid! You are fired! Get out of my house this instant!
Arthur: She is not going anywhere! Elena, stay right where you are. Isabella, you are going to explain this to me right now!
Isabella: Arthur, the investors from the shipping fund are in the grand ballroom right now! If they see a distressed child wandering around, it will ruin the entire image of this estate!
Arthur: The estate?! You locked my child behind drywall to protect an image for a dinner party?!
Ethan: She said if I made any noise, I wouldn't get any dinner tonight, Dad!
Arthur's chest heaved as he stood up, placing himself squarely between his son and his wife. The high-key hallway felt suddenly suffocating despite the bright natural daylight streaming through the arched windows.
Arthur: You told me he was at his grandmother's house in Boston for the weekend!
Isabella: I said that to keep you focused on the board meeting! You were stressed out, Arthur!
Arthur: You lied to my face! You lied about my own son's safety!
Isabella: I did it for us! Do you have any idea how much money is riding on this foundation launch tonight?! The trustees expect a perfect home, Arthur! Not a messy child from your previous marriage!
Elena: She keeps a key in her purse, Mr. Sterling. She's been putting him in that partition every time you go on business trips!
Arthur turned his head slowly toward Elena, his eyes wide with shock and horror.
Arthur: What did you just say, Elena?
Elena: It's true, sir. Every time you fly to Chicago or New York for the weekend, Mrs. Sterling keeps Ethan locked in the servant corridor walls so she doesn't have to hire a nanny.
Isabella: That is slander! She is making up stories to get money out of us!
Arthur: Is that true, Ethan? Have you been in that wall before today?
Ethan looked up at his father, tears welling in his soft brown eyes as he nodded slowly.
Ethan: It was cold in there last night, Dad... I wanted my teddy bear, but she wouldn't open the latch.
Arthur: Last night?! You kept him in there overnight while I was in meetings?!
Isabella: Arthur, listen to me! He is fine! Look at him, he is completely unharmed!
Arthur: You are a monster, Isabella. An absolute monster.
Isabella: Don't you dare talk to me like that in my own home! I am your wife!
Arthur: This home belongs to my family trust, Isabella. A trust that you are about to be completely removed from.
Isabella's arrogant posture wavered for a split second, her eyes darting toward the foyer where several loud voices of party guests could be heard approaching the hallway.
Isabella: Arthur, keep your voice down! The board members are coming this way!
Arthur: Good! Let them see what kind of woman you really are!