The marble foyer of the Dallas estate echoed with screams that made the heavy crystal chandeliers tremble above.

Evelyn: Say goodbye!

Maria: No! Stop!

Maria didn't hesitate. Throwing her body across the polished floor, the fair-skinned maid dove blindly toward the grand staircase. Her knees hit the cold stone hard, but her arms stretched out just in time. The swaddled newborn fell straight into her arms, tucked tightly against her chest.

Maria: I have you! I've got you, little one...

Her hands shook wildly as the baby let out a tiny, faint cry. Maria stayed on her knees, gasping for air, her heart pounding against her ribs like a trapped bird. Up on the balcony, Evelyn’s red dress stood out like a bloodstain against the white railing.

Evelyn: Give that child to me! You're nothing in this house!

Maria: You just tried to drop your own baby!

Evelyn: That isn't a child, it's a mistake! Give him back right now or I will have you arrested for kidnapping!

Maria pulled the baby closer, shielding his tiny head with her trembling hand. She looked around the massive foyer, her dark uniform covered in dust from the floor. There was no one else in the mansion—or so she thought. Before Evelyn could take another step down the curving stairs, the front double doors slammed open with a heavy thud.

David: Get away from my wife and child!

David rushed into the foyer, his face pale and his expensive suit rumpled. He didn't even look at his trembling wife on the stairs; his eyes locked straight onto Maria kneeling on the floor.

David: Is he okay? Is Lucas safe?

Maria: He’s breathing, sir. I caught him. I caught him just in time.

David: Thank God. Thank God for you, Maria.

Evelyn: David, don't touch her! She stole him from my arms! She’s trying to frame me!

David turned toward the staircase, his voice dropping to a terrifying, steady whisper that echoed off the high walls.

David: I saw you on the security feed from my phone, Evelyn. You're going straight to federal prison.

Evelyn: You can't do this to me! I'm your wife!

David: Not anymore. And you will never touch this estate or my son ever again.

Maria lowered her head, sobbing quietly as the infant's warm breath brushed against her neck. But as David stepped toward his wife to grab her arm, Maria caught sight of a thick envelope sticking out of Evelyn’s designer handbag—a document stamped with the seal of a law firm she recognized all too well.