FABLE

Secrets Behind the Marble Doors

The Stepmother Dropped the Baby Over the Balcony Railing

Richard: Are you alright, Maria? Did you hurt your knees?[span_24](start_span)[span_24](end_span)

Maria: I’m fine, Mr. Vance. Just check the baby. Please make sure she’s breathing okay.[span_25](start_span)[span_25](end_span)

Richard: She’s crying, but she’s unhurt. Thanks to you. You saved my daughter’s life today.[span_26](start_span)[span_26](end_span)

Evelyn: Richard, don't be dramatic! I was just holding her over the edge to teach Maria a lesson about house rules[span_27](start_span)[span_27](end_span)!

Richard: A lesson?! You held a infant over a twenty-foot drop[span_28](start_span)[span_28](end_span)!

Evelyn: She was meddling in my private study! She was looking through my desk[span_29](start_span)[span_29](end_span)!

Maria: I was cleaning, sir! I found open trust fund documents and transfer receipts to an overseas bank[span_30](start_span)[span_30](end_span)!

Evelyn: You stupid girl! You don't understand high-level estate management[span_31](start_span)[span_31](end_span)!

Richard: Estate management? Evelyn, why are you moving money out of Clara's inheritance fund?[span_32](start_span)[span_32](end_span)

Evelyn: It’s our money, Richard! We are married[span_33](start_span)[span_33](end_span)!

Richard: That trust was set up by Clara’s late mother before she passed away! You have zero right to touch it[span_34](start_span)[span_34](end_span)!

Evelyn: Your late wife is dead! I am the woman running this house now[span_35](start_span)[span_35](end_span)!

Richard: Not anymore you're not. Get upstairs and pack your things.[span_36](start_span)[span_36](end_span)

Evelyn: You can't throw me out! We have a signed marital agreement[span_37](start_span)[span_37](end_span)!

Richard: A prenup that specifically states any act of domestic violence or child endangerment voids your alimony[span_38](start_span)[span_38](end_span)!

Evelyn: You can't prove a thing! It’s my word against a hired servant’s word[span_39](start_span)[span_39](end_span)!

Maria: Look at the balcony corner, Mrs. Vance.[span_40](start_span)[span_40](end_span)

Evelyn: What are you talking about?[span_41](start_span)[span_41](end_span)

Maria: Mr. Vance installed security cameras in the chandelier three days ago after the first ledger went missing.[span_42](start_span)[span_42](end_span)

Evelyn looks up at the crystal chandelier hanging in the center of the high ceiling[span_43](start_span)[span_43](end_span). A tiny red LED light blinks steadily among the glass droplets[span_44](start_span)[span_44](end_span). Her face loses all color, her hands sliding off the dark railing as her chest heaves[span_45](start_span)[span_45](end_span).

Richard: The security feed goes straight to my phone, Evelyn. Everything was recorded in high definition.[span_46](start_span)[span_46](end_span)

Evelyn: Richard... please... I was stressed! The doctors said my nerves were bad[span_47](start_span)[span_47](end_span)!

Richard: Save it for the court. Maria, call the police right now. Tell them we have an active child endangerment incident on tape.[span_48](start_span)[span_48](end_span)

Maria: Right away, sir.[span_49](start_span)[span_49](end_span)

Evelyn: Touch that phone and I’ll make sure you never work in this city again[span_50](start_span)[span_50](end_span)!

Richard: Step away from the stairs, Evelyn! Don't you dare come down here[span_51](start_span)[span_51](end_span)!

Evelyn: You think you can destroy my life over a little scare?! I made this family! I rebuilt your reputation after Sarah died[span_52](start_span)[span_52](end_span)!

Richard: You didn't rebuild anything. You preyed on a grieving man and tried to rob his infant daughter[span_53](start_span)[span_53](end_span)!

Evelyn: I gave you two years of my life[span_54](start_span)[span_54](end_span)!

Richard: And you just bought yourself ten years in state prison.[span_55](start_span)[span_55](end_span)

The sound of distant police sirens begins to wail in the background, growing louder down the long gated driveway[span_56](start_span)[span_56](end_span). Evelyn turns toward the master bedroom, her heels clicking fast against the hardwood hall[span_57](start_span)[span_57](end_span).

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