Ethan: What is going on in here?! I heard screaming clear down in the study!
Ethan stood in the doorway, dressed in his sleek tuxedo, his tie loosened. He looked from his crying daughter to his wife, and then down at the smoking iron on the scorched floor.
Victoria: Oh, Ethan! Thank God you're here! Elena has completely lost her mind!
Victoria instantly changed her tone, bursting into fake, dramatic tears. She clutched her hands together and took a step toward her husband, trembling pitifully.
Victoria: She was trying to burn the nursery rugs! I tried to stop her, but she attacked me! Look at what she did to my wrist!
Elena: ETHAN, SHE TRIED TO BURN YOUR BABY WITH A HOT IRON!
The nursery went completely silent for a second. Ethan froze, his eyes widening in total disbelief.
Ethan: What did you just say?
Elena: Look at the crib! Look at the blanket! She had that iron right against Lily’s face! If I had been two seconds later, your daughter would be in the hospital!
Victoria: She’s lying, Ethan! She's a crazy maid! Why would I ever do something so horrible? I love Lily like my own daughter! You know how much I care for this family!
Elena: You don't love anyone but yourself and Ethan’s money! Check the baby's blanket, sir! It’s singed right near her cheek!
Ethan stepped past Victoria, his boots heavy on the floor. He picked up the baby's blanket from the crib and turned it over. A dark, rounded burn mark sat right near the corner, still warm to the touch. He smelled the faint scent of burnt cotton.
Ethan: Victoria... what is this?
Victoria: I... I don't know! Elena must have done that before I came in! She’s trying to frame me so she can blackmail us for money!
Elena: I’ve worked for your late wife and your family for six years, Mr. Vance. I loved Sarah like a sister, and I promised her I would protect Lily with my life. I would die before letting anyone hurt this baby.
Victoria: Shut up! Keep your filthy mouth shut!
Ethan: Let her speak, Victoria!
Victoria: You’re taking the word of a house maid over your own wife?! I am the mistress of this estate! I hold the keys to this house!
Elena: She said Lily was taking up her inheritance. She said it right to the baby before she lowered the iron.
Ethan’s face went pale, then flushed deep red with explosive anger. The atmosphere in the room plummeted into dangerous tension. He turned around slowly to face Victoria.
Ethan: You talked about my late wife's estate?
Victoria: No! Ethan, darling, please listen to me! She’s twisting words! I was just organizing the nursery!
Ethan: You brought a hot iron into a baby’s nursery at eight o'clock at night?!
Victoria: I was... I was pressing her baby clothes!
Elena: The baby clothes are stored in the West Wing, Victoria. You brought that iron all the way from the laundry room downstairs.
Victoria snapped, her sweet innocent facade shattering completely into venomous rage.
Victoria: You stupid, useless maid! I should have fired you the day I moved in here!
She lunged forward, raising her hand to strike Elena across the face. But before her hand could land, Ethan stepped in between them.
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