Mark carried the crying baby inside the living room, wrapping him in warm blankets while Victoria followed close behind, holding a cell phone. Elena wiped chlorine from her eyes and stepped into the house, leaving wet footprints on the polished marble floor. She wanted to explain what really happened, but Mark pointed a stern finger toward the entrance hallway, refusing to hear a single word from her.
Mark: Do not step another foot into this house, Elena. You are fired, and the police are coming.
Elena: Mark, I swear on my life, I would never hurt him! Why would I jump into the deep end if I pushed him?
Victoria: Because you got scared when you heard Mark coming to the patio! You tried to cover up your awful crime!
Victoria squeezed Mark's arm tightly, resting her head against his shoulder while wiping away tears that were not really there. She had been married to Mark for only one year, entering his life shortly after his first wife passed away. Mark was a wealthy commercial real estate developer, and his massive life insurance policy and family trust fund were worth millions of dollars. Victoria had been quietly pressing Mark to add her name to the sole ownership of the estate.
Two police officers arrived ten minutes later, their heavy boots thudding against the front porch. Victoria gave a tearful statement, claiming she saw Elena push the stroller in a moment of anger over low wages. Elena tried to defend herself, but her wet clothes and panicked voice made her sound desperate to the responding officers. They did not arrest her immediately due to lack of direct physical evidence, but they ordered her to leave the property at once and stay away from the family.
Elena walked down the long private driveway in the dark, her wet clothes sticking to her skin as she shivered from the cool night breeze. She had lost her job, her small income, and her good reputation in a single evening. But more than anything, she was terrified for the safety of the little boy. She knew Victoria had deliberately pushed that stroller, which meant the baby was still in terrible danger inside that mansion.
She reached her small rented apartment across town late that night. Her hands shook as she turned the key in the lock. Sitting at her small kitchen table, Elena realized she could not just give up and let a wealthy sociopath ruin her life and endanger a baby. She needed proof, and she needed it quickly before Victoria accomplished whatever dark goal she had planned next.