Brandon: Emergency operator? I need police officers sent to 442 Bel Air Drive immediately. My fiancée just attempted to drown my infant son in our swimming pool, and I have full 4K video evidence of the crime.
Victoria: Brandon! Hang up that phone right now! Are you completely insane?!
Brandon: Yes, the suspect is still on the premises near the pool patio. Please hurry.
Brandon ended the call and shoved his phone back into his pocket, his face dark with pure, unbridled fury.
Victoria: You called the police on me?! On your own fiancée?! Think about the headlines in the Dallas paper tomorrow!
Brandon: The only headline I care about is the one announcing your arrest!
Victoria: You will regret this, Brandon Vance! My family will make sure you never do business in Texas again!
Brandon: Save your threats for your defense attorney, Victoria. You're going to need a very good one.
Victoria turned around in her golden dress, attempting to stride angrily toward the double glass doors to head inside the mansion.
Brandon: Don't even think about going inside to pack your bags, Victoria. Sit down on those patio chairs and stay right where you are until the officers arrive.
Victoria: You can't order me around on this patio! I have rights!
Brandon: You lost your rights the moment you shoved a baby stroller into six feet of water!
Clara stepped closer to Brandon, her voice soft and shaking from the cold water and lingering adrenaline.
Clara: Mr. Vance... is Leo okay? Is he breathing normally?
Brandon: He's breathing fine, Clara. He was only under the water for a few seconds thanks to your fast reaction. You dived in without even thinking about yourself.
Clara: I could never watch a baby suffer, sir. No matter whose child it is.
Brandon looked down at Clara, his eyes catching the glint of sunlight reflecting off the gold band on her left ring finger.
He had noticed that wedding ring every single day since she started working at the mansion three months ago, but she had never once spoken about a husband.
Brandon: Clara... I've meant to ask you for weeks. That ring on your finger... you're married?
Clara lowered her head slightly, her fingers touching the smooth metal band as tears welled up in her eyes again.
Clara: I was married, Mr. Vance. Two years ago, my husband was an officer in the US Army stationed overseas. He... he never came home from his deployment.
Brandon's eyes softened, a wave of deep respect and sadness washing over his face.
Brandon: I... I'm so sorry, Clara. I had no idea.
Clara: He loved children so much. We were planning to start a family of our own right before he deployed. That's why when I saw Leo in that water... I couldn't let another innocent life be lost.
Victoria: Oh, give me a break! What a pathetic sob story! She's just trying to gain your sympathy so you'll give her a big cash bonus from the estate fund!
Brandon: SHUT YOUR MOUTH, VICTORIA!
Brandon's shout rang out so loudly across the outdoor pool area that Victoria actually flinched backward, her face turning pale as she realized she had pushed him completely past his limit.
Brandon: You have zero empathy, zero soul, and zero humanity! Clara lost a hero husband who served this country, while you sit here in a golden dress trying to murder a child for an inheritance!
Victoria: Brandon—
Brandon: Do not speak another word! If you open your mouth again before the police get here, I will personally throw you off this patio myself!
In the distance, the sharp sound of police sirens began echoing down the quiet suburban streets, growing louder as patrol cars pulled up to the main front gates of the estate.