Marcus: How dare you lay a hand on my daughter in my own house!
Evelyn: Marcus, you have to listen to me! The child is lying! She found that lighter in the cabinet and was playing with fire!
Lily: Daddy, no! She held the lighter to my arm! She asked me for the keys to your safe!
Marcus: Safe keys? What safe keys, Evelyn?
Evelyn: I don't know what she's talking about! She's making up stories to get me into trouble because she hates my daughter!
Marcus carefully lifted Lily into his arms, keeping her burn away from his suit jacket as he glared down at Evelyn.
Marcus: My daughter does not lie, Evelyn. And you have five seconds to tell me why you're in my private master suite bathroom while my wife is at the spa.
Evelyn: Victoria asked me to check on the house! That's all!
Marcus: Victoria asked you to check on my private safe while I was in a corporate board meeting?
Evelyn: She... she misplaced her jewelry! We thought it might be in your office safe!
Marcus: Victoria doesn't even have the combination to my safe, Evelyn. Only I do.
Lily: She said... she said if I didn't give her the keys, she would hurt me like she hurt Mommy!
Marcus froze, the blood in his veins turning to ice as he looked down at his crying daughter.
Marcus: What did you just say, Lily?
Lily: She said Mommy didn't leave us. She said they made Mommy go away so Victoria could take the estate!
Evelyn: That is absolute poison! Who filled your head with such nonsense, you little brat?!
Marcus: Do not shout at my daughter! If you speak to her like that again, I will throw you out of those doors myself!
Evelyn: Marcus, look at the situation logically! Your ex-wife left two years ago because she couldn't handle the pressure of your wealth and lifestyle!
Marcus: Sarah didn't leave because of pressure, Evelyn. She vanished overnight without taking her passport, her car, or her wedding ring.
Evelyn: Because she was irresponsible! Victoria has been a wonderful stepmother to Lily ever since they got married last year!
Marcus: Is burning my daughter's arm with a lighter what you call being a wonderful family, Evelyn?
Evelyn: It was an accident! The lighter fell! Look at it on the floor!
Marcus stepped toward the dropped red plastic lighter, kicking it slightly with his dress shoe. The distinct smell of butane still hung in the air.
Marcus: An accident doesn't leave a direct burn mark on a child's arm while she's backed into a corner.
Evelyn: You're choosing the word of a traumatized eight-year-old over your mother-in-law?
Marcus: You are not my mother. And after today, you won't even be allowed on this property.
Evelyn: You can't ban me from this estate! Victoria lives here! This is her home now!
Marcus: This mansion is in my name alone, paid for by my family's business long before I ever met your daughter.
Evelyn: We signed a prenuptial agreement, Marcus! Victoria is entitled to a full marital share of this estate and your trust fund!
Marcus: Read the prenup again, Evelyn. Clause nine explicitly states that any act of domestic harm or cruelty against my biological daughter completely voids all financial settlements and transfers!
Evelyn's face turned pale, her jaw dropping as she realized the massive legal trap she had just walked into.
Evelyn: You... you put a child clause in the prenuptial agreement?
Marcus: I put that clause in to protect Lily from fortune hunters. And today, you proved exactly why it was necessary.
Lily: Daddy, my arm hurts really bad...
Marcus: I know, sweetie. I'm taking you to the hospital right now, and then I'm calling my divorce lawyer and the Dallas police department.
Evelyn: Police?! Marcus, please! You can't involve the authorities over a domestic misunderstanding!
Marcus: This isn't a misunderstanding, Evelyn. This is felony child abuse and attempted extortion!
Marcus turned his back on Evelyn, carrying Lily quickly toward the front grand foyer, leaving the older woman standing frozen in the sunlit bathroom near the burn mark on the floor.