Marcus paused, his furious expression faltering for a single second as he looked down at Elena's bloodstained fingers pointing toward the dense greenery. Victoria's hysterical crying stopped instantly, her body going stiff as a board in her husband's arms. The silence that settled over the pool area was deafening, broken only by the quiet hum of the filtration system and the crying of the tiny infant wrapped in a blanket. Marcus turned his head slowly, tracking the direction of the maid's finger toward the thick laurel bushes that ran along the property line near the high security fence.
Deep inside the thick green foliage, half-hidden by dry autumn leaves, sat a small white dome camera. A tiny red light on its front face was blinking steadily in the dark, recording every inch of the pool and the stone terrace in high-definition clarity. Marcus had hired a security team three months ago to install an upgraded surveillance system after a series of break-ins in the wealthy neighborhood, but he had completely forgotten about the hidden corner unit that covered the pool area. Victoria's face drained of all color, her lips trembling as her eyes locked onto the blinking lens hidden in the bushes.
Marcus: That camera... it has been running all night?
Elena: Yes! It recorded her pushing the stroller! Check the footage right now!
Victoria: Marcus, darling, don't listen to her! She is just trying to confuse you so she can run away!
Marcus: Be quiet, Victoria.
The tone in Marcus's voice changed completely, dropping from rage to a cold, icy sharpness that made Victoria step back slightly on the patio. Marcus looked down at his crying son, then back at Elena, whose wet clothes were dripping onto the concrete deck. He saw the genuine terror in the maid's eyes, and for the first time, he noticed that her clothes were completely soaked through, while Victoria's bright green silk dress did not have a single drop of pool water on it. If Victoria had tried to save the baby first, as she claimed, her arms and dress would have been soaked.
Marcus: Come inside. Both of you. Now.
Marcus wrapped his heavy wool coat around the crying baby and marched toward the main house without looking back. Elena pulled herself up off the cold ground, her knees shaking as she followed them into the warm, bright hallway of the estate. Victoria lingered by the doorway, her mind racing as she looked back at the hidden camera in the bushes, realizing that her plan to secure the multi-million dollar inheritance was crumbling around her feet. She stepped inside, her gold heels clicking softly on the marble floor as Marcus headed straight for his private office where the central security computer was located.
Victoria: Marcus, please, let the police handle this! You don't need to look at dirty security files right now!
Marcus: Sit down in that chair, Victoria. Do not move an inch.
Marcus set the baby safely in a padded armchair, placing a soft blanket over him before turning on the large desktop monitor on his desk. His fingers flew across the keyboard, typing in the administrative password to access the cloud security footage from the pool camera. Elena stood near the doorway, holding a warm towel against her scrapes while watching the screen from across the room. The video clip loaded on the monitor, showing the quiet pool area lit by blue underwater lights just ten minutes earlier.
Marcus: Let us see what really happened out there tonight.