The foyer was silent except for the distant ticking of an old clock.
Then—
a child’s soft crying echoed through the hall.
The massive front door opened.
A white teddy bear slipped from Adrian Morel’s hand and hit the marble floor hard.
The camera whip-panned across the foyer—
to a tiny blonde girl kneeling beside a metal bucket, dragging a mop weakly across the floor.
Her cheeks were dirty.
Her eyes swollen from crying.
Adrian froze completely.
Behind him, Celeste stepped calmly into view holding a glass of white wine.
“Why are you home early?”
But Adrian barely heard her.
His eyes never left the little girl.
“Why is she on the floor?”
Celeste answered too quickly.
“She’s one of the kitchen workers’ daughters.”
The little girl stayed silent.
Didn’t nod.
Didn’t move.
Then sunlight flashed against something silver on her wrist.
A bracelet.
Adrian’s breathing changed instantly.
The camera pushed aggressively toward it.
“Where did you get that?”
The little girl looked up carefully.
“Grandpa gave it to me.”
Heartbeat rising.
The child slowly opened a hidden compartment inside the bracelet with trembling fingers.
Pulled out a folded piece of paper.
Celeste stepped forward sharply.
“Give me that.”
But Adrian grabbed it first.
The paper trembled violently in his hands as he unfolded it.
The world seemed to go silent around him.
Written in shaky ink:
“This child is Lucie. She is your blood.”
All color drained from Adrian’s face.
The little girl stared at him with terrified hope.
“He said not to trust the lady with the wine.”
Celeste flinched instantly.
The wine glass slipped from her fingers in slow motion—
CRASH.
Glass exploded across the marble floor.
Nobody moved.
Nobody breathed.
Then—
from the staircase above—
an older woman’s furious voice shattered the silence:
“She told you the child was dead too?”
Adrian slowly turned toward Celeste.
Absolute horror spreading across his face.
Lucie carefully reached for his hand with trembling fingers—
and Celeste stepped backward like the entire mansion was collapsing around her.
⚫ CUT TO BLACK — Part 2 in the comments.
