Before the heavy leather could fall a second time, the heavy double wooden doors at the main entrance of the ballroom swung open with a loud thud. David Sterling stepped into the room, wearing a tailored black tuxedo that made his broad shoulders look even wider. He had just finished a private call with his corporate board of directors, but the sudden silence in the room told him something was terribly wrong. His sharp blue eyes scanned the crowd until they landed on the scene in the center of the marble floor. He saw his fiancee standing over a kneeling, crying servant with a belt raised high in her hand. David's jaw tightened instantly, his fists clenching at his sides as pure anger flushed through his face.
David: Stop! Why are you beating this innocent woman right now?
David shouted across the big room, his deep voice carrying over the high ceiling like a thunderclap that froze everyone in place. He marched down the wide marble staircase with long, authoritative steps, his eyes locked on Eleanor. The crowd parted quickly, guests stepping back toward the decorated walls to clear a path for the head of the family. Eleanor froze with her arm still lifted, her cheeks turning red as she slowly lowered the heavy leather belt to her side. She quickly changed her angry face into a fake pout, pretending to look hurt and victimized in front of her rich fiance.
Eleanor: David darling, you do not understand what happened here!
David: I see a helpless woman on the floor and you holding a belt!
Eleanor: She did it on purpose! She ruined my custom dress!
David reached the middle of the room and stood directly between Eleanor and the shaking maid on the floor. He looked down at Martha, recognizing the gentle woman who had ironed his school shirts when he was just a boy growing up in this house. His voice softened for a second as he looked at Martha's red cheeks and tears, but his eyes turned ice cold when he turned back to face Eleanor. He raised his hand, pointing sternly toward the leather strap still in Eleanor's right hand, demanding an immediate answer for her cruel behavior in front of his guests.
David: Nothing gives you the right to hit anyone in my home!
Eleanor: She is not just messy, David! She stole that necklace!