Victoria: Richard! Where is Richard?! Someone get my husband down here right now!
Julian: Dad went to the bank this morning to handle the mortgage extension, Mother.
Clara: He went to the bank because his corporate credit lines were frozen twenty minutes ago, Julian.
Victoria: What did you do, you little snake?!
Mr. Harrison: Miss Hayes executed her legal right as trust beneficiary to freeze all unauthorized corporate activity.
Julian: Unauthorized?! My father ran Vance Global for twenty years!
Clara: He ran it into the ground, Julian. While you were buying sports cars and your mother was buying diamond bracelets, he was taking out illegal loans using this estate as collateral.
Victoria gasped, her hand flying to her throat as she stared at the leather briefcase in Mr. Harrison's hand.
Victoria: Those loans were approved by the board of directors!
Clara: The board of directors consisted of your brother, your cousin, and Julian. None of you held actual equity.
Julian: That's impossible! We signed the annual governance papers every December!
Mr. Harrison: You signed voting proxies, Mr. Vance. You never owned the underlying stock.
Clara stepped forward, her simple blue uniform contrasting sharply with the opulent marble and hardwood surroundings.
Clara: I worked as a maid in this house for six months to see how you were treating my father's legacy.
Victoria: You... you pretended to be a servant just to spy on us?!
Clara: I wanted to see if you had any decency left. I cleaned your floors, I washed your clothes, and I took your insults.
Julian: Clara... please. We didn't know who you were! If we knew you were Arthur's daughter—
Clara: If you knew, you would have treated me like royalty. But because you thought I was poor, you treated me like trash.
Victoria: You hit me, Clara! You drew blood on my face!
Clara: You tried to slap me first, Victoria. Self-defense is completely legal in the state of Texas.
The heavy oak doors opened once more, and Richard Vance walked into the hall. His necktie was loose, his face red with sweat, and his hands trembled as he carried a stack of bank notices.
Richard: Victoria... Julian... what happened here?
Victoria: Richard! Tell this lawyer that we own this house! Tell him right now!
Richard: I can't, Victoria... the bank just showed me the original deed.
Julian: Dad, what are you talking about?!
Richard: Arthur Hayes never transferred the land title. It was registered under a private family trust. Clara's trust.
Richard dropped his stack of papers onto the floor, collapsing onto his knees on the hardwood aisle as his wife let out a horrified scream.
Victoria: No! No, this can't be happening!
Clara: It is happening, Victoria. And your time in my home is up.