Chapter 1 - The Red Dress
A medium shot captures a blonde woman in her 30s wearing a long-sleeved red dress, standing inside the open wooden double doors of a luxury home at night.
She is looking angrily to the right while holding the arm of a young boy in light blue pajamas who is crying and resisting.
Outside, a dark, snowy night is visible with snow-covered pine trees in the background.
The interior lighting is warm, casting a soft glow on the wooden door frame, contrasting with the cold, dark blue exterior.
The camera is static.
The boy’s bare heels scraped against the polished mahogany floor.
He dug his small toes into the wood, trying to anchor himself.
It didn't work.
The woman’s grip on his bicep was a vice of perfectly manicured fingernails.
Her breathing was sharp, erratic.
She didn't look at his face.
She only looked at the open doorway, where the howling wind whipped snowflakes into the grand foyer.
The warm, golden light from the crystal chandelier above seemed to stop right at the threshold.
Beyond the door frame was an abyss of biting, endless blue.
The boy’s small chest heaved.
His hands clawed weakly at her wrist.
She shoved him forward.
The boy stumbled over the heavy brass weatherstrip.
His bare knees hit the frozen concrete porch.
"Stay outside where you belong!"
Her voice shattered the quiet hum of the heated house.
She grabbed the heavy brass handle.
The heavy wooden doors slammed shut with a concussive boom.
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The deadbolt clicked into place.
Inside, the crystal pieces of the chandelier chimed gently from the vibration.
