When they arrived home, the first thing that struck Damian was the unfamiliar presence cutting through the usual calm of the estate.
A woman who looked to be in her fifties was walking briskly around the mansion grounds, her posture stiff, her movements sharp and purposeful. Alfred followed closely behind her like a shadow, his usually composed face drawn tight with restraint.
The woman's heels clicked loudly against the paved walkway, echoing through the open space as though announcing her authority with every step.
She had arrived about thirty minutes earlier, Alfred later explained, sent directly from CPS. The butler had been polite as protocol demanded, but the moment the woman realized the couple and the child were not present, her demeanor shifted.
