# Scene 1 Julian's key turned in the lock just past midnight, his shoulders heavy with the weight of a three-day business trip and the small carryon he'd refused to check. The house was dimmer than he expected—only the hallway light left on—but not silent. Above him, the ceiling creaked with rhythmic persistence. Then came a muffled cry—distinctly feminine, unmistakably his wife—followed by a deeper grunt that belonged to...