Tessa calmly took a sip of champagne, cing her ss gently on the table.
"Do you have any evidence?" she asked, her gaze steady on Wendy.
Wendy snorted coldly. "Evidence? Of course! The evidence is in your bag. Just let us check your bag."
A curious crowd had gathered, eager to see the drama unfold.
Tessa rarely attended banquets like these, where only a few friends from her social circle and family acquaintances knew her. Most of Rivertown''s high society had no idea who she was.
The purpose of Uriah hosting this banquet was to formally introduce her to Rivertown''s upper-ss social circle, after all.
As the crowd grewrger, Wendy''s eyes sparkled with triumph. "Everyone,e and judge for yourselves. This youngdy here stole my bracelet and refuses to admit it."
Yanis chimed in from the sidelines, eagerly escting the situation. "Ha! Just now you were talking so much about not stealing or cheating. And now you''ve stooped to theft?
"It''s just a bracelet. If you wanted it that badly, Wendy could have given it to you as charity. Why lower yourself to stealing? How shameless can you be for someone who calls herself a youngdy?"
Still bitter about Tessa''s earlier mocking of her dependence on her husband''s money, Yanis seized the moment to hurl every insult she could muster.
"Look at you," she sneered. "You used to be so desperate to marry my son. Did you ever consider whether you were good enough? Thankfully, I have a sharp eye for people and didn''t let you into our family.
"A pauper is a pauper, no matter how you dress yourself up or if you sneak into an upper-ss banquet. Your sticky fingers will always betray your roots!"
The crowd murmured amongst themselves.
"Who would have thought? She''s so pretty but is a thief."
"Exactly. Never judge a book by its cover."
"It''s such a disgrace. With a face like that, she could easily find a wealthy man. Whye to a banquet to steal?"
"Poor people are just like that. They can''t control themselves when they see something valuable."
"I heard she''s a housekeeper''s daughter. No wonder she turned out like this. That''s how poverty leaves its mark."
As the voices around her swirled with gossip and judgment, Wendy''s smile deepened. The more they whispered, the more confident she felt.
"If you didn''t steal it, then hand over your bag and let me search it. What''s there to be afraid of if you''re innocent?"
Meanwhile, Uriah and Stephen had just wrapped up their important discussion with the foreign couple. Stephen excused himself to use the restroom, leaving Uriah to apany the couple out. On the way, Uriah ran into Zachary.
"Mr. Somerton, we''ve crossed paths before," Zachary said with a polite smile.
Uriah frowned slightly, unable to ce him. "And you are?"
Zachary''s face showed a flicker of awkwardness before he quickly introduced himself. Uriah''s expression flickered with recognition as he responded with polite remarks.
Zachary handed him a gift. "Mr. Somerton, I heard your cousin is getting engaged. Congrattions. This is a gift for her engagement."
Though ostensibly a gift for Uriah''s
cousin, this gesture was aimed at earning Uriah''s favor. By handing it over direetly, Zachary ensured that Uriah knew he had sent the gift paving the way for potential future coborations.
Uriah, ustomed to such ttery, had initially dismissed Zachary as unremarkable. He had nned to exchange a few perfunctory words and move on, but the thoughtful presentation of the gift piqued his interest. .
swa
epting the gift box, Uriah said, "That''s thoughtful of you. On behalf of my cousin, thank you."
His gaze toward Zachary softened
slightly. "She''s downstairs in the banquet hall. Let me take you there so you can give it to her in person. After all, it''s her engagement gift."
Delivering the gift through Uriah''s cousin turned out to be the perfect move. With a bright smile, he said, "Thank you, Mr. Somerton. I shall follow your lead."