Joanna shot him a pointed look. No matter what, the me had to fall on Natalie. That was the whole point of tonight''s n.


    Nathan, catching her drift, pointed a trembling finger at Natalie, who was standing quietly in the distance. "Natalie! Did you set me up?"


    Natalie just stared back at him.


    Marshall stepped forward, his handsome face contorted in a sneer. "You piece of trash, were you not listening to the butler? Natalie was with me eating cake, and then she was outside helping him with the decorations. What is wrong with your family? The moment something goes wrong, you me Natalie."


    "When there''s no trouble, you use her for entertainment. She may have been your adopted daughter, but after Joanna staged her own kidnapping to frame her, Natalie cut all ties with your family. You people are truly despicable, always looking for a scapegoat. Not while I''m here, you old coward."


    Nathan scowled. Why was this kid defending Natalie?


    "But besides her, who else would want to frame me?" Nathan insisted, determined to pin this on Natalie.


    Marshall let out a cold, dangerousugh. He pointed to a security camera on the ceiling. "You want to know if you were framed? Let''s check the footage."


    The suggestion hung in the air, and Nathan froze. He remembered it clearly now. He had walked into that room on his own.


    Natalie stepped forward, addressing Mr. Wilson with a look of wounded dignity. "Mr. Wilson, for the sake of my reputation, I must ask you to check the security footage to clear my name. These people have insulted and schemed against me at your party without a shred of evidence. That is a sign of disrespect not just to me, but to you as well."


    Her stance was firm. If Joanna and Yvonne loved this kind of drama, she would see it through to the bitter end.


    Joanna, however, looked at Natalie and Marshall with a calm, confident expression. The cameras were broken. She''d made sure of it. Let''s see how Natalie would prove her innocence now.


    "Go to the security room," Mr. Wilson ordered the butler.


    The group trooped down the hall to a nearby room. The security chief was surprised to see them. "Mr. Wilson!" he eximed, jumping to his feet. "You could have just called. Whye all the way down here yourself?"


    Mr. Wilson shot a cold look at Natalie. "I want to see the surveince footage. Rewind it to the time this man went into that room."


    The chief nced at Nathan and quickly found the clip.


    When Joanna saw that there was indeed footage, her eyes widened in disbelief. Impossible! She had destroyed the cameras herself!


    The video clearly showed a woman entering the room. A momentter, Nathan appeared, nced around to make sure no one was watching, and slipped inside. At that exact moment, the footage from another camera showed Natalie outside, helping the butler with the flower arrangements.


    The crowd''s apathetic gazes on Nathan turned to ones of contempt. His face went


    pale. He never thought there would be actual proof.


    Natalie turned to Mr. Wilson, her voice cool and steady. "Mr. Wilson, as you can see, Nathan walked in


    des


    there of his own ord. There w no setup. He was trying to use your authority to punish me, and thad no choice but to prove my innocence. I apologize for the trouble


    Nathan was sputtering with rage. "You wretched girl... you... you..."


    He couldn''t form a coherent sentence.


    Natalie''s


    eyes we


    were like chips of ice. "Nathan, I have already severed all ties with your family. Why won''t you leave me alone? Every time we''re in public you try to scheme against me, to ruin me. What have I ever done to you?"