Estelle Lockwood took everyone by surprise when she called the police.
Estelle Lockwood smoothed back her hair. "This Miss Foster lost a bracelet worth 300,000 in the restroom. She believes it was stolen, which is why I called the police."
The officer asked, "Where is the surveillance footage?"
Estelle Lockwood pointed to a nearby USB drive. "There were only three people in the restroom at the time. Miss Foster has already searched me. I only have the four bracelets I purchased myself, not the one she lost. Since Miss Foster still suspects me, I called the police."
After getting a grasp of the situation, the officer looked at Sophie Foster and said, "Miss Foster, if you are certain the bracelet was stolen, who else was in the restroom at the time besides you and Miss Lockwood?"
Sophie Foster’s expression stiffened. "Thea..."
Thea York’s face darkened. "You want to search me?"
The officer nodded. "Was this young lady also present at the time? We don’t have to search you, of course, but then we’ll have to ask you to come to the station with us. Naturally, Miss Foster and Miss Lockwood will also need to give statements."
’The police station?!’
This was not part of Thea York’s plan at all.
’No matter the reason, the mere fact that I went to the police station could be twisted and blown out of proportion by anyone with an agenda. What would be left of my reputation?!’
"I’m not going."
The officer wasn’t surprised. "Then please consent to a search, Miss York."
Estelle Lockwood’s lips curled into a smile as she glanced at Nathaniel Sloan in surprise. ’This officer... Nathaniel must have sent him, right?’
Thea York’s expression grew even uglier. ’Is this officer deaf?! I’m the heiress of the Yorks! Who the hell does he think he is, daring to search me?!’
Not far away, Mrs. York approached with a frown, as if she had only just noticed the commotion. "Our York Family is vast and influential. There’s nothing Thea wants that she can’t have. Why would she possibly covet a single bracelet, much less resort to stealing it?"
Thea York felt her confidence return.
The officer stated, calm and professional, "We are merely conducting a routine questioning of the suspects."
"Insolent!" Mrs. York didn’t care. She was used to her life as a wealthy socialite; the York Family could smooth over anything she did. In her mind, the law was a non-entity. Even if Thea had actually stolen the item, for the sake of the Yorks’ reputation, the matter had to be dropped as if nothing had ever happened.
So she lifted her chin, looking down on them, and spoke with brazen frankness.
"Do you know who we Yorks are? How could we possibly be searched in public? Only lowlifes get subjected to a public search!"
The banquet hall fell silent.
The York Family might have been in decline in recent years, but they were still a force to be reckoned with...
"I’d also like to know what kind of status the Yorks hold. Are they royalty? Or are they God Almighty?"
Old Mrs. Sloan let out a slow, derisive laugh. "Mrs. York, when your Thea wanted to search Estelle, did you forget that she is my granddaughter-in-law? There are two suspects. My Estelle can accept being investigated, but your Thea cannot."
"Is your Thea born superior, unable to stoop to what my granddaughter-in-law can endure? Or is it that the York Family looks down on me and Nathaniel?"
The onlookers suddenly understood!
Mrs. York kept insisting that Thea’s noble status meant she couldn’t be searched, but when Thea was searching Estelle, Mrs. York hadn’t stepped in to stop it.
Wasn’t this tantamount to saying, right in front of Old Mrs. Sloan and Nathaniel, that Mrs. Sloan was of a lower class?
Mrs. York’s expression froze. She was used to speaking her mind and hadn’t considered that implication. Even if she had ten times the nerve, she would never dare to look down on Nathaniel Sloan.
"Old Mrs. Sloan, you’ve misunderstood. I wasn’t referring to..."
"If you have no issue with Estelle’s status, yet you still insist Thea cannot be searched, then I can only assume it’s because you have something to hide."
Old Mrs. Sloan cut her off bluntly. "The surveillance footage shows only three people were present. On what grounds is my granddaughter-in-law the primary suspect while Miss York is presumed innocent? Is there any evidence to prove she’s blameless? If not, then it’s only natural that she be searched, isn’t it?"
Mrs. York was furious. "You’re just twisting my words..."
"It seems even Mrs. York doesn’t trust her own daughter, what with all this obstruction. The bracelet must have been stolen by Thea. Case closed. Miss Foster, if you’re unsatisfied, I suggest you seek compensation from the York Family. After all, they’re the ones refusing to cooperate with the investigation. Our Estelle has done more than her part."
Everyone was speechless.
’Old Mrs. Sloan is one sharp-tongued woman!’
Mrs. York’s face was cold as she stubbornly refused to back down. "No... Sophie, quick, tell the officer you’re dropping the matter! That you don’t want to press charges!"
Sophie Foster was still trying to process everything. "I..."
"Grandma, you’re right. Miss York does have something to hide."
Estelle Lockwood said coolly, "She’d rather force the victim to drop the case than agree to a search. If that’s not a guilty conscience, what is? If Miss York didn’t steal it, why would she have anything to hide?"
"Just as Miss York said, she searched me ’for my own good,’ to prove my innocence."
"But now that it’s her turn to prove her innocence, she’s refusing. Perhaps... it’s because she has no innocence to prove."
Mrs. York shrieked, "Estelle Lockwood, I’m warning you! Don’t you dare spout such nonsense!"
Old Mrs. Sloan sneered. "I’ll say it again. Search her!"
The officer nodded. "My apologies, Miss York."
Thea York gritted her teeth. ’I put the bracelet in Estelle’s bag earlier... Even though they didn’t find it, and I don’t know where she hid it, my own purse has been in my hands this entire time. There’s no way Estelle could have planted the bracelet on me.’
’So, even if they search me, they won’t find anything.’
At this thought, Thea York relaxed.
Mrs. York ground her teeth in fury. "In any case, my Thea is definitely innocent! Estelle Lockwood, you just wait!"
Estelle Lockwood’s eyes gleamed as she let out a soft scoff.
The officer quickly turned Thea York’s purse inside out, but found nothing. Thea’s expression began to relax, but in the next moment, she saw the officer search the sash of her gown—
A bracelet was hooked onto the sash, perfectly concealed by the gown’s original tassels.
If the officer hadn’t searched there, no one would have ever found it!
"...Is... is that the bracelet?!"
"Hanging on her sash... so she really was the one who stole it? To think she’d hide it in such a clever spot!"
"Hidden there... no wonder she was so confident."
Thea York’s triumphant expression froze on her face, and the color drained from Mrs. York’s.
’How could it be on me?! But I... I...’
’No, this can’t be happening. I can’t be branded a thief. Absolutely not!’
’Estelle Lockwood was the one who was supposed to be utterly ruined today! Why is this happening to me?!’
Thea York gritted her teeth so hard they could have shattered, her mind racing to find a way out of this.
"Miss Foster, you can take a look now and confirm if this is your missing bracelet."
Sophie Foster instinctively glanced over, but before she could speak, Thea York suddenly blurted out, "There’s nothing to see! That bracelet is my own!"
Estelle Lockwood raised an eyebrow.