Hayley’s voice was edged with frustration as she spoke to Marina, clearly rattled.
Marina looked at Hayley calmly.
She said flatly, “Ms. Blanchard, you don’t sound like you want to fix this at all.
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“I’m the one who got pulled into this mess for no reason. I’m just sharing my own perspective here. Whether you listen or not, that’s up to you.
“But don’t throw me under the bus, or I might have to call the police to prove I’m innocent.”
Hayley’s face went stiff, and she cast an anxious glance at Harris.
She said, “Harris, Zara grew up right under your watch. She’s always been such a good, sensible kid.
“She’d never do something like hiding the ring. If she had, she wouldn’t have handed it over to Marina at all.”
Marina stood quietly to the side, letting Hayley defend Zara in front of Harris.
Hayley added, “And Harris, if we call the police, it’ll turn our family drama into public gossip. It’s just the kids messing around. I’m sure the ring is still with someone in the family. We can’t let outsiders make a joke out of us.”
With a steely gaze, Harris fixed Hayley with a cold stare.
He spoke in a low, serious voice, “Since you claim the ring is still with someone in the family, then tell me, where is it now?”
Hayley looked over at Marina’s direction.
Marina met her gaze without a hint of fear.
Hayley parted her lips, as if she wanted to say something, but in the end, she stayed silent.
Just then, Zara dropped to her knees in front of Marina and grabbed the hem of her shirt.
“Marina, if you picked up the ring, please hand it over,” Zara pleaded.
“I’m not trying to make trouble for you,” Zara added.
Marina firmly pulled her shirt out of Zara’s grip.
She said, “Miss Blanchard, I’ve made it clear. I didn’t pick up the ring.
“The ring is missing, and you haven’t found it. If someone picks it up and refuses to return it, that’s against the law.
“So why are you so reluctant to call the police? What are you afraid of?”
Zara lowered her head and began to cry.
“But… I took Wilhelmina’s ring without permission. If people find out, how will they see me?” she said, her voice trembling.
Marina shot a cold look at Zara, who was crying into her hands.
She said in a chilly tone, “If you knew you took it without permission, how could you hand it over to me?
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“If I’d let my guard down and accepted it, later, when Harris or Ms. Blanchard realized the ring was gone, and you refused to admit it was you and tried to pin it all on me, wouldn’t I be the one taking the fall for nothing?”
Zara’s face went pale.
“I didn’t think about it that much,” she said quietly.
Clearly, she hadn’t given it much thought.
They just wanted to pin the missing ring on Marina.
And at the same time, they were trying to poison Harris’s opinion of Marina, painting her as some scheming mastermind who’d do anything to frame Zara, while Zara was pure and sweet as a daisy.
But Marina wasn’t taking the bait.
She refused to get dragged into their game of having to defend herself.
Marina hadn’t taken the ring from the Zamora mansion.
Even if it was lost, it had nothing to do with her.
If they wanted to pin it on Marina, they’d better have some evidence.
If they couldn’t prove it, Marina would go ahead and call the cops.
With that string of comebacks, Hayley and Zara couldn’t do a thing to Marina.
The security video only showed Marina bending down to grab something. It doesn’t prove she took the ring.
“Marina, you…” Hayley started, her mind racing with ways to smear Marina’s name.
But before she could get another word out, Harris, clearly losing patience, cut her off with a sharp, commanding voice.
“Enough!” he barked.
Harris laid down the law, and Hayley shut up on the spot.
Zara didn’t dare make a sound or even look at Marina. She just kept her head down, barely even daring to breathe.
Harris’s gaze landed on Marina, his eyes sharp and full of pressure.
“Marina, did you really not take it?” he asked.
Marina met Harris’s gaze head–on, unflinching, showing not a trace of fear as she faced his scrutiny
Marina said, “Harris, asking me that is humiliating.
“Even if the Finley family has seen better days, we’re not the kind who’d stoop to hiding a ring. I’m not a thief. And I don’t go after things that don’t belong to me.”
Harris narrowed his eyes, coldly saying, “Alright. Since you claim you didn’t take it, we’ll handle this the way you suggested. Call the police.
“No matter who ends up with that ring, I’ll treat it as theft.
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“That ring’s worth eight figures these days, so don’t expect me to go easy on anyone because of Daron.”
Marina nodded, calm and composed.
“Don’t worry, Harris. You won’t see me sobbing and begging for forgiveness,” Marina said.
Hayley jumped in, her expression grave.
She said, “Harris, going to the cops is a bit extreme, isn’t it?”
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“If Daron comes back and finds out what happened here, it could put a real strain on your relationship with him.”
Harris shot Hayley a sideways glance.
He said, “Weren’t you the one accusing Marina of hiding the ring, to make an example out of Zara?
“Now that Marina’s not even flinching at the idea of calling the cops, why are you suddenly backing off?”
Hayley dropped her head, stung by Harris’s harsh words. She was too ashamed to look him in the eye.
Zara hung her head in silence, making it impossible for anyone to tell what she was feeling.
Hayley shot Marina a look, biting her lip in silence.
Then she finally spoke up in a low voice, “Marina, we’ve already given you a way out. Daron comes back, don’t go acting like we were picking on you.”
Marina looked at Hayley, her voice calm and steady as she said, “Ms. Blanchard, maybe you should be more worried about
Zara.
“She’s the one who took the ring out of the Zamora family. If it doesn’t turn up, she’ll be the one held responsible. When Daron comes back, don’t go to him, claiming I bullied her.”
Hayley hadn’t expected Marina to throw her words right back in her face so fast. Her expression soured instantly.
Harris gave Zara, still kneeling on the floor, a cold, indifferent look, then turned to the butler and said deeply, “Call the police.”
The butler nodded and was just about to dial when Bette walked in with a group of people,
Bette said, “No need. I’ve brought the police over.”
As soon as Bette spoke, Zara, still kneeling on the floor, shivered a little.
Marina, standing right next to Zara, caught every detail of her reaction.
Sure enough, the next second, Zara looked up at Hayley, her eyes full of pleading.
Hayley frowned slightly, and Zara quickly lowered her head, trying to act calm.
Seeing this, the butler put his phone away and stood respectfully by Harris’s side.
Harris glanced at Bette as she walked in from outside, his tone mild as he asked, “Hey, Bette, what brings you here?”
Bette strode over and took a seat beside Harris, giving Zara and Hayley a quick once–over,
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“Word is, something of my mother’s has gone missing, so I came to see for myself,” Bette said.
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Harris chuckled. “So you dropped by to check things out, and you already brought the cops with you? Seems like you’re always in the loop.”
Bette sat upright on the couch, speaking nonchalantly, “Last time I came home to sort through my mother’s belongings, I had this nagging feeling something was missing.
“So I installed a security camera in the courtyard where she used to stay.
“Turns out, I caught something pretty interesting on camera.
“Grandpa, if it’s a family member stealing, that’s one thing. Blood ties mean we should show a little mercy.
“But if it’s an ungrateful wretch, we can’t tolerate it. That kind will bite the hand that feeds them.”
Bette’s words left Hayley looking absolutely stricken, her face turning a sickly shade of pale and green.
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Sara Lili is a daring romance writer who turns icy landscapes into scenes of fiery passion. She loves crafting hot love stories while embracing the chill of Iceland’s breathtaking cold.
