Chapter 85
Bella felt utterly wronged. Ethan had always been a man of few words, but he used to greet her with a warm smile and a “Hey, girl.” Now he was addressing her by her name, causing her tears to flow uncontrollably.
“Stop crying, what happened?” Luis’s voice dipped as he saw his granddaughter in such a state. Bella, sobbing and under the scrutiny of everyone, explained the situation and emphasized, “Those were the jewels I prepared for grandma. They were her favorite style. I left them on the balcony when I was on a call. Only she went in after me, someone can vouch for it.”
Upon hearing Bella’s words, Old Mrs. Dotson’s anger subsided slightly. She took Bella’s hand and sighed, “When will you grow up? You’re making a mountain out of a molehill.”
“Grandma…”
Adeline turned a deaf ear to her granddaughter, deciding that Bella needed to learn a lesson.
“Ethan, on behalf of my thoughtless granddaughter, I apologize to Izzy. It’s all a misunderstanding, please don’t take it to heart,” Luis said diplomatically.
*Sir, we should check the surveillance video. Although I don’t show myself often, I don’t want to leave an impression that my wife is covetous,” Ethan’s words were gentle but the message was clear. Their family was wealthy and influential, nothing was beyond their reach.
Luis looked a bit uncomfortable. It was hard for him, as an elder, to apologize to a junior who seemed indifferent to the apology. But he knew that the men of the Meyer family spoiled their wives, family was their line in the sand, not to be crossed.
Now, Ines had become his line in the sand.
But if someone falsely accused his granddaughter, he would not let it slide.
Jacob glanced at the crowd and chimed in, “Yes, it’s best to clear this matter up. We don’t want anyone to have doubts. With so many people here, let’s have it witnessed, to avoid any rumors.”
Ines knew Ethan could be domineering and stubborn, so she didn’t try to persuade him. Her gaze inadvertently met Hunter’s, he was looking at her with a complicated expression. Ines gave a cold laugh and turned away.
Luis had certainly shown his magnanimity in handling this situation. Swiftly, he made a wise decision.
He whispered something to a man next to him, who immediately stepped away to make a phone call. Soon, a hotel manager rushed over, leading everyone to the surveillance room. But Ethan stopped him, “Turn on the multimedia, we’ll watch it
here.”
Clearly, he wanted everyone to see the whole process. Luis nodded at the hotel manager, who turned on the projector in the center of the banquet hall, connecting it to the surveillance room. Soon, the footage of Bella going to the balcony appeared. She left a dark blue box aside, then stepped away to make a phone call. After the call, she turned and left, her elbow knocked the box onto the carpet as she turned. Not long after, (nes appeared on the screen, followed by Emma. The two seemed to be arguing about something, Emma tried to hit Ines but was thrown off and fell. The crowd’s attention was all on them. Ines left the scene, followed by Emma, both seemingly didn’t notice the box in the corner.
At this point, it was clear that Ines had nothing to do with this.
Finally, a cleaning staff entered the scene, found the box during cleaning, and took it away.
The hotel manager was sweating profusely, he quickly called the front desk to confirm that the box had been returned.
Emma felt extremely embarrassed, everyone had seen her embarrassing situation clearly. Taking advantage of the moment when no one was paying attention, she quietly prepared to leave the hotel. Just as she was about to drive off, Silas blocked her way, “Miss, the chairman wants to see you.”
The ones who also wanted to sneak away in the chaos were Stoner Farrar and Sybil.
Bella’s face was flushed and she looked at Ethan anxiously.
The most awkward person on the scene was Luis. This minor issue that could be clarified by checking the surveillance footage had turned into such a big deal. Not only had he offended a big shot, but he had also disrupted his and his wife’s wedding anniversary. Suppressing his anger, he scolded Bella in a low voice, “Look what you’ve done! Now apologize to Izzy!”
Bella, scolded by her family, shuddered. She pursed her lips and obediently apologized to Ines, “I’m sorry, I apologize for my recklessness.”
Old Mrs. Dotson also said, “Izzy, this kid is just sensitive and takes things to heart, but she’s not a bad apple.”
Ines was not the kind of person who would hound others when she’s in the right. She felt that Bella was not a bad person by nature, just naive and spoiled by her family. It wasn’t a big deal, there was no need to escalate it further.
She smiled at Old Mrs. Dotson and shook her head, then said to Bella, “Don’t worry about it. I was a bit impulsive earlier and shouldn’t have laid a hand on you.”
*Alright, alright, you need to learn not to be so impulsive. You’re already twenty, you need to learn to control your emotions. We’re all friends here, if we hadn’t met today, we wouldn’t have known Ethan has such a beautiful wife.” Someone else stepped in to lighten the mood.
Ethan didn’t say anything more, but Bella wasn’t ready to drop the matter, she raised her voice again, “Where’s the woman who falsely accused Ines? How dare she mislead me?”
