Chapter 10 Chapter 10: Allison Stole Her Phone
Ronan leaned back on the sofa behind Sherrie, watching everything with a slightly amused look.
Sherrie frowned. “Stop beating around the bush. Just say it.”
Ella mustered her courage and finally burst into tears as she turned to Nigel. “Mr. Nigel, it was Ms. Allison who stole my phone! When I confronted her, she got angry and flushed it down the drain! My son must be so worried since he can’t contact me. I don’t know what to do…”
Ronan narrowed his eyes and looked at Ella again.
Allison stole her phone? Ridiculous!
Allison might have been unstable, but she was not poor. Why would she steal a maid’s phone and then throw a tantrum over it?
Nigel had the same thought, but he also didn’t believe Ella would lie about something so extreme.
So he asked, “Do you have any proof?”
Ella cried harder. “I saw it with my own eyes! What more proof do you need?”
Ronan looked her up and down and said in a disdainful tone, “Your word alone isn’t enough. Do you have any actual evidence?”
Sherrie secretly glanced at Ronan. Nigel hadn’t even said anything yet, so why was Ronan the first to defend Allison?
At that moment, Ella suddenly said, “If we dig up the drainage system, we can find my phone and prove I’m not lying!”
Dig up the pipes? So much time had passed that even if the phone had been flushed, who knew where it was now.
Sherrie generously offered, “It’s just a phone. There’s no need to make such a big deal out of it. Ella, I’ll buy you a new one.”
She took out her phone to order a new one, but Ella quickly said, “Ms. Sherrie, it’s not about the phone. I just need the contacts stored in it…”
Nigel, already losing his patience, said, “Check the surveillance footage.”
Every corner of the house had a surveillance camera. It would be easy to find out the truth.
But Ella quickly said, “There are no cameras in the bathroom. Ms. Allison took advantage of that, so the footage won’t show anything.”
The room fell silent.
Ronan clenched his hands slightly before he said, “Then let’s just ask Allison directly.”
Nigel’s expression darkened. “Go call Allison.”
A few minutes later, Allison slowly came out of her room.
Ronan turned and saw her with her hair pulled back in a ponytail, wearing a simple white T-shirt. It reminded him of their school days, when they used to sit side by side.
A soft feeling rose in his chest, and he almost greeted her casually as she walked past.
But Allison didn’t even look at him.
His smile froze at the corners of his lips. Feeling ignored, Ronan’s expression darkened as he sat back down.
Nigel didn’t wait for Allison to come closer before snapping, “Have you ever lacked food or clothing in this house? Why would you steal Ella’s phone!”
Allison paused mid-step. Nigel wasn’t even giving her a chance to sit down.
Everyone else was seated comfortably, while she and Ella stood there being judged.
Allison let out a heavy sigh. “I didn’t steal it.”
Nigel continued asking, “So you’re saying you’re being accused without reason? Why would Ella accuse you and not someone else?”
Allison was speechless.
Nigel went on, “Fine, since you won’t explain, I’ll say it. You stole it because I didn’t prepare a phone for you, so you wanted to embarrass me!”
He had just realized that he hadn’t taken care of Allison’s daily needs.
His tone became colder. “I can’t believe that after three years, you’re still holding onto resentment. If someone doesn’t give you something, you’d rather ruin it.”
Sherrie stood up and soothed Nigel by lightly patting his back. Then, she glanced at Allison, saying, “Allison, Nigel works hard to support the family. He’s just been very busy and didn’t think it through. Don’t be upset with him.”
Hearing this, Nigel let out a sigh. If only Allison could be even half as considerate as Sherrie.
But Ella wasn’t done yet. “Ms. Sherrie, you can’t just defend Ms. Allison like this! She has to admit what she did today, or else the whole Rogers family will suffer!”
Nigel turned to her, and said coldly. “What do you mean by that?”
Sherrie was stunned by Ella’s continued ranting. It was as if she wanted to stop her, but Ella went on. “If I was wrong to accuse her of stealing my phone, then what about Ms. Sherrie’s bracelet that costs a million? Is Ms. Allison going to deny stealing that too?”
Ronan glanced at Sherrie, who bit her lip, and his expression darkened. So Allison still hadn’t changed her habit of stealing?
Three years ago, the gifts I gave Sherrie would often disappear, and then I would see them in Allison’s hands.
At first, I didn’t want to believe Allison would steal. But when it happened again and again, I realized she wasn’t doing it because she wanted the things. She was jealous.
At first, I thought her possessiveness was a sign of affection. But as time went on, it felt suffocating, and my heart slowly drawn toward the gentle and considerate Sherrie.
And since Allison only ever took Sherrie’s belongings, I didn’t think too much about it at that time.
But now, this was different.
Ignoring everyone’s contemptuous looks, Allison turned to Sherrie and asked, “What did your bracelet look like?”
Ella answered quickly for her, “It was an eighteen-bead bracelet crafted from rare jade.”
Nigel’s eyes flickered. Allison softly chuckled and asked, “And were the beads engraved with a minimalist designer pattern?”
Ella’s eyes brightened. She pointed at Allison and cried, “See, Mr. Nigel! She must have stolen it. How else would she know such details?”
Ronan, irritated by Ella’s shrill accusations, scoffed, “Because the bracelet belonged to her in the first place. Of course, she knows what it looks like.”
Sherrie looked at Ronan in surprise. Why was he defending Allison again?
And if even Ronan remembered this, then Nigel must remember too.
That bracelet had been given to Allison by their father years ago, when she had fallen dangerously ill with a high fever. He had given it to her as a protective charm.
Sensing the shift in the atmosphere, Ella quickly changed her stance. “Even if it was originally hers, she should have asked Ms. Sherrie before taking it! It was in Ms. Sherrie’s room. Taking something without permission is stealing!”
The room fell completely silent.
Because everyone knew.
Not only did the bracelet originally belong to Allison, but the room had belonged to her as well.
How could taking her own belongings from her own room be considered stealing?