Chapter35 Dominic’s Firing You
Miranda looked at the man who was so righteously accusing her, and all she felt was a bitter, hollow laugh in her heart.
See? This is how it is.
She hadn't said or done anything, yet this man had already passed judgment on her in his mind.
Every time, as long as Ariana was involved, he was always like this: he'd never ask for the facts and simply heap all the blame onto her.
In the past, his words would leave her utterly devastated, the pain tearing her apart.
But now, listening to those sharp, harsh words, her heart felt strangely numb. It didn't hurt anymore.
Perhaps she was numb, or perhaps, she genuinely didn't care anymore.
Miranda’s face became completely cold. She couldn't even bother to spare them an extra glance.
"I need to go home. If you two don’t mind, get out of the way."
She paused, her gaze sweeping over Ariana’s face, which was a canvas of "envy, jealousy, and hate." A mocking curl touched her lips.
"Also, instead of making baseless accusations about how I got this necklace, maybe spend more time earning money. Otherwise, you’ll just be left to drool over things. You won’t even be able to afford a necklace you like."
With that, she didn’t look at either of them again, lifting her foot to step around them and leave.
"You stop right there!" Ariana’s voice was sharp.
Miranda’s last sentence had viciously wounded her most fragile pride.
Growing up, she had lived as a dependent in the Lancaster household, watching Miranda live like a true princess, getting whatever she wanted, and having the best tutors for whatever she wished to learn.
Ariana, meanwhile, had to follow her around like a shadow, picking up Miranda's hand-me-downs.
Now, the necklace she had been obsessing over for so long was easily resting on Miranda’s neck. And Miranda had the audacity to mock her with such a superior attitude.
Ariana couldn't stand it!
The rage in her heart nearly overwhelmed her reason. Without thinking, she reached out to grab Miranda’s arm.
Miranda sensed the movement and sharply moved aside, avoiding the grab. She looked at Ariana with disdain, her voice glacial: "My gown is a custom design, six hundred thousand. If you damage it, can you afford to pay for it?"
The single sentence was like a bucket of cold water dumped over Ariana’s head.
Six hundred thousand!
She was furious, her face flushed red by Miranda’s condescending manner. But the thought of the dress being so expensive made her outstretched hand freeze mid-air. She didn't dare touch it, yet felt utterly humiliated to pull it back.
Miranda couldn't be bothered to argue with the two of them any longer. She scoffed and turned to leave.
Her high heels clicked lightly on the carpet, her back view resolute and elegant.
"Harrison…" Ariana watched Miranda’s retreating back, clenching her fingers so tightly that her nails dug deep into her palms.
She turned around tearfully to hook her arm through Harrison’s, her eyes instantly red, her voice thick with a sob.
"I—I was only saying that for my cousin’s own good. I was just worried she got tricked by some bad guy. A man who won’t even show his face, but sends such an expensive necklace? He must have bad intentions! What if Cousin did it for the money…"
She didn’t finish the sentence, but the implication in her words was painfully obvious.
Harrison looked at the doorway where Miranda had disappeared, his face a thundercloud.
Ariana, seeing his angry expression, cautiously spoke, her voice laced with concern: "You and Cousin were married, after all. If she really does something awful and word gets out, could it affect you?"
Harrison cared most about his reputation and the Lancaster family's prestige.
He frowned, suppressing the irritation rising in his chest. He patted Ariana’s hand reassuringly: "Don’t you worry about me. I'll handle this."
In the car.
Miranda opened the door and found Clifton already waiting inside. Only a dim light was on in the car, etching the contours of his stern profile in even deeper shadow.
Miranda buckled her seatbelt after getting in and leaned against the backrest, feeling a little exhausted.
She turned her head, watching the neon lights quickly flash past the window. After a moment of silence, she spoke softly, "I haven’t been home in a while. I want to go back and see my mother tomorrow."
Clifton’s gaze swept over the brilliant necklace on her, finally resting on her slightly melancholic profile.
He didn’t ask any questions, simply answering in a low voice, "Okay."
The next day, Miranda returned to the Lancaster family home alone.
The car had barely stopped at the villa entrance. Before she could even walk inside, she heard her mother, Arabella’s, raised voice, full of barely suppressed fury.
"Dominic! Have you no heart? Miranda is your daughter! How can you talk about her like that, listening to outsiders?"
Miranda paused mid-push on the door, her heart sinking heavily.
She walked into the living room to find her mother’s chest heaving with anger, and her father, Dominic, sitting on the sofa with a dark, furious expression.
"Listening to outsiders?" Dominic saw Miranda and seemed to find a vent for his anger, which flared even hotter. "You ask her yourself! Ask her what good-for-nothing thing she did last night! She did something so shameless, and she still has the nerve to come back!"
Arabella’s eyes immediately welled up with tears of anger. She rushed forward to stand in front of Miranda, pointing an accusatory finger at Dominic: "Are you crazy? Don’t you know what kind of person your own daughter is? You'd rather believe that ingrate Ariana than believe Miranda?"
"Ingrate? What ingrate!" Dominic slammed his hand on the table and stood up. "Ariana and Harrison both saw it with their own eyes! A man bought her a thirty-million necklace, and she stayed out all night! If word of this gets out, where does that leave the Lancaster family’s reputation?"
"You…" Arabella was too furious to speak.
Miranda watched the scene, her heart tight and sore.
She stepped forward, gently supporting her trembling mother, and looked calmly at Dominic, her voice devoid of any emotion.
"Mom, don’t argue with Dad."
She paused, her gaze meeting Dominic's fiery eyes directly, her tone cold as ice.
"Dad, since you’ve already decided I’m that kind of person, I won't bother explaining myself to you."
Dominic was choked by her indifferent manner. A lump of anger got stuck in his chest, neither going down nor coming up.
Miranda didn't look at him again. She just gently patted her mother’s back, softly comforting her: "Mom, please don’t be angry. It’s not worth getting upset over. I’m fine. I don’t care what other people say."
The more she defended her mother and the calmer she remained, the hotter the fire burned in Dominic’s heart.
He felt his authority was being challenged. His daughter was getting too big for her britches now. She didn’t even respect her own father!
"Fine! Fine!" Dominic was so angry he laughed, pointing at Miranda. "You don’t care, huh? Let’s see how you cry later!"
With that, he snatched his jacket from the sofa and stormed out, slamming the door behind him.
The loud bang made Arabella’s body tremble.
"Miranda…" Arabella turned, clutching her daughter’s hands with a pained look. "Don’t listen to your father’s nonsense. I believe you."
"I know," Miranda forced a smile, comforting her in turn. "Mom, I’m truly fine. Please sit down and rest. Don’t be upset."
Meanwhile, Dominic angrily drove away from the house.
His mind was filled with what Harrison had told him on the phone yesterday: "Miranda’s behavior worries me. I'm afraid it might hurt the Lancaster image."
If Miranda's actions affected the company’s stock price—
The more Dominic thought about it, the angrier he became. He ordered the driver to change course and drove straight to the company.
As soon as he arrived, he immediately summoned all the senior executives for an emergency meeting.
The atmosphere in the conference room was horribly tense.
Lisa, the Director of the Project Department, suddenly had a bad feeling.
Sure enough, Dominic scanned the room, his gaze finally resting on her, and he announced in an icy voice: "After careful consideration, the 'Starlight Project' is too risky, and the investment is too high. Effective immediately, the Project Department is disbanded!"