CHAPTER 51: TENSE ATMOSPHERE

She continued, tilting her head, "First, your plan on getting rid of me flopped because the person you manipulated to do the job was inexperienced. Then he got arrested, and suddenly you’re being suspected by everyone as the one who pushed Adrian to it—and that’s the truth. Your face must have gone ashen when you saw it on the internet, right, sister?" She leaned forward, her smile grating on Sierra’s nerves, making Sierra wish she could claw it off. "But don’t fret. Why? Because that’s just the beginning. Remember what I said on the phone?"

Erisia turned her back to her and said as she walked to her room, "Look forward to it!"

Watching Erisia walk away, Sierra gritted her teeth, trembling from both anger and trepidation.

What was she going to do?

Did she know the truth about the fire? How could she?!

What exactly did she know? No! She didn’t. No one knows. And even if she knew, there was no proof.

Sierra breathed out, her restless nerves settling. Yes, she didn’t have any proof. She was just trying to scare me, nothing else.

Her eyes narrowed. ’Erisia, I will make you pay for this past week. You will never turn my family against me. They are mine, and you are just an outsider. Nothing more.’

"Sierra? Why are you standing there? Aren’t you coming downstairs?" Leander’s voice pulled her out of her thoughts, and she looked up to see him at the bottom of the stairs.

She hurriedly put on an embarrassed smile as she descended. When she reached a few steps away from him, she spoke, "I just met Erisia. She didn’t seem to look good, and when I wanted to ask if something was wrong, she ignored me."

Leander scoffed. "Sierra, how many times have I told you, just ignore her. Come on, let’s play games together. I’m fucking bored."

Sierra beamed as she looked up at him. "Sure! Let’s do that while we wait for dinner."

Meanwhile, as soon as Erisia got into her room, she lay on the bed, resting for a few minutes and answering Rita’s message that she’d arrived at the Wrenfords. Then she loosened her hair, took off her clothes, and went into the shower.

When she came back out, she was in a towel with her hair dripping wet. She took the dryer, dried her hair, combed it, and rummaged through the wardrobe. A few moments later, she took out sweatpants and a cropped T-shirt.

Fully dressed, she took out her two suitcases and started folding her clothes into them. When the first one was almost full, a knock came from outside her door.

"Miss Erisia, dinner is ready. Sir David asked me to call you down," a maid said.

Folding the clothes in her hand, she arranged them into the suitcase as she replied, "Thanks, I will be down in a few seconds."

"Okay, Miss Erisia." As the maid left, Erisia walked to the bed and took out the drive from her handbag, putting it in her pocket as she moved to the door.

...

"You are here, sit over here," David spoke as soon as she stepped into the dining room, asking Shane to pull out the chair beside him for her.

Erisia shook her head, stopping at the end of the table. "Don’t worry, I’m fine here." She pulled out the chair and sat down, glancing at the mother and daughter who sat together, ignoring her, and resisted the urge to laugh.

The maids served dinner, and David picked up his spoon, saying, "Let’s eat," and everyone started eating.

At first, it was quiet, then Leander asked Selena to help him pass the bowl of mashed potatoes sitting near her elbow.

Selena didn’t look up from her food as she replied to him, "Take it yourself."

Not a second later after she finished speaking, Sierra carried it and handed it to Leander, who grinned at her.

After that, no one spoke, and anyone with discerning eyes would see how tense the atmosphere was. Erisia did, but she didn’t care, and she continued eating.

Minutes passed and they ate in silence, the sound of cutlery clinking lightly against plates filling the room.

Just as they were all almost done with their food, David put down his spoon and cleared his throat. "Everyone should stop eating. I have something to say."

Selena frowned, setting her spoon down with a sharp clink. "Why should we stop eating? We’re almost done. Say whatever you want to say when everyone is done."

David closed his eyes for a second, his voice firm when he spoke again. "Selena, stop questioning me. This is a serious issue I want to discuss with you all. So please, quit being stubborn."

"What? Me, stubborn? Then what is this serious issue you want to discuss with us, huh?" Selena shot back, her brows furrowing.

"Mom..." Sierra placed her hand on Selena’s arm, trying to calm her down, and it worked because Selena turned to look at her and kept quiet.

David continued, his voice heavy with restrained frustration. "Yesterday, when Shane and I got back from our business trip, I was shocked to find out that Erisia hasn’t been at home for close to a week. And when I found out everything that had happened in our absence, I was angry, disappointed, and most of all, in disbelief. Because first, Sierra framed Erisia at the Altheorns’ birthday party, and my wife didn’t think of informing me of such a serious thing—which even went viral on the internet. With people calling my biological daughter names and having the right to insult her. But then she was the one who had to clear her name in front of everyone, and no one in the family said anything about it. As if that wasn’t enough, she almost got hit by a car, and still no one told me about it."

He sighed, as if he couldn’t believe everything that had happened, or maybe he was deeply disappointed.

"As you all know, today was Adrian’s arraignment, and he was denied bail, which gives us an idea of what the future judgment will be."

Sierra’s hold on her fork tightened for a minute, but she regained her composure.

"It is said on the internet that Sierra and Adrian are close friends, which is the reason why he would try to kill Erisia, who he has never interacted with before," David said, turning to look at Sierra. Her gaze trembled, and she hurriedly looked down. "And considering what Sierra did at the Altheorns’, I can’t help but agree with what they said."

Selena stood up at once, her chair scraping against the floor. "What do you mean?! Didn’t we talk about this yesterday?! You already asked Sierra, and she said she had no relationship with Adrian! But you didn’t believe her, questioning her in front of that girl!"

"Selena! That girl is your daughter!" David snapped, his voice sharp.

"No! She is not my daughter! I only have one daughter, and that is Sierra!" Selena shot back, her tone cutting like a blade.

"Mom...! Dad, stop, please..." Sierra stood up, forcing her eyes to glisten as if on the verge of tears.

"Keep quiet! Just keep shut and let me finish!" David’s voice boomed, silencing the room. He glanced at Sierra, his eyes cold. "You, sit down and answer my question."

Selena held Sierra’s arm tightly, her voice trembling with defiance. "No, she won’t be answering any of your questions. It’s okay if you don’t believe her, but you don’t have any right to question her! Let’s go, Sierra."

She got out of her seat, pulling Sierra with her, but Shane’s words stopped her.

"Mom," Shane said evenly, his voice unhurried, "since you believe Sierra didn’t do it, then why don’t you let her prove herself? Don’t you think that is better than this?"

His words were calm and deliberate. He only looked up from his food once as he spoke, but it was enough—his words achieved their intention.

Selena froze mid-step, her grip on Sierra’s arm loosening as she turned slightly toward Shane. "Prove herself? And how do you suggest she do that?" she demanded, her tone harsh but laced with hesitation.

Shane rested his spoon beside his plate, his gaze steady. "If Sierra is truly innocent, then she should have no problem giving a statement to the authorities and handing over her phone for investigation. If she has nothing to hide, it will clear her name faster than any argument in this dining room ever could."

Sierra stiffened, her face paling despite the faint smile she forced onto her lips. "Shane... you can’t be serious," she said quietly, her voice trembling as she tried to maintain composure.

David leaned back in his chair, his eyes narrowing as he studied her. "That’s exactly what I was thinking," he said, his tone thoughtful. "If you have nothing to hide, Sierra, you should be willing to cooperate."

Selena’s jaw tightened, her eyes darting between her husband and son before settling on Sierra. "You don’t have to do anything you don’t want to," she said firmly, though her voice betrayed a flicker of unease.

Erisia sat silently, her spoon poised over her plate as she watched the scene unfold. Her expression remained neutral, but inwardly, satisfaction curled through her like smoke.

The tension at the table deepened, heavy and suffocating. Sierra’s fingers clenched at her sides as the weight of every gaze pressed against her.

And that was when Erisia finally spoke.