"Grandpa, I was humiliated by that lowlife Alexander dragged in from the slums," Jade cried, clutching his arm tightly. "Look at my face… my beautiful face! She slapped me!"
Grandpa Wayne's expression remained unreadable, but Felicia saw the silence as her cue to jump in.
"It's true, Grandpa," she said, stepping forward with urgency. "She raised her hand at me too! Can you believe that? Laurel threatened to strike me in front of everyone!"
Her voice grew more dramatic by the second as she dabbed at her dry eyes with the edge of her sleeve.
"This is unacceptable," she continued, lowering her voice as if it were a scandalous secret. "Now we're afraid in our own home. She talks like she's some hardened criminal, Grandpa… she must be one! Who knows what kind of life she lived before marrying into this family?"
Grandpa Wayne didn't say a word.
Jade clung tighter to his arm, her lip trembling for effect. Felicia sniffled beside her, one eye watching him, waiting and begging for his approval.
Then finally, Grandpa Wayne adjusted his grip on the cane, shifting his weight forward. The soft tap of the cane against the floor echoed in the silence as he stepped forward and looked straight at Laurel.
"Is it true?" he asked, voice low, roughened by age and authority. "Did you slap Jade?"
Laurel stood still with her hands at her sides, her face paled but she remained composed. She glanced around the room, as if trying to recall a memory that didn't belong to her. Her lips parted slightly, then closed again.
"I… don't remember, I'll never do that grandpa." Laurel clenched her hands tightly into a fist.
'Do they think they can frame me? I had been quiet about their bullying in my past life, but not this time. I won't sit around and let them frame me.'
Gasps fluttered through the room like startled birds.
"She's lying again!" Jade screeched. "You see?! This is what she does! She pretends she can't hurt a fly when she is nothing but a venom!"
"I'm not pretending," Laurel said, her gaze still fixed on Grandpa Wayne. "I came downstairs, and suddenly everyone was yelling at me. I don't remember slapping anyone, and I don't remember threatening anyone." She shook her head, her gaze burning with anger. "But judging from your reactions, you all must have gone the extra mile to make this work.."
She turned to Jade, then to Felicia, her voice growing colder. "And if I did… maybe I had a good reason for it."
Another round of gasps.
Vera, who had been on the edge of the table with her arms crossed, jumped in with a scoff. "Did you hear that, Grandpa? She's mocking us now, and threatening us again in front of you! You see what kind of person she really is?"
The little girl raised her hand, her brunette hair parted into two ponytails. "Grandpa, I was here when it happened, let me be the witness."
Grandpa Wayne walked towards the dining table, pulled a chair out, and sat down. "Go on, Tina."
"Mrs. Wayne actually slapped Jade…"
"You see, we are telling the truth." Jade cut in.
"Aunty Jade, don't cut me off my words, I'm not done yet." Tina pouted her lips. After she was sure that no one was going to interrupt her again, she parted her lips to speak. "But she slapped aunty Jade because aunty Jade deserved to be slapped…"
"Tina! How dare you talk to me like that?!" Jade exploded with rage.
Tina flinched but didn't back down. She stepped closer to Grandpa Wayne and crossed her arms tightly over her chest. "She was calling Aunty Laurel names and saying reaaally bad things. She kept shouting at her and saying she didn't belong here. I saw everything."
The room went still again.
"You little rat…" Jade lunged forward, but Grandpa slammed his cane down on the marble floor with a sharp sound.
"Enough!" his voice boomed through the dining hall, cutting through the tension like a blade.
Everyone froze in their spot. Even the chandeliers seemed to rattle.
"Tina is a child," he said coldly. "And she has more sense in her little head than the rest of you put together."
He slowly turned his head toward Jade, his gaze colder than ice. "You insulted her?"
Jade looked around helplessly, but no one stepped in this time. "I…I was only trying to talk some sense into her…"
"I didn't ask for excuses," Grandpa Wayne snapped. "I asked if you insulted her."
Jade's shoulders dropped. "Yes… But…"
"No buts."
Then his attention shifted to Felicia. "And you? Raising your voice and stirring chaos in this house like you've never been taught manners."
Felicia opened her mouth, then closed it again like a fish out of the water. Her face turned red with embarrassment and anger.
"I might be old," Grandpa said as he pushed himself up with his cane, "but I am not senile. This is the second time I've heard your names in my halls for the wrong reasons."
"But Grandpa…!"
"One more word, Jade," he warned, his tone low and final, "and I'll send you back to your father's house without a cent to your name."
The color drained from her face.
He turned to Laurel next. His sharp gaze softened just slightly. "As for you… Next time, remember you bear the Wayne name now. If someone insults it, you defend it with dignity."
Laurel bowed her head slightly. "Yes, Grandpa."
A look of surprise flickered through Laurel's eyes. In her past Grandpa Wayne had been indifferent to her. But why was he speaking up for her this time? What changed in him?
With that, he tapped his cane twice and turned to leave. "All of you, clean this mess up. You just ruined my appetite."
The sound of his cane echoed down the hall as the door closed behind him.
Vera muttered under her breath, "This isn't over…"
Tina leaned closer to Laurel and whispered proudly, "I told the truth, didn't I?"
Laurel gave her a faint smile. "Yes, you did and you did it better than most adults."
Tina beamed in delight.
Laurel turned her gaze to Jade, who looked like she was trying not to explode.
"You really looked cool when she made your rules." Tina gave Laurel a thumbs-up.
A frown formed on Laurel's face, why didn't she have any memories of all of those?. "Why don't you tell me more about it?"