Chapter 298
Sienna instinctively looked over at Jarred.
Those unfathomable eyes finally met hers, though they had darkened considerably, carrying a fleeting, almost imperceptible trace of heavy solemnity.
From his detached gaze, Sienna saw an unprecedented shadow of gloom.
She frowned involuntarily.
Before Sienna could even say a word, Helena shot a pointed look at the maid standing next to her.
Two bodyguards immediately turned and walked to the back of the crowd.
A few seconds later, a deathly pale Mrs. Bridges was dragged out into the open.
She was shaking violently, her face completely covered in tears and snot, her legs stumbling so badly she could barely stand upright.
Sienna’s heart sank inch by agonizing inch.
Taking in Sienna’s sudden loss of color, Helena’s lips curled into a vicious sneer as she spoke with agonizing slowness.
“Twenty minutes ago, Mrs. Bridges came running to the Manor in tears, begging for help. She said someone was deliberately threatening and coercing her, and asked Jarred and the rest of us to stand up for her p>
She crossed her arms, her posture reeking of absolute arrogance. “As the saying goes, if you’re going to beat a dog, you better see who its master is first. I was wondering who would dare threaten Mrs. Bridges. Did they not know how important she is to Jarred?
It turns out to be you, you arrogant bitch. What, do you still think you’re the Madam of the Sterling family? Do you think you can just bully whoever you want p>
The entire crowd’s attention snapped between Mrs. Bridges and Sienna.
Sienna, however, kept her eyes locked entirely on Mrs. Bridges.
Supported by the two bodyguards, Mrs. Bridges’s legs were shaking like leaves in a storm.
She didn’t dare meet Sienna’s eyes, her gaze darting evasively across the ground.
Suddenly, under the watchful eyes of the crowd, Mrs. Bridges dropped to the ground in a sobbing heap with a heavy thud.
“Ms. Sloan, I’m sorry!” Mrs. Bridges’s voice was utterly heart-wrenching, tears and mucus mixing together as they streamed down her deeply wrinkled face.
“I really can’t say those things! You told me that as long as I went along with framing Ms. Carlyle, you would guarantee my family’s safety.
I was forced into this, I had no other choice… Nothing happened in the Sweetbriar Woods. Absolutely nothing.
Everything was completely fabricated by Ms. Sloan to intentionally frame Ms. Carlyle p>
Her words crashed through the woods like an explosive thunderclap.
Sienna’s pupils constricted slightly as a bone-chilling cold swept violently through her chest.
In that split second, she realized that from the moment she left the Manor earlier today, every single step she took had been perfectly calculated within Celeste’s trap.
Celeste had entirely anticipated that she would use Mrs. Bridges as a witness and had proactively threatened the older woman’s family again.
Using the most despicable tactics imaginable, she forced Mrs. Bridges to retract her confession and publicly frame Sienna instead.
Sienna’s sharp eyes locked viciously onto Celeste. “You think you can just get away with this? If you don’t want anyone to know, don’t do it in the first place p>
She pulled the soil samples from her bag and held them up for everyone to see.
“You can’t hide your disgusting actions from science. Once these soil samples are tested, the absolute truth will be revealed p>
Sitting in her wheelchair, Celeste maintained her fragile, pitiful expression, but a faint, nearly undetectable trace of absolute arrogance flashed through her eyes.
Before Celeste could even respond, Helena burst out laughing.
“Sweetbriar Woods? You better open your eyes and take a good look. There are no Sweetbriar Woods left here p>
Hearing this, a violent shock ripped through Sienna, and she instinctively scanned the surrounding woods.
Only then did the horrifying realization hit her—the sprawling, fragrant Sweetbriar trees she was used to seeing were entirely gone.
In their place stood neat rows of brand new Maidenhair trees, their branches thick and green. It was incredibly obvious they had just been planted; the soil was still freshly turned and damp.
The entire grove was immaculately clean, radiating an indescribable sense of tranquility under the streetlights. Not a single trace of the past remained.
Sienna hastily opened the soil sample in her hand and brought it close to her nose.