Everyone grew silent at Ava's question. Even William seemed caught off guard as he glanced between his family and Ava. He could barely wrap his hand around the whole situation.
"Are you that pathetic, Ava?" Caspian broke the silence with disdain in his eyes and voice. "We all 'see' Mother's necklace around your neck, yet you're still asking for evidence? What's next, claiming it magically appeared there?"
Sasha butted in. "Ava, I know this must be humiliating for you," she began, "But there's no need to keep up this charade. If you just admit what you've done, we can move on. Let's not make this any worse for Grandfather. You've embarrassed him enough."
Embarrass Grandfather? Ava felt a laugh bubble in her chest, but she swallowed it down, knowing it would only cause more problem. She turned her attention to Caspian instead. "Simply seeing me with a necklace is not enough proof, Caspian," she said slowly. "For all we know, this might just be a similar design. Mother's necklace isn't the only one ever produced by the jeweler. It's possible that this may just be a lookali-"
"Nonsense!" Matilda exploded as she stepped forward. "Do you even know the worth of this necklace?! Do you think someone like you can afford it?!"
"You're right, Mother," Ava said softly. "I could never afford something so priceless. Which is why I'm so grateful to Sasha for giving it to me earlier."
That was all it took to send the room into chaos again. Sasha's face turned a startling shade of red, and tears rolled down her cheeks as she gasped. "Why are you doing this, Ava?" Her voice broke as she whispered. "Why would you drag me into your mess? I would never, never, give away something so valuable!"
Gaulin had had enough. His face contorted with anger as he stepped forward. "One more word, Ava! One more accusation against Sasha, and I'll personally see to it that you're thrown out of this house for good! Do you hear me?!"
"But father," Ava began in a calm voice. "All of you are accusing me and calling me a thief when Mother haven't even properly confirmed if her necklace is missing from her jewelry box or not."
"You're not only calling us liars, you're now saying Mother is delusional and don't even know what her necklace looks like?!" Noah screeched.
Feeling frustrated by the whole drama that was playing out before him, William finally spoke. "Enough." He turned to his family. "If what Ava says is false, then there should be no issue finding proof. Get someone to check your jewelry box, Matilda," he ordered.
"There is no reason to check, Father," Matilda pushed further. "I am positive that the necklace on Ava's neck is mine."
"Me too, Grandfather," Sasha chimed in. "Mother has shown me that necklace countless times. I am also certain that it's mother's."
Ava smiled after hearing this. "Grandfather," she called out, earning everyone's attention. "I have a request," she said, making her family members scrowl.
"How shameless can you be, Ava?!" Caspian exploded. "You have no right to make any request after stealing from mother! Do you know how many years of jail sentence you'll face if you'd stolen from someone else?!"
Ava pretended to almost cry, and turned to her grandfather. Tugging on his sleeves to earn William's full attention, "Grandfather," she called out sweetly. "I only ask that I should be punished thoroughly if this were mother's necklace. But if this isn't mother's necklace and my family are blaming me for what I didn't do, I want them to beg for forgiveness on their knees," she said quietly.
At her request, her family's face twisted even more, but before they could speak, William said. "Done, Ava." He turned to Matilda. "Get someone to check your jewelry box, Matilda," he said with finality, leaving no room for any other arguments.
For odd reasons, Sasha felt weird from the new development when she saw the faint smile that appeared on Ava's lips, but she brushed it off as she stared at the necklace Ava was wearing. She was positive the necklace Ava wore was the same one she had stolen from her mother, so there was no reason to feel this way.
So she thought, until the maid Matilda had asked to search for the necklace in her jewelry box came back, holding a glittering necklace in her trembling hands.
Matilda's furious face fell into something far less composed - shock. Her mouth opened, but no words came out. For once, she seemed utterly at loss.
"Madam," the maid began hesitantly, bowing slightly, "I found the necklace right where you keep it in your jewelry box." She extended the necklace toward Matilda, who snatched it, her fingers tightening around it as if to convince herself it was real.
Gasps rippled through the crowd, and new whispers started.
Sasha's blood drained from her face. "That's... that's impossible!" she stammered. "Mother, that can't be right! The necklace Ava is wearing--"
"Looks identical," Ava interjected smoothly, looking at every member of her family's face. "I said this earlier, but similar jewelry doesn't exist, right mother?"
Matilda's lips trembled, but no sound came out. Her hand holding the original necklace shook slightly as she glanced between it and the one around Ava's neck.
"What is the meaning of this?!" William asked coldly. "You all created a scene, accused Ava of theft, humiliated her in front of all these people, and now we find the necklace wasn't even missing?"
"I-I don't understand," Matilda sputtered. "How could this..." Her gaze flickered to Sasha, but her daughter's ashen face offered no answers.
Gaulin, Jerome, Noah, and Caspian's faces looked like they wanted the earth to swallow them whole. Their faces burned with shame as they remembered their outbursts and accusations.
Ava let out a soft sigh as she turned to William. With a trembling voice, "I truly am sorry for all of this, Grandfather. I never wanted tonight -- your special night -- to be overshadowed by such a misunderstanding," she said before glancing at Matilda, then at the others.
"It's not Mother's fault, or Father's, or even my brothers'. Anyone would have made the same mistake given how identical the necklaces are."
Her eyes landed on Sasha, who was frozen. "And it certainly isn't Sasha's fault either," Ava continued. "Sasha probably just forgot she gave me this necklace earlier today. That's the only reason she'd... misremember and insist she didn't."
Sasha flinched as if she was struck. Her mouth opened and closed like a fish gasping for air. "I-I didn't... I mean, I wouldn't..." she stammered.
"But, Sasha," Ava continued innocently, "Why would you lie to everyone about something so small? If it was just a misunderstanding, we could have all moved past it. Why would you accuse me of something like theft intentionally when you gave me the necklace?"
The guest's murmur, and the amusement that played in Ava's eyes almost drove Sasha mad. Ava turned to William. "Grandfather, I don't want this to ruin the evening. I'm sure Sasha didn't mean any harm. Let's just move on and enjoy the party. Tonight is about you, after all." Ava smiled weakly at her Grandfather, before her gaze shifted to the rest of her family.
"Nonsense!" William roared. "Have you forgotten your request, Ava? They all have to kneel and beg for your forgiveness for embarrassing you in front of my guests."
Ava could barely control herself from laughing, so she smiled instead.