"No, I didn't steal anything."
Although she was still clueless as to why this man was standing before her, Athena would never succumb and admit something she did not do.
"Great." With that, Julian nodded and didn't speak a word further. No one could tell what was going through his mind.
At this moment, everyone in the banquet hall was taken aback. At once, they were prompted to view Athena through different lenses.
Who was she?
How was she related to Julian? Who was she for him to initiate a conversation with her?
Behind him, Yuliana instantly recognized Athena's mottled dress.
She was floored, but Susan abruptly pulled her aside.
"What's going on? How did Julian and Athena get to know each other?" Susan asked fiercely in a low voice.
"I have no idea! Athena? Ah! She's Ch-" Yuliana almost cried out in surprise. Fortunately, Susan was quick enough to cover her mouth before she could shriek.
Susan rolled her eyes at her silly sister out of frustration.
Athena had already appeared, yet Yuliana was still in blissful ignorance!
However, an idea popped into her head in the blink of an eye. Athena had no evidence in her hands. Having Julian to back her up would not help her situation at all.
As her train of thought faded, a smile reappeared on Susan's face. She hauled Yuliana behind her and butted her way through the crowd to stand before Julian.
"Brother- in- law, it's too kind of you to rush over as the busy man you are," cooed Susan in a sweet, pretentious voice.
In a flash, everyone's attention was drawn back to Yuliana.
Athena could feel her heart skip a beat. Who would have thought that her boss was related to Susan?
That could only mean that she was in a terrible spot now!
Before Athena's thoughts could run wild, Julian spoke.
"Madam Morgan, she's an employee of my company. You claimed that she stole something of yours, would you kindly present the evidence?"
Without delay, Susan's face distorted into an ugly grimace. She hadn't expected Julian to leave her no way out, let alone defend Athena to this extent.
"Everyone saw it with their own eyes. The guards found my necklace in her bag."
"Hm?" Julian turned to look at Athena and asked, "Is that so?"
Athena stared back at Julian with large, bewildered eyes.
'Is he really trying to defend me?'
'Isn't he Susan's brother-in-law?'
Rather peculiarly, Athena felt reassured at heart as she met Julian's cold eyes. She felt that the man in front of her was a person deserving of her trust. And so, she nodded. "That seems to be the case."
There was no need for her to quibble about the matter as she stood before so many witnesses.
"Look, she admitted it, didn't she?" Susan declared with a sinister smile.
Seeing Susan's self- gratification, Athena frowned. Looking away, she chose to focus on the man in front of her instead.
Though she was unclear about this man's character, she could tell from his demeanor that he was someone whom the Morgan family was cautious around to avoid getting on his bad side. This was the perfect reason for her to take this opportunity to prove her innocence.
Hence, she began gently, "Earlier, a servant bumped into me. Thereafter, Madam Morgan' s necklace appeared in my bag. In this case, that servant is just as suspicious as I am."
Seeing her explained herself in a calm and composed manner, Julian was filled with a sense of praise and approval.
It seemed to him that this woman was not as stupid as he thought. He realized that she hadn't tried to clarify things earlier only because she felt that the timing and place were not optimal.
But now, she knew that this was a good time, and she actually used him to clear her name.
Recalling his encounter with clever little Sheryl at the mall the other day, he could see the resemblance in the two situations.
'This woman and her child are really interesting!' Julian thought.
"If so, we'd have to trouble Madam Morgan to summon the servants." Julian turned his unfathomable gaze to Susan.
"Brother-in-law, there are more than a hundred servants in the Morgan family. Why are you being so difficult?"
Susan asked in a loud voice so that everyone could hear, "Why would I, Madam Morgan, deliberately slander this lady here?"
Susan then secretly tossed a meaningful glance to her butler, who then quietly left.
It just so happened that Athena caught this exchange. It was then made clear that it was Susan who had framed her.
Now that was willing to side with her, she did not intend to let Susan slip away.
"I never said you had ill intentions. It was the servant who bumped into me; she was the one who set me up. So please, if I could trouble you to summon all your servants, Madam Morgan."
Susan's face turned dark.
'When did this b*tch become so eloquent?' she thought.
'If she were to persist, she would raise everyone's suspicion again.'
At that time, Susan had fallen into her own trap. After weighing the pros and cons, she gritted her teeth and reluctantly ordered all the servants in the residence to present themselves.
Julian couldn't help but take another look at Athena again.
'To think there are so many sides to this woman. Still, as the mother to the quickwitted little Sheryl, it's no big surprise,' thought Julian.
Julian suddenly became very interested in what would happen next. He wanted to know how this woman in front of him would prove her innocence.
At that moment, Susan narrowed her eyes at her sister, Yuliana, signaling her to bring Julian away.
Otherwise, having him here would only worsen the situation.
"Julian, my head hurts. Let's leave." Yuliana held a hand to her head and weakly leaned toward Julian.
But before she could even lay her hands on Julian, she was shut down by an icy- cold glare. She stepped back bitterly, not daring to let a single word slip from her lips.
Athena witnessed this scene with astonishment.
There were some doubts in her heart.
'Julian's attitude toward the sisters of Morgan Corporation is peculiar.'
However, she didn't dwell much on the reason. Susan wanted to sabotage her today, and she would not let Susan get away with it.
After a while, the butler walked over to report back to Susan.
"Madam, everyone has gathered. They are all in the back hall."
"Let's go."
Everyone followed Susan to the back hall.
Athena stood in front of the crowd and quickly scanned the faces. At a glance, she spotted the servant who had bumped into her.
"That's her." She pointed directly at the servant in the crowd.
Susan looked at the confidence on Athena's face and caught eyes with the butler standing aside. He nodded discreetly at Susan and she couldn't help but curl her lips into a smirk.
'Oh Athena, you are still too fresh to play with me!'
"Come here," she instructed the servant in a cold tone.
She brazenly hinted, "This young lady stole my necklace, but she said that it was you who put it in her purse when you spilled the wine on her. What do you have to say for yourself?"
The maid lowered her head and replied, "Madam, I, I don't know. I didn't do anything."
In the blink of an eye, the maid looked over at Athena. However, her eyes were filled with anger and hatred. It was as though there was more to it than the eyes could perceive...