Chapter 15 Dust For Fingerprints

• “You mean we can just dust for fingerprints? That’s it?” Isabelle thought Natalie was trying to get herself off the hook. What if she wore gloves when she was stealing?
• “Ms. Moore, you can also check the surveillance tape on the corridor to see if I have disposed of anything, like gloves,” Natalie added as though she could read Isabelle’s mind.
• Even though her words had dispelled Isabelle’s suspicion, the latter was still hoping to find fault with her because she was jealous of Shane backing her up. Without wasting more time, she called the security guards over and gave an order, “Check the surveillance tape!” She was determined to find evidence to prove Natalie was the thief.
• At this point, the dispute had spiraled out of control.
• As they were waiting for the result, Shane was sitting on the couch with his legs crossed, savoring his wine. He shifted his gaze to Natalie, who was standing not far away, as he took another sip of his wine with relish.
• As he took a closer look at her, he noticed she had an attractive and alluring face. Nonetheless, she had a pair of pure and innocent eyes which distinguished her from all the other calculating girls with a similar come-hither look.
• He raised his brows while looking at her dealing with a difficult situation with ease. It looks like she can turn the tables even without my help.
• Half an hour later, the head of security entered the room. He made his way toward Isabelle and whispered in her ears, “Miss, we can’t find anything.” They even searched in the bushes, but it was a fruitless search.
• Isabelle’s eyes flickered when she heard the results.
• After that, Natalie approached her. “Ms. Moore, did you manage to find anything?” she asked the obvious.
• At this moment, everyone understood Natalie was innocent.
• Biting her lips, Isabelle was still reluctant to give in. “We’ll check for the fingerprints!”
• Right then, an authoritative and resounding voice rang out. “Enough! Stop the nonsense!”
• Everyone turned around to find that the Moores had arrived. The person taking the lead was none other than Alfred Moore, the much-respected patriarch of the Moore family.
• Natalie had seen him once during the ceremony when she first established a student-mentor relationship with Mercede Mackenzie, her mentor. Alfred was still full of vigor though a few years had passed since she last saw him.
• “Grandpa, I’m not playing around. She stole my necklace!” Isabelle rushed up to her grandpa, taking his arm as she pouted. Being Alfred’s one and only granddaughter, she could get whatever she wanted from her doting grandfather whenever she voiced her dissatisfaction.
• However, Alfred wouldn’t let her have her way today. Pulling a long face, he shoved her hands off him and reprimanded, “Belle, look what you’ve done! You’ve ruined the banquet!”
• Looking at her grandpa in disbelief, Isabelle refuted, “Grandpa, it’s not me! It’s all her fault!” She angrily pointed her finger at Natalie.
• Alfred looked in the direction where Isabelle was pointing. He was surprised when he saw Natalie. The next moment, he gave a hearty smile. “Nat! Why didn’t you tell me that you’re here?”
• Everyone was stupefied the moment they saw Alfred walking toward Natalie and even calling her by her nickname.
• “My dear Alfred, Mercede asked me to give you a surprise.” Natalie bowed slightly at him as a sign of respect.
• “Haha! You really surprised me!” Alfred was happy to meet his old friend’s student.
• Soon after that, the crowd started to see Natalie in a new light. They couldn’t help wondering about her identity when it turned out she knew both Shane and Alfred.
• Anyway, the “stealing necklace” incident came to an end when both Natalie and Isabelle agreed not to pursue further in it. After all, they were aware that the whole episode was inglorious.
• Meanwhile, Jasmine stood in the shadows with her teeth clenched. She was relieved that no one found out about her misdeed, but she would not thank Natalie for letting her off easily. Jealousy was eating her up at the sight of Natalie standing beside Shane.
• Since Shane mistook her as the one who saved him five years ago, she could easily get everything she wanted from him. She was his future wife in the eyes of the outsiders, but little did they knew, she was nothing to him.
• That man never had intimacy with her. Apparently, he only used her as a shield against other women’s advances. I must find a way to get rid of Natalie and her two illegitimate children!