Abandoned by All I Took It All Back novel Chapter 28

This was Janina's mother-in-law. She didn't even bother to verify Viola's claim before publicly shaming Janina.

Thankfully, she wouldn't be part of this family for much longer.

Curious and judgmental stares were all fixed on Janina as people whispered amongst themselves.

Most of them already believed Viola. After all, why would she make such a direct accusation without proof?

Julius stood in the crowd, his face as dark as a storm cloud. He couldn't believe Janina would do something so shameless.

"I saw it! It's in your bag. If you don't believe me, just have Mrs. Quinn check your bag and you'll see!" Seeing the crowd turning on Janina, Viola grew bolder, hammering in the accusation.

It was a clever move, putting Elena in the position of having to search her daughter-in-law's purse.

"Fine. But I have conditions."

Janina crossed her arms, her gaze sweeping from Yvonne to Viola.

The smug looks on their faces told her they were absolutely certain the ring was in her bag.

Elena was trembling with rage, summoning the full force of her authority as the lady of the Aurelius house.

"Janina, haven't you made enough of a scene? Just take it out, apologize to Yvonne, and we can put this behind us."

Yvonne placed a soothing hand on Elena's back, then turned to Janina.

"Miss Holt, please. This ring is very important to me. If you just give it back, we can pretend this never happened."

Yvonne's eyes were glistening with tears, her small face streaked with moisture. She looked fragile and wronged.

In the eyes of the onlookers, Yvonne was the perfect, pitiable victim.

Janina, on the other hand, stood stubbornly defiant, her eyes cold and a hint of a smirk playing on her lips that couldn't be hidden.

To everyone else, it looked like a clear sign of guilt.

At that moment, Elena's disappointment in her daughter-in-law was absolute.

Viola's face paled. This Janina was still acting tough when she was already cornered. Viola couldn't wait to see her on her knees, begging for forgiveness.

She shot Yvonne a reassuring look.

"Miss Holt, I already agreed to handle this privately. Why must you make this so difficult for yourself…"

Yvonne's worried tone only served to subtly confirm that Janina had, in fact, taken the ring.

Janina was disgusted by her hypocritical act. It made her sick to her stomach.

Janina's cool eyes stared quietly at Viola and Yvonne.

Her gaze seemed to say: if you don't agree, you won't be searching anyone today, and you won't be finding that ring.

"Fine! You're the one who said it. If you want to make a fool of yourself, I won't stop you. Just don't come begging for mercy later. Hmph!"

It was Elena who spoke. She couldn't stand it anymore. More and more people were gathering to watch. She just wanted Janina to produce the ring so they could end this spectacle.