Abandoned by All I Took It All Back novel Chapter 70

Cedric's antiques were the most valuable and easiest things to steal in the house; many of the pieces in his study were small and portable.

There was no cash lying around, so the antiques and paintings were the most valuable assets.

A small bag like that couldn't fit a painting. It had to be an antique.

Janina didn't say a word. She simply handed the bag to him.

Victor snatched it and opened it. It was completely empty. He breathed a sigh of relief.

But his relief quickly soured into annoyance. Why was she carrying an empty bag?

Sitting in the front, the other Gables didn't say a word to stop Victor.

They pretended not to hear, their gazes fixed straight ahead.

In their minds, Victor's actions were perfectly normal.

Janina wasn't their real daughter, after all.

And besides, she had a history of stealing. It was only natural to check her bag.

Victor tossed the bag back at Janina.

He realized he had overreacted but felt no remorse.

He crossed his arms, leaned back against the seat, and said flatly, "You have a record. I was just checking, to be safe."

The 'record' Victor referred to was from the second month after Janina had first come to live with the Gables.

Genevieve had lost a diamond necklace and couldn't find it anywhere in the house.

Later that day, when Janina came home from school, they found the missing necklace in her backpack.

Back then, she was just a child desperate for her parents' approval.

When they all accused her of stealing the necklace, she denied it over and over again. But no one believed her.

Genevieve had pointed a finger in her face and screamed, "You little slut! You're so cheap! It's bad enough you have the face of a fox, but now you're a thief too? I'll beat you to death!"

Genevieve had kicked and punched her.

In the end, she was forced to kneel for a day and a night without any food.

From that day on, whenever anything went missing in the house, everyone automatically assumed she had taken it.

Brooke threw down the hoe, planted her hands on her hips, and glared at the dirt field with a sneer.

"Hmph, I'm done! I'm not even a real Holt anyway. My real parents are coming to get me soon. I'm the real Gable heiress. Why should I be doing this kind of manual labor?"

"This is outrageous! Some impostor lived my life for years, took everything I should have had — and now you still expect me to work for you?"

Fuming, Brooke viciously stomped on the seeds she had just planted.

She had thought she would be stuck in this village for the rest of her life.

But a few days ago, someone had found her and told her the truth: she was the real Gable heiress, swapped at birth with the Holt family's child.

She knew it! She had always thought she was too beautiful for this family and had never gotten along with the Holts. It turned out she wasn't their child at all.

Easton Holt, carrying a shoulder pole, arrived just in time to see Brooke's tantrum and hear her angry words.

He had only learned about the swap from his parents yesterday.

He had always doted on this sister, never letting her do any of the heavy chores.

They were just short-handed today, which was the only reason he had asked Brooke to help sow the seeds.