She Was the Treasure All Along novel Chapter 101

“No way!” Leroy slammed his hand on the table, jumping to his feet. A wine glass toppled over, spilling its contents across the surface.

Loyce rose slowly, smoothing her sleeves. “A bet’s a bet.”

The crowd started chanting, “Strip! Strip! Strip!”

Leroy’s face was grim. He clenched his fists, then suddenly grabbed a bottle and smashed it on the table. With a loud crash, glass shards flew everywhere. “Shut up, all of you!”

The crowd fell silent instantly.

Loyce didn’t even flinch, not so much as a flicker of her eyelashes. She watched Leroy calmly, her voice soft but laced with an undeniable force. “Can’t you handle a loss?”

Finally, swallowing his humiliation, Leroy walked to the stripper pole. His fingers undid one button after another, revealing his skin.

Just then, the bar’s main doors burst open. Sybil, dressed in a white dress, hurried in.

“Wait!” Sybil pulled Leroy’s half-removed shirt back onto his shoulders and stood protectively in front of him. She turned to Loyce, her voice a soft plea, as if she were enduring some great injustice yet forcing herself to be strong. “Loyce, Leroy’s young and foolish. Please, be the bigger person. Don’t hold it against him…”

She lowered her head slightly, her eyelashes trembling as if she were the one being bullied, yet she managed a gentle smile. “He’s impulsive, but his heart is in the right place. He just wants your approval. If he’s offended you in any way, I apologize on his behalf. Please, don’t make things hard for him, okay?”

As she spoke, she gently took Leroy’s hand, shielding him like a mother bird protecting her young—frail yet resolute, her eyes pleading. “Loyce, if you’re angry, blame me. I’m the one who didn’t teach my brother right…”

Her words made the onlookers soften, some even murmuring amongst themselves.

“Isn’t Loyce being a bit aggressive?”

“Sybil is so kind, apologizing for her brother like that.”

Leroy stood behind her, his expression still sour. Seeing his sister groveling only fueled his anger. “Sybil, you don’t have to do this,” he muttered through gritted teeth.

But Sybil gently squeezed his hand, signaling for him to be quiet. She continued to gaze at Loyce with those watery eyes, as if she would keep up her pitiful act indefinitely until Loyce relented.

Loyce suddenly let out a laugh. “I don’t get it.”

She stepped onto the stage, facing Sybil directly. “Leroy was the one who invited me for a drink. Leroy was the one who challenged me to a drinking game. And Leroy was the one who warned me that a bet’s a bet. So how, coming from you, did this become me making things hard for him?”

Sybil hadn’t expected Loyce to see right through her act. Biting her lip, she suddenly stepped forward and grabbed Loyce’s arm. “Loyce, it’s just a game, don’t take it so seriously. The Lonsdale family’s reputation is more important. Please, think of the bigger picture.”

The crowd’s accusations grew louder, but Loyce remained composed, a faint, almost imperceptible smile playing on her lips. She slowly descended the steps and stood before Sybil, looking down at her. “Sybil,” she said softly, “you’re quite the actress.”

Sybil froze for a second before shaking her head, looking even more aggrieved. “Loyce, what are you talking about? I don’t understand…”

Loyce ignored her and scanned the room, her voice clear and calm. “This bar has security cameras. Why don’t we just roll the footage and see what happened?”

Sybil’s face stiffened, and her fingers tightened on the fabric of her dress. She knew this bar, Leroy’s usual haunt, like the back of her hand. The owner kept the cameras off to protect the privacy of his wealthy, high-profile clientele.

After a moment’s thought, her confidence returned. “I’m not afraid of any cameras,” she said gently. “I just hope that when the truth comes out, you’ll let my brother off the hook. We can call it even then.”

Loyce studied Sybil’s feigned composure, a thoughtful glint in her eyes. Sybil seemed so sure of herself, which likely meant the cameras were indeed off. She was determined to saddle Loyce with a reputation for being a violent bully.

Just then, the door to the second-floor VIP lounge swung open. The blaring rock music was cut off at a signal from Gavin, drawing confused looks from the dance floor. Then, Lucian’s tall figure appeared at the top of the stairs.

He stood with one hand in his pocket, casually flicking a metal lighter with the other. “Quite a party down here,” he remarked idly.

The entire bar fell silent, all eyes turning to the tall silhouette standing in the dim light, his handsome face flickering in and out of view with the flame of the lighter.