Chapter 172: Staged Guilt
“I have proof,” Lily declared, turning to face the crowd. Yunice looked at her, curious to see how far she would go to twist the truth.
Lily unfolded the stack of evidence and held up a page. “This fingerprint—this is the key flaw!” She looked between Elsie and Yunice, her voice unwavering. “They are both my daughters. I know their fingerprints like I know my own. Elsie is gentle and composed; her fingerprints are smooth and clear. But Yunny is lively and mischievous. She once injured her finger, and her prints have a visible break.”
She raised the paper. “Look closely. This is Yunny’s fingerprint.”
Yunice glanced up. Sure enough, on the magnified fingerprint, there was a thin, dark streak extending from the center like an old scar. She shifted her gaze away almost immediately, then looked at Lily with a bitter smile. “So you do remember I have a scar on my hand. I thought you never paid attention to me.”
A flicker passed through Lily’s eyes. Her heart twisted, and she couldn’t quite meet Yunice’s gaze. Her feelings for Yunice had always been complicated. She didn’t want her to suffer, but she also didn’t want her to be too happy. If it hadn’t been Elsie caught up in this today, she wouldn’t have forced Yunice to take the fall. But… wasn’t it the elder sister’s job to protect the younger one? Was it really wrong to expect that?
Suppressing the guilt in her chest, Lily softened her tone. “You’re my daughter. Of course, I care about you.” She said it for the Kendall family to hear, to prove she was being fair and not shielding Elsie out of favoritism. Then, her voice trembled with emotion as she added, “I don’t believe you did this of your own will. Someone must’ve forced you. Tell us who it was. All these elders are here; they’ll stand by your side.”
Tears welled in her eyes as she looked at Yunice, but behind that watery gaze was something else—something sharper. She was giving Yunice a way out, a script, a ladder to climb down from. All she had to do was follow the plan, and the Saunders family would walk away unscathed. Pass the blame. Blame Wyatt. Say it was Wyatt who manipulated you. Say he couldn’t stand to see Paul happy, so he targeted his fiancée out of spite. The reasoning had already been prepared; Lily had even rehearsed it in her mind.
Owen’s eyes were locked on Yunice too, his concern etched deeply in his face. Do it. Say it. Push the blame, and you’ll be safe. This was exactly what the Powell family wanted. As long as Yunice played along, no one would come after her. But as everyone waited, Yunice simply looked at their faces, one by one. Finally, she let out a cold laugh.
“What are you trying to suggest? You’re going to be disappointed,” she said flatly. “No one ordered me to do anything.”
Owen’s and Lily’s expressions darkened instantly, their eyes full of disappointment and disapproval. They thought they were helping her, offering her a way out. But they had forgotten that this entire mess wasn’t Yunice’s fault to begin with. They were the ones trying to pin this disaster on her. And now they expected her to be grateful?
Linda, who hadn’t heard the answer she wanted, grew impatient. She needed to redirect the Kendall family’s focus to keep the heat off the Powell family. But Yunice, in her eyes, was too stupid to catch the hint.
Linda pressed harder. “Yunice, think carefully. Intentional harm leads to prison. Are you really going to keep hiding the truth?” A second chance, dangled in front of her again.
Even Paul spoke up, blunt and urgent: “Was it Wyatt who forced you?” The Kendall family turned toward him immediately, considering a new possibility. Paul and Wyatt were rivals. It wasn’t impossible…
Yunice let her gaze sweep across the room. A cold smile curled on her lips. Only after they had all jumped in did she finally speak, “So you’ve all decided I’m guilty, just with words alone?”
The sentence rang through the room like a slap. The Kendall family snapped out of it. She was right. Nothing had been confirmed. How had we started accusing someone else already?
Lily clutched the fingerprint sheet like it was an imperial decree. “This is evidence! What more do you need?”
“If fingerprints are the issue, why not test them here and now?” Taylor’s voice was sharp. She hated being manipulated. She wanted clarity, and she wanted it now. She stood and strode over to Yunice and Elsie, instructing her people to bring the ink pad.
It was clear who she was criticizing. Everyone felt the sting, but no one dared reply. The room fell into a heavy silence. Taylor, however, glanced at Yunice again, her eyes lingering. She had not been mistaken. There was something in this girl—a quiet defiance, a strength that refused to be broken.