Chapter 173: You Chose the Wrong Pawn
The ink pad was brought over quickly. Taylor personally pressed Elsie’s fingers onto the sheet of white paper, one by one. Elsie’s face twisted with stubborn tears, as if Taylor were hurting her deliberately. When all ten prints were done, she collapsed onto the ground dramatically, as if she’d been shoved.
Taylor glanced at her coldly. “I’m not a man. Save the damsel act.”
Paul turned his head and muttered under his breath, “Crazy woman…”
Taylor picked up Elsie’s fingerprints and carefully compared them to the ones on the report. Elsie’s prints were indeed clear and smooth. It was completely different from the flawed one on the original sheet.
She glanced sideways at Elsie. Could I have wrongly accused her? If so, the Kendall family had made a big scene over nothing.
Lily noticed her hesitation and pressed the advantage. “Ms. Taylor, there’s no need to continue the investigation. Fingerprint scars like this can’t be faked, especially not in such a short time.”
Paul saw an opportunity and pounced. “Taylor, you’ve slandered someone’s name, taken justice into your own hands, and deliberately humiliated her. You owe Elsie an apology and compensation.”
Elsie, with a rag in her mouth, looked up at Paul with emotion sparkling in her eyes. Paul pursed his lips. He knew Elsie had been wronged. Now was the time to fight for her justice.
Taylor was in an awkward position, but before she could speak, Yunice interrupted, “Mr. Paul, aren’t you a little too eager to play the hero?”
Hero? Both Gerardi and Kyla frowned, their gazes turning icy as they looked at Paul. Just who exactly are you trying to defend? Even Jensen and Jackson gave Paul a cold stare as a silent warning. Say one more word for Elsie, and we won’t let it slide.
Paul flushed with embarrassment and quickly returned to his seat, not daring to speak again. Yunice reached out her hand. “You haven’t tested mine yet.”
Ms. Taylor raised her voice, cutting her off. “Madam Lily, you seem very eager for her to be guilty.”
Lily instantly looked awkward. “I…”
Taylor did not bother listening to her excuses. Without delay, she had Yunice leave her fingerprints on a fresh sheet of paper. Seconds later, Taylor lifted the paper, glanced at it, and stood up. “It wasn’t her.”
Owen and Lily looked at her in disbelief. But Yunice’s finger is injured. How could it not be her?
“Ms. Taylor, are you sure you looked carefully?” Owen pressed. As he reached forward, Taylor deliberately pulled the paper back. “So you’d rather doubt my eyes than trust your own sister?”
Owen was momentarily speechless, then quickly backtracked. “Of course I hope it wasn’t her.” Only then did Taylor hand the sheet to him.
Owen took it and looked. His brow furrowed. Lily peeked over his shoulder, and her eyes went wide. …How is that possible?
The fingerprints were clearly visible. Smooth and unbroken. Not a single flaw. Instead, there was a faint smear of fresh blood, likely from a scratch. A scratch caused by Lily earlier.
Yunice said calmly, “I did have a scar, but that was three years ago. My fingerprints have long since regenerated. You just never noticed.”
Three years ago, when something fell from above and nearly struck Lily, Yunice had reacted quickly and shielded her. Her finger had taken the brunt of it. Lily remembered the incident, but not that the injury had long since healed.
When the evidence did not match her expectations, Lily knew her plan had failed. She turned her blame on Yunice. “If it wasn’t you, why didn’t you say so earlier?”
Yunice raised her eyebrows. “If I’d spoken up too soon, wouldn’t I have missed your spectacular little performance?”
Faces from both the Powell and Saunders families turned grim. They had all gone along with trying to pin this on Wyatt. The elder members of the Kendall family said nothing, but their minds were clear. The Powell family really doesn’t want us getting close to Wyatt, do they?
Jensen rushed over to help him out.
Once they were alone, Jackson’s face turned cold. His voice dropped low. “That girl, Yunice… she’s tough. Three years in a psych ward and still didn’t break. Must have some real luck in her fate.”
Jensen, however, was worried about something else. “Dad, what about Paul and the Kendall family alliance…?”
It might be over. The Kendall family had only one daughter, Taylor. And with all this drama over Elsie, the Powell family’s true colors had been exposed. Gerardo probably would not risk an alliance now.