Chapter 247

There wasn’t the slightest flicker of emotion in Harrison’s expression. His gaze landed on Alice with all the warmth of a man regarding a lifeless object. “Tell Mary to take her daughter home,” he commanded.
He didn’t bother to say another word-Alice was hardly worth his time or energy. For more chapters visıt.net
But that order was far from forgiving Alice; whatever punishment awaited her at home would be anything but lenient.
At Harrison’s instruction, Logan signaled, and a pair of security guards stepped forward, seizing Alice by the arms.
“No-Mr. Lancaster, please!” Alice thrashed in their grip, her eyes desperately searching Harrison’s face for mercy.
But the man’s gaze was cold, his heart never softened by her pleas. Only when he looked at Anastasia did something shift in his eyes.
As Alice was dragged away, Harrison’s attention turned to her little clique.
Under the oppressive weight of his presence, the girls blanched, trembling in place.
Anastasia understood her husband wanted to stand up for her. She glanced at the frightened girls, but shook her head, a note of regret in her voice. “I hardly know these girls,” she said quietly.
Maybe they’d gossiped about her alongside Alice, but Anastasia had no interest in holding them accountable for petty rumors.
Only then did Harrison look away, motioning for the girls to be led out of the hall. His gaze then settled on the two school principals.
Noticing Harrison’s attention shift, Mr. Pierce nearly broke out in a cold sweat.
Principal Lionel let out a heavy sigh and stepped forward. “This was my oversight, Mr. Lancaster,” he said, his voice contrite. “Please accept my sincerest apologies.”
He had wanted so badly to impress Harrison that, upon hearing Mr. Pierce had a plan, he’d simply let him handle things-never expecting such a disastrous outcome.
True, the incident had been Mr. Pierce’s doing, but as the head of the school, Lionel knew the ultimate responsibility was his. There was no excuse for his failure to supervise.
Relieved to see Principal Lionel taking the blame, Mr. Pierce wasted no time shifting responsibility. With a pitiful expression, he pleaded, “It wasn’t my fault, Mr. Lancaster! Alice deceived me-she claimed to be one of your close associates, said she lived at Rosewood Manor, even brought a whole group there to visit!”
“And she took my niece and her friends to see the dress you bought, insisting you’d purchased it for her! With all that, I couldn’t help but believe her. How was I to know she was only the maid’s daughter?”
Anastasia’s face darkened instantly.
She’d known Alice had brought people to Rosewood Manor-she’d even caught them in the act—but she had no idea that Alice had let others into her dressing
room.
The thought of Alice touching her most treasured dress made Anastasia’s skin crawl. If Alice were still here, she would have given her a piece of her mind-and maybe a punch or two.
Harrison noticed the storm brewing in her eyes. Even though he was still upset with her, he couldn’t bear to see her distressed. He reached over and gently stroked her hair, murmuring, “Forget about the dress. I’ll have another one made for you.”
“I don’t want another one,” Anastasia replied, her voice tight with frustration.
That dress wasn’t just a piece of clothing-it was a surprise Harrison had planned just for her, a memory that always filled her with happiness. How could she simply let it go?
“I’ll ask her myself whether she touched my dress or not!” she huffed, her eyes glinting with anger.
Suddenly, she turned to Mr. Pierce, her tone icy. “Never mind that. I have one question for you, Mr. Pierce: What happened with my shoes?”
“Don’t tell me the shoes prepared for the school gala were so poorly made that the heel just snapped after a few steps!”