Chapter 308

So in this Herbal Remedies Unveiled, she could already recite half the book from memory, while Anastasia probably hadn’t even made it past the first page.
That’s exactly why she and Shirley felt so confident in setting up this little scheme -they were determined to bring Anastasia down a peg.
“Sure!” With Penelope’s assent, Shirley immediately agreed to Anastasia’s proposal.
As far as Shirley was concerned, it didn’t make a difference whether she agreed or not—Anastasia simply didn’t have what it took. There was no way she’d win!
With her goal secured, Shirley was in high spirits, already picturing the scene of Anastasia awkwardly kneeling in defeat.
With a triumphant wave, she strode off, her entourage trailing behind.
Penelope moved to follow, but Anastasia’s icy voice suddenly cut through the air
“Penelope. Stop right there.”
The tone and force of it sent a chill down Penelope’s spine-the same dread she’d felt during past run-ins with Anastasia, making her flinch before she could stop herself.
When she realized what she’d done, her expression soured. But now she had Shirley backing her up, and with Anastasia about to get her comeuppance, what was there to be afraid of?
She quickly composed herself, slipping into her usual gentle smile. “Anastasia, is there something you need?”
Anastasia fixed her with a cold stare. “Explain to me-how did my mother’s bracelet end up in Shirley’s hands?”
After her mother passed away, some of her belongings had been stored safely at the bank, and that bracelet was among them.
“Of course it was Dad who gave it to me,” Penelope replied sweetly. “He’s the only one who could access those things. Surely you knew that?”
She’d anticipated that Anastasia might not agree to their bet, which is why she’d suggested to Shirley that they should get something valuable as a bargaining chip. The bracelet was perfect. Thᴇ link to the origɪn of this information rᴇsts ɪn ⓝovelFind.net
And getting it from Gabriel had been laughably easy. The Sterling family business was struggling, and Gabriel had spent years trying to curry favor with anyone influential. Sending Anastasia to Rosewood Manor in the first place had been his attempt at just that.
But even after Anastasia married into Rosewood Manor and landed the most powerful connection of all, it turned out that connection wasn’t Gabriel’s—or the Sterling family’s-to claim. Gabriel hadn’t gained a thing from it.
The business kept nose-diving, and Gabriel was growing desperate. When Penelope told him she’d managed to cozy up to the West family in Riverton, and that all it would take to impress Shirley was handing over a bracelet, Gabriel had agreed without a second thought. He handed it over without hesitation.
Seeing Anastasia’s expression darken, Penelope felt a wave of satisfaction, though her voice stayed soft and delicate. “Anastasia, you always believed Dad loved your mom, didn’t you? But look at the truth-when it comes to his own interests, your mother never really mattered to him at all.”
What Penelope had always resented most was that, even though Gabriel treated her and her mother so well, even though he’d all but erased Anastasia from his life, every time someone mentioned Anastasia’s long-dead mother, even her own mother was instantly overshadowed.
That injustice had eaten away at both her and her mother for years.
But now, with Gabriel himself having handed over that bracelet, Penelope knew exactly how to twist the knife. She aimed straight for Anastasia’s heart.
Seeing the malice practically pouring out of Penelope’s eyes, Anastasia let out a cold laugh. “And so what? If my mother were alive, she’d never care whether that man loved her or not. She never needed a man to survive the Sterling family only held together because of her.”
“Unlike your mother, who knows nothing but how to please a man. Of course she clings for dear life-terrified he’ll leave her with nothing.”