“Then Amelia had someone approach the owner and handed him first your photo, then Celeste’s. She told him: whenever you showed up, he should inject traditional medicine into your order. Celeste’s photo was provided so she could be framed as the scapegoat.”

“As for why Celeste was chosen to take the blame-I was curious about that at first, too. But once Will looked into it, the answer became clear.”

“Amelia is a pretty sharp person. She didn’t know why Celeste left the country recently, but she heard that Celeste came back looking frail, and that she’d slipped back quietly. So Amelia concluded Celeste must have done something wrong and been sent away.”

“Amelia also guessed that Celeste’s trouble probably had something to do with you. That’s why, while scheming against you, she could use Celeste as a scapegoat.”

“After all, with Celeste’s previous record of trying to harm you, no one would be surprised if she was blamed for it again upon her return.”

Amara listened in silence.

Amelia was indeed clever-much smarter than Elowen, at least. She had already picked out someone to take the fall and planned everything out, leaving almost no loose ends.

But she wasn’t quite brilliant enough. If she were, she would have realized Finnian would investigate, and once everything came to light, she wouldn’t stand a chance.

“I know who Amelia is-she’s the young madam of the Walker family! So she was the one behind all this!” Celeste burst out.

“I’ve never even crossed her, but she wanted to frame me!” Celeste said through gritted teeth. “She’s so ruthless… Still, at least I’m cleared now.”

She patted her chest, finally able to breathe easy; the burden that had weighed on her all day had finally lifted.

Since returning home, she really had changed. She no longer dared to make waves —she just wanted to keep her head down, especially since she still didn’t know what her family’s situation was like back home. So, when she found out she was being falsely accused of hurting Amara, she’d really been terrified.

Now that the truth was out and her name cleared, she felt a rush of relief.

Finnian ignored her and turned to Amara. “Now that it’s clear Amelia and Elowen were behind this, what are you planning to do?”

He was asking if she planned to get back at them.

Amara wasn’t the type to turn the other cheek. After being harmed, of course she wanted revenge—she just needed to figure out the best way to do it.

Amelia and Elowen were truly malicious. They must have wanted her to lose her baby with that scheme, and the method they chose might have left her with lasting health problems.

Thinking back over the years of what Amelia and Elowen had done to her, a dark anger settled in her chest.

Amara’s gaze hardened. She definitely wouldn’t let those two off easy-she’d make sure to return the favor.

She closed the folder and said, “I’ll find a way to deal with this. Mr. Everly, thank you for your help today.”

Finnian’s efficiency was impressive.

The incident had only had

earlier that day,

and by i

evening the

had already uncovered the truth

about Amelia and Elowen.

He must have gone to great lengths to resolve it so quickly-Amara was genuinely grateful.

After she expressed her thanks, Finnian looked at her and said, “You don’t need to thank me. This is what I should do.”

The words made Amara

uncomfortable. What did he mean, “should”. The two of them had no

special relationship Funnian had no obligation to help her with anything.

But she couldn’t say that out loud, not with Mr. Kevin Everly and the others still

present. She didn’t want to make things awkward.