The Velvet Pouch
Chapter 02 - The Velvet Pouch
Celeste turned on her husband. “Arthur, the necklace is gone. Evelyn had access. What more do you need?”
“The truth,” Arthur replied.
His calmness only made Celeste angrier. She ordered the head of security, Daniel Cross, to inspect Evelyn’s locker. Daniel hesitated, looking toward Arthur for permission.
Evelyn spoke first. “Search it. I have nothing to hide.”
The guests followed at a distance as the guards moved into the staff corridor. Evelyn walked with Lily pressed against her side. Her cheek burned, but the humiliation burned more. She had worked at Harrington Hall for four years without a single complaint. The job paid for Lily’s school and the small apartment they had kept after Evelyn’s husband died.
Daniel opened Evelyn’s locker.
On the top shelf sat a black velvet pouch.
Celeste seized it before anyone could stop her. She loosened the cord and shook out a diamond clasp onto her palm. It was not the full necklace, but it belonged to it.
A murmur swept through the crowd.
“I told you,” Celeste said. “Call the police.”
Evelyn’s knees nearly gave way. “That isn’t mine.”
Julian stepped closer, his voice smooth and cold. “It was found in your locker.”
“I didn’t put it there.”
“Of course you didn’t,” Celeste sneered. “Thieves never do.”
Lily looked up through tears. “My mommy doesn’t steal.”
Julian crouched, not with kindness but with calculated patience. “Children don’t always know their parents as well as they think.”
Evelyn pulled Lily behind her. “Do not speak to my daughter.”
For the first time, Julian’s expression hardened.
Arthur watched the exchange carefully. “Why is there only one clasp in the pouch? Where is the rest of the necklace?”
No one answered.
Daniel examined the locker door. A faint scratch crossed the lock plate, and a smear of dark grease marked the inside edge.
“This locker was forced,” he said.
Celeste snapped, “Or she damaged it to make us think that.”
Daniel ignored her. “The staff lockers use brass keys. This mark came from a thin steel tool.”
Arthur looked at Julian.
Julian gave a small shrug. “Are we really going to turn this into a detective show? The evidence is in her locker.”
Arthur’s eyes narrowed. “Evidence can be placed.”
Celeste stepped between them. “You are embarrassing this family.”
“No,” Arthur said. “Someone else already has.”
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Then Daniel’s phone vibrated.
He glanced at the screen, and the color drained from his face.
