Skylar coldly sneered. "What else could it be?"
She didn't care about having her hands removed. Standing up, she headed upstairs.
The air conditioning in the restaurant where she had eaten with Charles, Natalie, and Austin hadn't been strong enough, and it had gotten too hot, making her feel sweaty and uncomfortable.
She decided to take a shower first.
Joe's icy gaze followed her as she went upstairs. Skylar sensed his stare but shrugged it off. If Joe was going to make trouble for her because of Vera, she wouldn't be easily intimidated.
If it came to it, she was prepared to confront him directly.
…
Skylar was working on some antique repairs three days later when a colleague suddenly knocked on her door.
"Skylar, someone's here to see you. She claims to be your college classmate and seems pretty urgent. Do you want to go check it out?"
Skylar put down her work. "I'll go take a look."
Downstairs, in the waiting area, she saw Charlene.
Charlene approached her with an anxious expression. Her face shifted between embarrassment and discomfort.
She said, "Skylar… I was wrong the other day. I thought you were jealous of the valuable family heirloom I had, which is why you made those comments. I then made a petty move and blocked both you and Natalie. I realize now I was wrong."
"You must have more to say than just an apology," Skylar said. She observed Charlene's condition with a composed expression.
Charlene looked like she hadn't slept well in days. Her face was pale, her hair was dry and messy, and her eyes were red and swollen.
"Actually, you were right about the emerald pendant that day. My mom found the emerald pendant. She saw two people arguing by the side of the road, both driving cars worth a few million dollars.
"The emerald pendant must have fallen during their scuffle. My mom picked it up and brought it home. My dad likes to watch treasure appraisal shows and thought the emerald pendant must be valuable. However, he was afraid of being scammed.
"At first, I wanted my mom to return the emerald pendant, but my dad refused. Eventually, I… got carried away. After all, if this emerald pendant could really sell for a few million dollars, it would solve all our family's problems."
"But then… my mom fell off her bike on her way home from work and injured her back. My dad has been having nightmares almost every night these past few days. I… I've been experiencing a series of minor but dangerous accidents these past few days.
"If I hadn't been lucky enough to avoid them, something like falling debris could have killed me. Yesterday, I tried to sell the emerald pendant at several places, but the owners all said the same thing—I should return it to its rightful owner.
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