The Mocked Miss’s Hidden Crowns novel Chapter 1676

No one was going to hurt her. Not on his watch.

Andrew snapped out of his daze, his fists clenched tight, eyes rimmed red. His voice came out rough. "Grandma, Shirley wouldn’t do something like that. Please, you have to believe her."

“She wouldn’t?”

Dorothy jumped in with a biting laugh. “There’s proof right in front of us and you’re still making excuses? Really? You seriously expect us to believe she’s innocent?”

“A girl like her… who knows what she’s capable of?”

“Mom…” Dorothy turned toward Patricia, her voice growing even sharper. “Every student you’ve helped has turned into someone amazing. If we hadn’t found out about this today, who knows what Shirley would have done with your money. You’d end up with your reputation trashed, along with hers.”

“Until we know exactly what happened, watch what you say.”

Patricia’s expression turned dark, her voice cold and heavy. “You’re a mother. Do you really need to use such hateful words against a young girl?”

“But Mom, I…”

“That’s enough.” Patricia cut her off, her patience gone. Her anger showed in her eyes, her tone unyielding. “I’m still here. It’s not your turn to speak.”

“And another thing…”

Patricia narrowed her cloudy eyes, her voice going even colder. “For your own sake, I hope you had nothing to do with this.”

She left the rest unsaid, but her glare made Dorothy’s stomach twist. Dorothy swallowed, nervous.

When did Patricia even meet Shirley? Wasn’t Patricia supposed to put her in her place? Why was she standing up for Shirley now?

Dorothy’s face twisted as her mind spun and came up empty.

“Shirley, come here to Grandma.”

Patricia’s stern face softened into a gentle, kind smile as she opened her arms. “Don’t be scared. Come on.”

Grandma?

Surprised, Shirley looked at Patricia’s smile, heard the warmth in that gentle nickname, and slowly inched over to her side. Her voice was barely a whisper. “Patricia, I…”

“My sweet child, I believe you.” Patricia cut her off with quiet certainty. “I’ll get to the bottom of this myself. I won’t let anyone blame you for something you didn’t do.”

Believe her?

Patricia just trusted her. Didn’t even need an explanation. The lump in Shirley’s throat grew so big she couldn’t even say thank you. Her eyes stung as she looked at the woman standing so firmly by her side.