Chapter 51
Chapter51 Are You Just Feeling Guilty
One by one, the plates from the display case tumbled out, striking the floor and breaking apart with sharp, ringing cracks.
Evening service was in full swing, and the restaurant buzzed with lively conversation and clinking cutlery.
The sudden crash at the entrance drew every eye toward the noise.
Marissa quickly regained her balance and reached out to steady the waitress who had nearly stumbled onto the scattered shards. The waitress looked shaken, her face drained of color. "Thank you!"
For a moment, silence hung thick in the air before hushed whispers began spreading across the room.
"What was that sound?"
"Someone must've hit the display cabinet. The plates inside are all smashed. Whoever did this will have to compensate a lot since they're valuable."
"And how do you know they are valuable?" "Those plates are antiques worth around ten million. This...is serious." "You're making that up! Who would display something worth ten million right in the cabinet?That makes no sense."
"Who knows? Maybe the owner wants to showcase the craftsmanship of those plates."
Although Bernie was supposed to be on vacation,his presence automatically put him in charge of the situation.
He stepped in front of Rosie protectively, his eyes narrowing as he surveyed the fragments scattered across the floor. His tone turned sharp as he said to the trembling waitress, "Be more careful next time! Incidents like this will go straight into your evaluation! And you'll have to compensate for the loss."
Inside the case had been a mix of authentic antiques and high-quality replicas, each with varying degrees of worth.
Every staff member had been trained to know exactly which items were off-limits.
Among the shattered remains lay one genuine antique that the restaurant owner had displayed purely to enhance the establishment's prestige. That single plate alone carried a price tag of over a million.
The realization hit the waitress hard, draining the color from her cheeks until she looked ready to faint right there before Bernie.
Marissa reached out just in time, steadying the young woman before she could stumble.
Broken porcelain and glass fragments covered the floor, sharp enough to slice through skin. With their knee-length skirts offering little protection, a fall would have been disastrous.
From behind Bernie, Rosie peeked out, her hand pressed lightly against her lips. "What on earth happened here?"
Her gaze flicked to the waitress, eyes glittering with thinly veiled malice. "Did you knock it over?"
The poor woman flinched like a frightened sparrow,shaking her head in panic. "N-no, it wasn't me!"
"Then who did it?" Rosie's tone carried a chilling sweetness that only made the question sound more accusatory. "Did anyone see?"
"It is the lady in the gray suit," someone finally said,gesturing toward Marissa.
At that, Rosie's lips curved ever so slightly, herdelight barely hidden behind an expression of mock concern. "Oh, so it was you, Miss? You really should be more careful."
"It wasn't her, I swear!" the waitress said, her voice trembling but firm. She knew exactly what kind of person Rosie was and rushed to defend Marissa."Someone bumped into me, and I accidentally hit this-"
Her sentence faltered halfway when she noticed that only Rosie and Bernie were standing nearby.
Where had that person gone?
Color drained from her face as every pair of eyes in the room turned toward her. "I'm telling the truth!Someone really bumped into me! If you don't believe me, we can look at the security footage!"
At the mention of the cameras, Rosie's expression tightened. She gave Bernie a discreet pinch, her smile faltering.
"There's no need to dig that deep over something so trivial. It's just a few broken plates. Just settle it and move on." "I heard one of those plates was an antique." "Come on, I've been coming here for years, and never once heard about antique dishes being displayed," another diner muttered under their breath.
"Why not just review the footage? That'll clear everything upo," a voice from the back added,sounding calm and reasonable.
Rosie's eyes darted toward the direction of the voice, irritation flashing across her face at the unwanted comment.
The crowd was dense, though, and it was impossible to pinpoint who had spoken up.
"Cat got your tongue, Miss? Or are you just feeling guilty?" Rosie taunted, twirling a strand of hair between her fingers. "You can't afford the damages and think pretending not to hear will save you,huh?"
To Rosie, Marissa's outfit screamed imitation. Her contempt intensified.
Then her gaze shifted toward Marc, who stood quietly beside Marissa, and a flicker of envy stirred behind her smile.
In her mind, a man like him should belong to her.
"So this is your type, sir? No wonder you're not interested in me. You prefer deceitful women,I suppose," Rosie said, her tone dripping with false
sweetness.
Marc remained still beside Marissa, offering no response.
During the brief time he had spent with his sister,he had come to notice something peculiar-Marissa seemed to find amusement in watching others make fools of themselves.
"Check the surveillance footage," Marissa replied coldly, her tone sharp and unwavering as her gaze locked on Rosie.
In her mind, the scene unfolding before them was no coincidence. Rosie had clearly staged this entire mess just to draw Marc's attention.
As Marissa looked at Rosie, she noticed a hickey on her neck-one that hadn't been there during their previous encounter. Her eyes then shifted to Bernie, landing on the lipstick mark on his collar.
Did they just share intimate moments somewhere in this restaurant?