Chapter 3 Clearing Her Name
1135 Words
Meanwhile, Tristan, undercover as special aide Ryan's assistant, strolled into the banquet hall at Ryan's side.
Keeping his true identity under wraps was a breeze. Hardly anyone outside his inner circle had seen him. So, the guests were all eager to cozy up to Ryan, which suited Tristan just fine.
His gaze drifted over to Allison, recalling her earlier arrogance with amusement.
That vengeful streak of hers... It was intriguing, to say the least.
Speaking of Allison, she'd been ushered to the main table but seemed utterly indifferent to the pomp and circumstance. Head down, she was engrossed in a game on her phone, as if everything around her was irrelevant.
Tonight was the launch of a new dungeon in Dark Moon, and she had promised to join a team raid at exactly 7 PM.
But her gaming in the middle of the party struck Holden's nerves. "Put that damn phone away!" he barked. "This is not the time for you to play games!"
Allison barely looked up. "Is there a rule that says I can't play games at a birthday banquet?"
Byron, on the other hand, just chuckled and said, "Let her play, Holden."
With Byron's approval, Allison shot a defiant glare at her estranged father, her eyes cold and indifferent.
Holden's face turned livid. Having such a frivolous daughter was an embarrassment to him.
Regina was much better, excelling in everything from piano and chess to painting.
Not to mention, she was a top student in her senior year at New York High School, with a promising future ahead of her. Holden felt a bit more comfortable thinking about this.
He turned to Lauren and Regina. "Professor Hudson is coming to the party tonight. Regina, make sure you impress him and get some pointers."
Regina nodded confidently.
She rolled her eyes at Allison, who was still playing games. What a country bumpkin. All she cared about was having fun.
She probably couldn't even spell her own name, yet she had the nerve to show up at a party like this.
A few minutes later, Allison and her team scored the first clear of the new dungeon, and a message popped up on her screen.
Charles: Hey, Allison, have you considered becoming my student?
Allie: Not interested!
Allison bluntly refused. She had also overheard Holden's conversation earlier and scoffed. They probably didn't know that the renowned Charles was here just for her.
Suddenly, Regina sat down next to Allison. "Who are you texting with, Allison?"
Allison turned off her phone screen and glanced at her indifferently. "Your face doesn't hurt anymore, huh?"
Regina bit her lip, feeling embarrassed. It was just a casual remark. Why would she care who Allison was texting?
She was really pushing her luck!
"Why don't we look at the screen, Allison," Regina sneered, trying to change the subject.
Allison turned and glanced at the large screen.
At that moment, it was playing surveillance footage of three men entering a hotel room one after another and never coming out.
A minute later, another figure stepped into the room. It was Allison.
The footage then abruptly fast-forwarded. For a full half hour, neither Allison nor the men inside came out.
What happened in that room was left to everyone's imagination.
Holden exploded, scolding Allison in front of everyone. "You shameless little skank!"
Ryan, on the other hand, knew Allison had been with Tristan. "Sir, should we step in and help her?"
This was the perfect chance to swoop in and be the hero.
But Tristan, seeing the fire in Allison's eyes, shook his head. "Nah, she's got this."
The Allison he knew always managed to solve any problem, no matter how dangerous it was. He had faith in her.
Regina, the mastermind behind the whole fiasco, was smirking smugly. She suddenly raised her voice. "Allison, how could you disgrace yourself like this?"
Allison turned to Regina with a mocking smile. "Are you done, Regina? Think your little plan worked?"
Regina quickly ducked her head, masking her glee with a wounded tone. "I don't know what you're talking about."
Allison scoffed, rose from her seat, and strode over to the staff member controlling the screen. "Get out of my face!"
The staff felt an overwhelming pressure and instinctively stepped aside.
Allison took her seat, her fingers flying across the keyboard.
Regina simply smirked, unimpressed.
Was she trying to delete the video? What did a small-town hick like her know about computers?
Holden felt that Allison was embarrassing him and shouted at her, "This is your grandfather's birthday party! What the hell are you trying to do now?"
Just then, another surveillance video appeared on the big screen.
It showed Allison walking up to a hotel room door. But then the camera panned, revealing not just Allison but also the chauffeur who had picked her up.
"Ms. Cresswell," the chauffeur said, "your grandfather has something he wants to tell you. He asked you to go inside and wait for him."
After that, Allison walked into the hotel room.
Two videos, two angles, two completely different stories.
A short clip had shifted everyone's focus to a different aspect.
Who wouldn't take things out of context?
Byron growled, "Get Barry in here. Now! I want to know who gave him the order to take Allison to that hotel."
Regina's hands turned clammy. Panic set in.
How could this happen? No, she couldn't let Allison trace this back to her.
"But, Allison," Regina said, her voice laced with venom, "you were alone with those three men for hours. Weren't you scared? Why didn't you cry out for help?"
Allison's eyes narrowed, pinning Regina with a sharp gaze. "My dear sister, wouldn't you rather know who edited that video to frame me? Or... are you feeling guilty?"
This question sent a chill down Regina's spine. Did Allison know? How did she figure it out?
Regina's nails dug into her palms. "I... Why should I feel guilty!"
Allison's eyes narrowed. "Oh... Really?"
After saying this, she lightly clapped her hands and looked towards the door, just in time to see Felicia bringing a few people in.
Regina followed her gaze, and the blood drained from her face when she saw them. She scrambled to hide behind Lauren. "Mom, save me!"
Everyone recognized the newcomers. They were the three men from the surveillance video entering the hotel room.
Among them was Barry, the very chauffeur who had driven Allison to that room.
The moment the four men saw Allison, they dropped to their knees in terror. "Please, let us go! We won't ever do it again!"
Byron glared at them coldly. "Say it! Who gave you the order to harm my granddaughter?"
Barry immediately pointed to Regina. "Ms. Regina Cresswell! It was her! She told us to do it!"
- Writer
