Chapter 199
2,000 dollars wasn’t huge, but it wasn’t small either. Besides, the theft of money was a serious matter. The advisor would conduct a thorough investigation of the women’s locker room. Since Willow wasn’t afraid of being checked, she volunteered to be the first to have her belongings searched.
The advisor agreed and walked over to Willow, opening her locker to begin the search. There weren’t many items inside, and the money should have been easy to find. After a quick search, however, no money was found.
The advisor said, “Nothing”
Willow crossed her arms, her tone laced with disdain. “2,000 dollars isn’t enough for me to buy a hair accessory.”
“Everyone, please check your lockers and bags,” the advisor said, pressing his lips together before addressing the group.
“We need to find the missing class funds. If we can’t, we’ll have to report it to the police. If you have any information, please tell me privately. If someone took the money but wants to return it, I’m willing to forget this ever happened.”
The advisor tried to persuade everyone, but no one responded. The only option left was to start searching the lockers.
Eliana stood silently to the side, not saying a word. Stella whispered, “Eliana, maybe you should think again–where could the money have been lost?”
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Eliana replied, “It was always in my bag. Besides attending the physical education class, the bag has never left my side.”
Stella said, “Well, the only time there was a chance was in the locker room. It couldn’t have been anywhere else. We’ll have to search and see who it
was.”
Eliana quietly waited for the search results. Twenty minutes later, the advisor walked over to Stella’s locker. “Stella, take your things out,” he said.
Stella replied, “Oh, okay.”
As Stella took her bag out of the locker, a few pieces of notes fell out, scattering across the floor.
Everyone in the locker room froze, and Stella was even more stunned. ‘What’s going on… how could there be so much money in my bag?‘ she thought.
Shaeryl rushed over, snatched the bag from Stella, and peered inside. Grabbing a wad of bills, she said, “Wow, Advisor! It’s stuffed with cash- There’s gotta be at least a thousand here!” Most importantly, the advisor’s white envelope was nestled among the money containing the class funds.
The advisor frowned and asked, “Stella, how do you explain this? Why do you have so much money in your bag?”
Stella panicked, “I don’t know… How could there be money in my bag?” She turned to Eliana and added, “Eliana, I have no idea…
Stella had no motive to steal the class funds, and it seemed incredibly reckless even to attempt it, especially since she put the money in her bag without discarding the white envelope.
Eliana had trusted her completely, but with so many witnesses and the money found in Stella’s possession, it was as if she had been caught red- handed.
At that moment, the crowd around them instantly began to murmur-“Oh my gosh, they found the class funds in Stella’s bag. Does that mean she
stole it?”
“She was acting so innocent earlier, but if they hadn’t searched her bag, she definitely wouldn’t have admitted to it.”
“Her character is awful!”
“Advisor, Stella stole the money. It’s clear as day, with the money and the culprit caught. What else is there to say?”
Charlene chimed in, saying, “Exactly, this is too much. The worst part is that she has such a good relationship with Eliana. To steal her best friend’s mony–how shameless can she be? Is she trying to set Eliana up?”
Eliana remained silent. Stella immediately shook her head. “I didn’t steal the
money, and
have
no idea why it’s in my bag.”
Eliana lifted her gaze to glance at Willow, standing in the corner. Willow gave Eliana a faint smile, almost as if silently telling her, ‘Didn’t see this coming, did you? Earlier, you had Stella play a trick on me, and now, this incident will lead to a punishment for her–it looks like it’s her
comeuppance!
The advisor’s face darkened. “Stella, you must give me a reasonable explanation! Otherwise, I will report this to the school for serious disciplinary
action!”
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Chapter 199
Stella didn’t know how to explain her innocence. Her mind was in a complete mess. ‘I didn’t steal the money. Even if I had, why would I be stupid enough to put it in my bag? That would be way too foolish…”
Shacryl interrupted her, “Why wouldn’t it be possible? You and Eliana are close; she wouldn’t suspect you, but maybe that’s what you were counting onl
The people around them started saying, “Yeah, what’s so impossible? Betraying a friend is hardly uncommon these days.
“Stella, you’ve been caught red–handed. What more do you have to say? Advisor, her attitude is so bad. Just report it to the school and punish her so she learns her lesson!”
Honestly, it’s just unbelievable. How did someone like her end up in our class?”
At that moment, Eliana, who had been silent until now, finally spoke up. She looked at the advisor and said, “I believe Stella didn’t steal the money.”
The advisor replied, “Eliana, I know you’re close to Stella, but the evidence is clear. Don’t let your friendship cloud your judgment. This matter will be reported to the school for serious handling. Such an incident happening at Isonstead University is severe!”
Isonstead University’s teacher training program was rigorous, and the school motto emphasizes “Virtue” and “Independence.”
A petty theft like this would undoubtedly attract the school’s attention. It was easy to imagine that Stella’s punishment would be even more severe than the one Yulja received during the last Fall Festival. What awaited Stella could be a significant demerit or even suspension from classes.
Stella was desperately anxious but didn’t know how to defend herself. Eliana said, “I have evidence proving Stella is not a thief.”
Willow furrowed her brows. ‘How is that possible? Did this bitch leave herself an escape route?‘ she thought.
The advisor asked, “What is it?”
Eliana said calmly, “I sprinkled some highlighter on the edge of the envelope earlier.”
Highlighter? the advisor thought. He asked, “What do you mean?”
Eliana explained, “Before class, when I was changing clothes, I was worried about the class funds being unsafe in my bag, so I lightly applied some highlighter on the edge of the envelope. Anyone who has opened the envelope will have traces of gold dust on their fingertips.”
The highlighter was a shimmer shade from an eyeshadow palette used to create a highlighting effect, A subtle shimmer on the white envelope wasn’t noticeable, and anyone who rushed to steal wouldn’t have paid attention to such small details.
“The highlighter would leave a trace on the fingertips. All we need to do is check for any shimmer on Stella’s fingertips,” Eliana said.
“Then why didn’t you mention this earlier?” the advisor asked.
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