Phoebe frowned tautly at Braylee’s importunate evil speaking, and a cluster of mass who were confused by falsehood at the back. It then came palpably to her that any of her pleas would only further smear it.
Furthermore, so contemptible was Denzel Duncan that he would not let slip any chance of slandering her.
And if that’s the case, to the mind of Phoebe, f¬or nothing there was any reason of messing around here.
The one that was bearing the very brunt of her heart before everything, was Mr. Fraser.
As long as there still remained trustworthiness of her, without misapprehension and sorrow, she was not, thus inclined to heed what the on-lookers thought.
Immediately did Phoebe wear sullenness on her face, from which her eyes piercingly riveted on Braylee ensued, rather than any anxious excuse.
That sharpness cracked down her spine and poise for a moment, rendering her chilly on the back.
But the advent of her second thought that Phoebe was nothing daring but a delicate woman, let alone in the face of the crowd backing her up, replenished her with confidence.
She continued her scolding: “Phoebe, how dare you to dart that sort of glare at me? Have you little repentance for your committing such shamefulness?”
“Braylee Johnston.”
Phoebe gnashed at her, spewing the words while approaching Braylee.
“It was you that worked up the circumvention, wasn’t it? A hoax for me to break up with Mr. Fraser? You did bother to look so lucidly into me, that Denzel even answered your particular request.”
Her complexion fiercely witnessed a switcheroo, which then led to a cravenly bully shout: “Nonsense!”
“You know best the case.”
Phoebe suddenly took a giant step forward, her whole body instantly bordering on the other party in front, “I will not let go of you, Braylee Johnston. I will definitely lynch you, with an end that was doomed to be a hundred times more tragic than Helena’s!”
The speech was gritted out, accompanied by austerity of chilliness.
Through her mind flashed the scene of his horrifying death, black and blue.
Shiver passing by inside took control of her forthwith, resulted into her recoiling of a few steps, her face as pale as a gravestone.
Phoebe watched in cold eyes, and thereupon, strode past her and forward outside through a gap, with which Braylee yielded back to her.
Without pausing for a while, she ran briskly in the direction in which Stanford had left, pinching up the hem of her evening dress.
At the sight of her fleeing, Braylee was too late to catch on.
She was intentionally bluffing her!
Having got away while she was appalled to retreat!
Braylee aimed her bile at the diction: “Don’t you see it? She just slipped away for fear of punishment! There was no way as she could make a clear explanation without fleeing. She admitted it, with her own choice! She actually and forsooth committed infidelity to Mr. Fraser.”
The mob was also impregnated with fury over her straightforward escaping, leaving them only a view of her back.
“Fair without and foul within. Such a dissolute slut with an appearance of purity!”
“It should not be qualified that such a woman is to be nominated as Mrs. Fraser.”
“She must scram out of our family. Wipe out even her weeny family! The Fraser’s repudiate the existence of such a stain.”
Everyone filled with righteous indignation, was anxious to tear Phoebe into pieces.
They all shared the honor with their family being the pride of them.
So disgraceful a circumstance would scarcely be tolerated.
With an overtly wrathful face, Braylee covertly exhibited her hilarity of succeeding in stratagem in her eyes.
Neither the shine which Stanford took to her, nor the proclamation about the impending marriage with him, could bear misunderstanding and betrayal, in the breach of which romance stood the frailest.
She threw her gaze over the crowd and spoke with mock kindness:
“After all, Phoebe was the first girlfriend of Mr. Fraser, formally given admission into our family. He should be also quite lachrymose. We might as well turn a blind eye to it reservedly, mightn’t we? Otherwise she will be ruined with a shabby image and disrepute, unable to hold her head up again.”
“Bah! When the devil is blind!”
Some people immediately spitted out a furious curse: “Such a conscienceless muck she committed, will be rewarded with what she deserves to be disdained and rejected on a popular scale, and to pay the dearest price.”
“Yeah, anyone who betrays our family is committing suicide.”
“Not only are we to inform everyone of what she has done and how she is inside, but she will bend herself to a miserable life henceforth!”
Everybody scolding and resenting, with utterance of cruelly manipulating and trampling on Phoebe.
The mere willingness of the Fraser’s family to get one in a mortal situation, would even render one’s family moribund for generations.
Braylee was very pleased with glances at such a scene, which exactly fitted into her mind of burning Phoebe in hell.
There was little urging, yet all people unleashed their anger on her with patience gone out.
Her escape, though, would be certain to encounter fatal impediment.
While here stood the Fraser’s family, the news would come out as plenty of volunteers would hunt her down.
There had been few steps made by everyone heading towards the banquet, swearing, before the clear and melodious voice of a woman resounded.
“Halt your steps.”
On hearing the sound, out of their expectation did they catch the sight of Victoria.
There stood she erectly, with graceful mannerism, her face showing a bit dourness. The encircling queenlike temperament, equipped her with a sense of stateliness.
Immediately did Braylee make an etiquette greeting, “Mrs. Fraser.”
The others also hurriedly hail to her, “My mistress.”
“Madam, why are you here?
Hardly did they notice the advent of Victoria, when they previously came here. Was it that she arrived just now?
Victoria took a bitter cold glance at them, among which her grim sight fell at last on Braylee, penetrating as ice blade.
“What were you doing?”
The latter instantaneously sensed an influx of chilliness flowing through her back, and fear, from the very bottom of her heart.
She felt rather uneasy and guilty.
Someone responded with reverence.
“My mistress, we caught a fornicator on the spot, and saw Phoebe doing shady things with another guy. Our young master could not be madder. We just can’t acquiesce such stigma, which we are going to report to you and the master.”
There was barely a transmutation of her face, while her sharp and frosty eyes were still fixed on Braylee.
“I’m asking you, what were you doing?”
Her body became more rigid, with the complexion turning pale in spite of herself.
In the face of Victoria, her glibness was suddenly unemboldened, as if the whole of her little conspiracy had been easily seen through.
Imbued with overwhelming panic, she bit the bullet with an answer:
“I, I didn’t mean to do anything. I just came after, only to witness her incredibly hurting Mr. Fraser, bearing with sheer indignation.”
Victoria rounded her lips, sneering, “How are you qualified? ”
On the spot of that fleer was she frozen and stupefied.
How sardonic!
It was not anything more than a satire of her meddlesomeness, but direct elimination, isolation and estrangement.
Her eyes, violently trembling and grossly frustrated, were casted onto the standoffish woman.
Victoria, being formerly beneficent to her, always wore a tender smiling.
But now…
She distinctly perceived the aura from the mistress, coercively grim enough for anyone confronting her to taste the bitter coldness.
Her heart was beating in a more raging pulse than ever.
But what did she mean? Dissatisfied with her involvement in the scandal, or a deliberate cover-up upon Phoebe…?