Chapter 3 of 6
A Torn Dress Uncovered The Truth About Her Lost Inheritance
The Stepmother's Cruel Intervention
Victoria pushed her way through the clapping crowd, her eyes glaring at Sarah with cold, sharp disdain. She looked down at Sarah's simple clothes and server apron as if Sarah were nothing more than dirt on her shoe. The applause slowly died down as guests sensed the bitter tension rising between the two women standing near the center floor. Victoria folded her arms tightly across her chest, stepping uncomfortably close to Sarah to intimidate her in public.
Victoria: What do you think you are doing here, Sarah?
Sarah: I was just helping this bride fix her torn dress, Victoria.
Victoria: You are paid to serve drinks, not to put your cheap hands on high-class dresses!
Bride: Excuse me, lady! She just saved my entire day when nobody else could!
Victoria: She is an ungrateful street worker who left her own family years ago out of pure laziness!
The harsh words echoed clearly off the high ballroom walls, making several guests gasp out loud in shock. Sarah felt a warm tear slide down her freckled cheek, but she held her head up high and stood her ground. She remembered how hard she had worked every single day since her father died, never taking a hand-out from anyone. She had paid for her own thread, her own food, and her own small room through honest, tough labor. Victoria had taken everything away from her, but Sarah still possessed her self-respect and her grandmother's precious gift of sewing.
Sarah: I never ran away from home, Victoria, and you know that is the honest truth.
Victoria: Do not speak back to me! You have no right to stand in this luxury building!
Sarah: You locked me out of my own father's house the very day after his funeral.
Victoria: That house was left to me in his final legal papers, you foolish girl!
The crowd began whispering loudly, realization dawning on their faces as they put the pieces of the story together. Victoria's face turned red with anger when she realized the wealthy guests were starting to judge her cold behavior. She raised her hand toward the ballroom manager, demanding that Sarah be thrown out into the street immediately. The manager hesitated, looking between the kind young seamstress and the angry woman in the expensive green dress. Before anyone could move, an older man in a navy blue suit stepped out from the back row.