Chapter 1163: Chapter 1163

Chapter 1163:

“‘How… how could you…’”

Melany, engulfed by a whirlwind of shock and emotion, began coughing violently. The near-suffocation combined with the sudden emotional turmoil triggered a relentless fit.

Realizing the gravity of the moment, Melany straightened, quickly gathering her composure.

“‘Allison, you’ve got it all wrong!’” she pleaded.

“‘Wrong?’” Allison’s eyes locked onto Melany’s with a glare sharp enough to cut glass. Sarcasm dripped from her voice as she demanded, “‘Why don’t you explain yourself? How did you so confidently assume it was me, without even knowing who was inside? Unless, of course, you already knew.’”

Allison’s accusation hit like thunder in a silent hall, electrifying the crowd.

“‘Yeah, how could Melany have known in advance?’” someone murmured.

“‘Could she be trying to frame Allison?’” another speculated.

“‘Absolutely. Didn’t they just have that plagiarism scandal involving a designer?’”

“‘Right! Abram is Melany’s hire,’” someone else chimed in.

The weight of the crowd’s scrutiny bore down on Melany, leaving her feeling utterly exposed. Humiliation painted her face crimson.

The night had already been an unrelenting parade of disgrace. She hadn’t anticipated being outmaneuvered by Allison yet again. But Melany wasn’t without contingency plans. After all, Hoyt was the mastermind behind it, and now she just needed to shift the blame and make everyone believe this entire fiasco was part of Hoyt’s calculated scheme.

“‘I can explain,’” Melany managed through a forced smile.

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“‘It was just a guess. I only caught a glimpse of a figure from behind,’” she said, her words trembling like a tightrope walker.

Allison scoffed, her disdain palpable. “‘A guess? Then why not say it was your husband or Hoyt instead? Why did you instantly guess I was the one inside? Maybe, subconsciously, you really hoped it was me.’”

Melany choked on her retort, cornered and speechless.

Suspicion flared once again in the crowd’s eyes, and Melany tried to muster a look of wounded innocence. “I only repeated what others told me,” she protested, her tone laced with false grievance. “They said they saw you in the lounge, so I mistook it. Others can testify — they thought it was you too. I wasn’t the only one!”

As she spoke, Melany placed a protective hand over her belly, her eyes glistening with crocodile tears. “I’m just a pregnant woman. How could I possibly orchestrate such a scheme?”

Tears hovered on the edge of her lashes. She cast a desperate glance toward Kellan, her voice softening into a plea. “Mr. Lloyd, you can vouch for me. I was the one who kindly informed you when Ms. Clarke went missing.”

Melany bit her lip as if her very innocence were hanging by a thread, hoping that her act would sway the onlookers. Surely, no one would suspect a powerless pregnant woman of harboring ulterior motives. More importantly, she had already informed Kellan that the real mastermind behind this was Hoyt.

But Allison chuckled — a sound as sharp as shattered glass.

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