Miranda turned on her laptop immediately, as she had surveillance cameras in her room. Soon, she found the footage from the day and zoomed in on the scene.
Sure enough, Miranda recognized that it was Penelope’s precious grandson, Walter Sutton, who had done it. Without hesitation, she headed downstairs.
Penelope was watching television. Walter’s parents, Reggie Sutton and Camie Hudson, were seated on the couch, playing on their phones while snacking on some fruit. At that moment, Walter was about to ruin another one of Lionel’s framed puzzles.
Miranda narrowed her eyes and swiftly snatched the puzzle out of his hands just as he was about to pull it down. “You went into my room, didn’t you? Where did you take the documents I left on my desk? Return them now while I’m still being patient.”
Her expression was stern, and her voice icy cold.
Walter, who was around five or six years old, was already capable of reading people’s expressions. He saw the stern look on her face and realized that he might be in serious trouble. His eyes darted around, and then he burst into loud, wailing sobs.
Camie rushed over and comforted him, “Oh no! Why did you cry all of a sudden? Don’t cry, tell Mommy what’s wrong.”
“Daddy’s here too! No one will dare to bully you!” Reggie chimed in. His parents, who were engrossed in their phones earlier, quickly rushed over when they heard Walter’s cries.
Camie lovingly cradled Walter in her arms while Reggie stood beside them, clenching his fists. He seemed ready to start a fight at any moment.
They had noticed the tense situation the moment Miranda started speaking. However, they didn’t bother to care and continued fiddling on their phones instead of intervening to find out what happened or disciplining their child. They only got involved when Walter started crying.
“Miranda, Walter is just a child, and you’re older than him. How can you bully him and make him cry?” Feeling sorry for her son, Camie gave Miranda a look of resentment and reproach. To an outsider, it might seem like Miranda had hurt Walter in some way.
Miranda explained calmly, “I only asked him to return what he took. If you consider that bullying, I guess you all must do quite a bit of bullying yourselves.”
Camie frowned and retorted, “How could you talk like this to us? You lost your things, and yet you blame my son for this? Where’s the logic in that?”
At that moment, Lionel and Mindy heard the commotion from upstairs. They quickly came down to the living room.
“Lionel Sutton, you came at just the right time. Your daughter’s really something. She’s accusing Walter of stealing her things. How could she falsely accuse a child like this? If you won’t teach her a lesson, I shall do it on your behalf as her uncle!”
The one who spoke was Reggie Sutton, Walter’s father. He wasn’t much older than Lionel, but he addressed him rudely and even threatened to discipline Miranda as an elder relative. For once, the usually agreeable Lionel’s expression darkened.
“Uncle Reggie, we don’t even know what’s happened yet. How can you be so sure that Miranda falsely accused Walter? You’re a father, and I’m a father too.
“You may care about your son, but I care about my daughter more! I’ll discipline her myself if she has done something wrong. You don’t need to trouble yourself.”
Lionel’s tone turned sharp. “However, I trust that Miranda wouldn’t make baseless accusations. She would have her reasons if she spoke with such certainty.”
Reggie was taken aback, as he didn’t expect Lionel to respond in such a stern manner. After all, Lionel had tolerated all the trouble they caused over the past few days. He thought that Lionel was a coward with no backbone.
Mindy quietly pulled Miranda behind her to shield her daughter.
When Camie saw this, she slapped her thigh dramatically and threw herself down on the floor. “How could you all accuse my son? He’s the best-behaved child at home. He couldn’t possibly have taken your things!”