Chapter 7

The entire room fell silent at that moment. Sabrina's complexion turned pale in that instance. Penelope stumbled as she stood up. She had forgotten that she had hidden a camera in her earring after the last time Sabrina had tried to frame her. She wiped away her tears and hurriedly took off her earring with the hidden camera. She then played the footage on the screen. The footage clearly showed how Sabrina had sneaked behind Penelope and hung the necklace on her gown. All her rude taunts and provocation were also exposed. The mood in the hall instantly shifted. Everyone cast their disgusted gaze toward Sabrina. Penelope, in all her disheveled state, trembled as she dialed 911 on her phone. She had a determined look when she said, "Hello, is this the police? Someone has framed me on purpose—" Sabrina trembled in fear and burst into tears. "I didn't do it on purpose! I was just playing a prank on Penny. Why are you making such a big deal out of it?" The Carters and Gabriel hurried to dry her tears when they saw her crying. They then turned to Penelope, who looked beyond battered, with a cold look. Their tones were laced with clear dissatisfaction. "Sab already said it was just a prank. Why are you still holding it against her?" "How could she do something like framing someone when she's so kind and innocent? The authenticity of this footage is still up for debate!" "Alright, let's end this little drama here. Aren't you embarrassed to call the police over such a trivial matter?" They then escorted Sabrina out of the hall. Watching them hurry away, Penelope truly felt what it meant to be abandoned by everyone. She let out a silent laugh as she trembled uncontrollably. … Penelope stopped heading out in the days that followed, only waiting for the day she could marry and leave. She never once imagined that the home, which was once filled with love and affection for her, would one day turn into a place she wanted to desperately escape from. Penelope had been packing her luggage when she suddenly heard a commotion outside the villa. She opened the window and saw Sabrina driving in the spacious garden. Gabriel was seated in the passenger's seat as he taught her with a smile, while Patrick stood by the roadside, gently instructing her to reverse into the garage. Penelope got momentarily distracted seeing the three of them enjoying themselves. The two of them were the ones who personally taught her back when she learned to drive. It was during the winter, then. Worried that Penelope might catch a cold, Gabriel would hold her hand and warm it up close to his chest every time she finished driving. Meanwhile, Patrick would brave the cold wind as he recorded each of her drives affectionately. He would then stay up all night to compile tips from her drives. However, they all happened a long, long time ago. Penelope looked down, hiding the mockery in her eyes. … Penelope had a farewell gathering with her friends in the afternoon. After she was done packing, she was ready to head out. However, a car ran into her as soon as she stepped out. She was thrown several feet away, crashing onto the hard stone pavement with a sickening thud. Blood spilled from her mouth, and she felt as if her body was falling apart. Excruciating pain shot through every part of her body. In her daze, Penelope saw Sabrina coming out of the car with a smile. "Oh, I'm sorry, Penny. I just started learning how to drive and got the accelerator and brakes mixed up, hitting you by mistake. "It looks like a bad accident seeing there is so much blood on the floor. You must be hurting a lot—I need to hurry and call an ambulance for you. Sabrina continued, "Oh no, what's the number for the ambulance again? 119? 999? Or was it 920? Maybe I should just call them one by one, but it'll take a longer time like that. You have to hold on, okay, Penny?"