Bye-bye Trash! Hello Queen! novel Chapter 26

Joanna froze, a sliver of dread piercing her heart. The crowd turned in astonishment toward the entrance. Everyone was shocked, except for Natalie, who stood calmly to one side.

Marshall’s face lit up. “Grandma! You’re awake!”

Mrs. Spencer Sr. shot her grandson a look of pure fury. This idiot couldn’t even tell the difference between a friend and a foe. “If I hadn’t woken up, you would have been so thoroughly duped by this woman that you’d have handed the entire Spencer family over to her on a silver platter.”

“Grandma, Joanna saved you…” Marshall began.

“Shut your mouth, you fool! The person who saved me wasn't Joanna. I was set up that day. Someone put something in the swimming pool. And my bodyguard suddenly getting into a car accident? You knew the doctors found traces of a toxin in my system, but you didn’t investigate further. Instead, you hailed this woman as a savior.”

“The Spencer family has no grandson as foolish as you.”

The matriarch’s furious words hung in the air, and a wave of shocked murmurs rippled through the guests as they stared at Joanna.

Joanna’s world tilted. How is that old hag awake? she thought, her mind racing. Her plan was to deal with Natalie, then ensure Mrs. Spencer Sr. never woke up at all. She was the one who had orchestrated the entire pool incident.

Being scolded so publicly for the first time in his life, Marshall felt his face burn with humiliation. “Grandma, I don’t know what you’re talking about…” he yelled back, his voice cracking with anger.

“Then take a look at the screen behind you.”

Mrs. Spencer Sr. nodded at her bodyguard, who pressed a button on a remote. The large screen flickered to life, showing Joanna running toward the pool. Seeing no one around, she quickly jumped in, then just as quickly scrambled out and began screaming for help, pretending to have just saved the matriarch.

Marshall’s jaw tightened. He really was an idiot.

Joanna’s face turned ashen. She had destroyed that footage. Where did this come from?

“Look at that first video again. She didn’t slip. She saw no one was around and jumped in herself. The nerve of her to lie to everyone’s faces and steal the glory!”

Down below, the chatter grew louder. Sebastian stared at Natalie, a deep sense of guilt washing over him. He had wronged her again.

“Natalie…”

As he approached, Natalie, seeing him coming to grab the spotlight, turned away and walked toward the stunned Marshall. Marshall met her cool gaze, his eyes flickering with shame. He thought of the slap he’d given her yesterday and the cruel threats he’d just made. He had never felt so humiliated.

Mrs. Spencer Sr. looked at Natalie. “Ms. Sanders, you saved my life. Name your price.”

Natalie wasn’t about to be polite. “Madam Spencer, I can’t accept anything from your family. However, your grandson slapped me yesterday. Today, I want to return the favor tenfold and break both his hands. That is my price.”