Chapter 184: Hands off my wife

"What is there to even hear from her side?" Julianna spat. "All she’s doing is making up lies to save herself."

Seeing the crowd begin to give Clara the benefit of the doubt only fueled her anger.

"Besides, allowing a criminal to remain here could put all of us in danger. What if she has something else planned? What if she intends to harm someone again?"

As soon as those words left her mouth, whispers erupted among the guests.

Julianna smirked when she noticed the uncertainty spreading through the crowd. With no one stepping forward to defend Clara, she was confident that she could push the situation in her favor.

I’ll make sure you end up facing legal consequences, Clara. This won’t just ruin your reputation. It will also show the Sterling family what kind of nightmare you really are.

Her gaze shifted toward Clara, and an evil glint flashed in her eyes.

I will never let you remain Dominic’s wife for long.

Before anyone could say more, the sound of approaching footsteps drew everyone’s attention. Moments later, several police officers arrived at the scene.

"The police are here," Dorothy announced.

She quickly approached one of the officers, her expression filled with feigned distress.

"Officer, this woman is a criminal!" she exclaimed, pointing toward Clara. "She poisoned Mr. Graham and put everyone else’s lives at risk. You need to arrest her immediately."

The officer glanced at Clara, his brows furrowing in confusion. He looked from Dorothy to the crowd, seemingly trying to understand what had happened.

Before he could ask a question, Vincent stepped forward.

"Officer, I have no relation to this woman," he said coldly. "You can take her away and put her behind bars."

His words caused a few guests to exchange surprised looks.

Julianna, however, secretly smiled.

Her father was following the plan perfectly. Once Clara was taken away, they could convince the Sterling family that she had become a liability to Dominic. With enough pressure, they might even persuade him to divorce her.

And once Clara was out of the picture, Julianna would finally become Mrs. Sterling.

"Yes, Officer. You need to take her away," Julianna added eagerly. "She’s dangerous, and we can’t allow her to remain here."

She could barely contain her excitement at the thought of watching Clara being dragged away in front of everyone. The humiliation would destroy Clara’s reputation and make it impossible for her to hold her head high again.

But Clara remained still.

She slowly closed her eyes, appearing almost indifferent to the accusations surrounding her.

Then, just as the officer took a step toward her, she opened her eyes and spoke.

"I’m not going anywhere."

Her calm declaration stunned everyone around her.

The officer paused, while the guests stared at Clara in disbelief.

Julianna’s smile faded.

"What did you say?" she asked, her voice tightening.

Clara turned her gaze toward the officer.

"I said I’m not going anywhere," she repeated. "Not until the truth comes out."

Vincent, who could no longer tolerate Clara’s stubbornness, stepped forward.

"Clara, how long are you going to keep dragging our family name through the mud?" he demanded. "Don’t you feel ashamed of what you’ve done? You’ve already brought disgrace to our name."

Vincent wanted the matter settled once and for all. That was why he had agreed to Julianna’s plan when she first presented it to him. It wasn’t only about ruining Clara’s reputation; it was also an opportunity to remove her from the family without making it appear as though they were deliberately casting her out.

The plan had seemed perfect.

They would defame Clara, use the scandal as justification, and then distance themselves from her under the guise of protecting the Hayes family’s reputation.

But Clara’s refusal to cooperate infuriated him.

She didn’t appear frightened, nor did she seem affected by his accusations. Instead, she stood there with an unsettling calmness, as though she knew something they didn’t.

Vincent’s anger intensified.

"You—ungrateful brat!" he snapped.

He reached for Clara’s arm, intending to hand her over to the police himself.

But before his fingers could touch her, a deep, commanding voice cut through the commotion.

"Hands off my wife, Mr. Hayes."

The moment Vincent heard the voice his entire being went still. Those words he had heard before, however he didn’t expect for himself to repeat the same mistake he had warned from committing earlier.

Sweat broke into his forehead and his hand that has touched Clara dropped down. He didn’t dare to look ahead but he already knew who that person was.

***

"There he is!" Jonathan exclaimed, his face lighting up with excitement.

He turned toward Grace, clapping his hands together like an enthusiastic spectator.

"Darling, did you see that? What a dashing entrance!"

Grace glanced at him, her lips curving into an amused smile.

"Jonathan, please try to contain yourself," she murmured, though the warmth in her eyes betrayed her own amusement.

"How can I?" Jonathan whispered excitedly. "That’s our son standing up for his wife. Did you hear his voice? So commanding!"

Grace shook her head, but she couldn’t stop the faint smile that appeared on her face.

Meanwhile, the guests turned toward the newcomer, their expressions shifting from surprise to recognition.

Dominic Sterling had arrived.

But what caught everyone’s attention were the words he had just spoken.

"Wife?"

"So the rumors are true. Dominic Sterling is married?"

"I thought he was only pretending to be married because he didn’t want to get married for real."

The guests exchanged surprised glances, their whispers spreading through the crowd.

While some were shocked by the revelation, others quickly turned their attention toward Clara, judging her based on the accusations surrounding her.

"What’s so great about marrying a criminal?" someone muttered.

The remark was quiet, but in the tense atmosphere, it was loud enough for several people nearby to hear.

Clara’s expression remained unchanged, though her eyes briefly flickered toward the direction of the voice.

Dominic, however, seemed to have heard it as well.

His gaze swept across the crowd, instantly silencing several of the murmurs.