Margaret immediately pointed at Clara, arguing that she was the only outsider in the house and therefore had to be the thief.
Clara was stunned, unable to comprehend the accusation. Margaret did not wait for any investigation and went straight to Adam, insisting that Clara was guilty and suggesting that her poverty must have driven her to steal.
Adam, though hesitant, trusted his mother’s judgment — always firm and persuasive.
Clara begged them to look for the jewel again, pleaded to be heard, but no one gave her a chance.
With no evidence to defend her, Adam yielded to Margaret’s pressure and told Clara she had to leave the mansion.
Heartbroken, Clara realized that after everything she had given to that family, they now saw her as a thief.
The police were called immediately. Clara was taken to the station while the neighbors looked on with contempt.
She walked in tears, feeling humiliated and betrayed. Her only “crime” had been to work honestly for a family that no longer trusted her.
At the station, the officers interrogated her like any other criminal.
She was not formally arrested, but she was treated as a suspect. She had no lawyer, no money, and no one to speak on her behalf.
Her world was falling apart before her eyes. When she returned to her modest home, she cried for hours.
Days later, a court summons arrived. The news spread quickly, and her name soon became linked to the theft.
