Chapter 189
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 189
"What—what is this?! This isn't what we agreed on!"
John had been watching the boat emerge from the water, waiting for it to break apart or sink back into the depths. He only realized he’d been betrayed once the small vessel settled safely against the park’s dock.
The green paint—his brother’s favorite color, applied years ago—remained perfectly intact. The sight of the boat, nearly pristine and undamaged, left him utterly aghast.
But all he could do in that moment was glare at Morris.
"That damned bastard... he dared to trick me?"
Morris stood beside Harriet, who was covering her mouth with her hand. He wore a smug, satisfied look. Judging by their proximity, it was clear he had never intended to sabotage the boat or let it sink in the first place.
Morris even tilted his head back, and when their eyes met, he gave John a mocking smirk.
John’s tightly clenched fists trembled. He gritted his teeth, silently vowing to kill the man.
Meanwhile, Harriet, who had been holding back tears since the boat safely breached the surface, turned a chilling gaze toward her uncle.
'How does it feel, Uncle? To realize that even your money couldn't stop me? Do I look a little different to you now?'
She had anticipated that John would approach Morris the moment the salvage plan was announced in the newspapers. What other choice did he have?
Because of that, she had warned Morris in advance.
"My uncle might approach you, Mr. Declan. If you don't play along, he might try to kill you before the salvage even begins, so pretend to agree to his terms."
"And what if I actually decide to go along with him?"
"I don't believe a man like Mr. Declan, who needs to build a reputation for his business, would throw away his dreams for a few measly coins. Besides, he won't offer you enough to match my investment anyway."
At her words, Morris had laughed cheerfully.
"Well, I suppose I can never outsmart my investor's foresight. Understood. Is there anything else I should do?"
"If possible, please secure proof of my uncle’s interference. But don't overdo it."
Not long after that conversation, she had received a call from Morris.
"Excuse me, Lady Listerwell. I received a call from someone who refused to give their name, offering me 800,000 Dirhams to do them a 'favor.' It didn't seem like they were interested in investing in my business, you see."
When she heard the news, she felt almost vindicated.
To avoid John’s suspicion, Morris had deliberately played hard to get once or twice before agreeing to a meeting. At that meeting, he secured decisive evidence by signing a contract and even accepting a down payment.
John’s signature on that contract and the physical act of handing over the money would be the final nails in his coffin—proof that he had actively tried to sabotage the investigation.
'When you bribe someone, you should find a weakness they can't betray. What made you think you could trust a man who owed you nothing with everything you had to lose?'
As she received congratulations from the onlookers, Harriet scoffed at her foolish, arrogant uncle. She pitied her past self for being swayed by such a man and resented that her teenage years—which should have been her most brilliant—had been ruined by him.
Now, she wouldn't be satisfied until she took everything back.
"Lady Harriet. Shall we examine the boat now?"
At the Imperial Investigator’s suggestion, she wiped her tears and approached the vessel her parents had last ridden.
A diver from the salvage company, who had already been inspecting the interior, looked up with a puzzled expression.
"The lakebed is made of very soft silt, so the boat didn't break or dent when it sank. The main challenge was the weight of the mud covering the hull, but fortunately, it was well-preserved. There was no damage during the retrieval. But..."
"Is there a problem?"
"No, it's just... here, on the bottom. There are holes arranged in a very specific pattern. It’s just too strange."
The diver, completely unaware of how Harriet’s parents had died or why she had gone to such lengths to retrieve the boat, kept tilting his head in confusion as he pointed at the hull.
Since it was a small boat designed for only two people, the structure was simple. The anomaly was immediately obvious: several round holes had been bored into the floorboards, clearly made by someone using a tool.
"Ha...! Haa... You... you monster...!"
Tears and curses burst from her involuntarily. This wasn't an accident; it was clear intent to kill.
If there had only been one or two holes, her parents might have been able to plug them with their clothes and row to shallower water. But with this many, it would have been impossible. The boat would have been swallowed by the lake in an instant.
Harriet pressed a hand against her pounding heart, struggling to catch her breath. The fear and despair her parents must have felt as they drowned replayed in her mind, threatening to shatter her composure. But she clenched her jaw, fueled by the conviction that she could not collapse here.
"Investigator... even after seeing this, do you still claim my parents... died in an accident?"
Harriet couldn't finish her sentence, her mouth clamped shut to stifle her sobs, but the Imperial Investigator understood her perfectly.
"My Lady, you are correct. This incident was clearly the result of foul play. However, it is difficult to identify the culprit solely based on these holes."
"That’s why I sent you the transcript of Bella’s statement! If I had made it up, how could there be holes exactly where she described?"
"Of course, you can file a lawsuit based on that suspicion. But the law accounts for coincidences, and there is no physical proof yet that the information came from Lady Bella. You will need something more to win the case."
Harriet closed her eyes tightly, then nodded.
"Still, this boat can be admitted as evidence, right?"
"Certainly. Technicians from the Imperial Incident Investigation Team will meticulously examine and record the boat's condition right here. That record will serve as formal evidence in court."
While it was a bit disappointing, arguing with the investigator wouldn't change the law. Harriet could only hope that the technicians would be as thorough as possible, recording every single detail without omission.
Baron Billay, who had been watching the operation from the start, approached and patted her back.
"I believe your parents are watching over you from heaven, My Lady."
"Oh, Baron!" Harriet quickly wiped her eyes and turned to him. "Thank you again for testifying in person today."
"It was the right thing to do. Though I feel it is far too late." He clicked his tongue, glancing at John, who was lurking in the distance with a pale, sickly face. "It seems he won't admit it until the bitter end."
"Is that all? He’ll probably try to discredit me next."
The news of the holes in the hull was spreading rapidly through the crowd. Since Bella’s name had been mentioned, people were already forming theories, casting suspicious glances at the Listerwell family.
John could not endure the scrutiny. Anxious as the situation spiraled out of his control, he cleared his throat and marched toward Harriet.
"What are you all doing, crowding around like this? Once the inspection is over, our family will take possession of this boat. I intend to keep it as a memento of my brother..."
"Why? Do you plan on burning this one, too?"
John, cut off mid-sentence, glared at Harriet with fury. "What the hell is wrong with you?! Spreading false rumors about Bella and slandering me! This is a family matter. No matter the circumstances, you should have consulted me, the Head of the House!"
"I found evidence that you and Bella murdered my parents. Why on earth would I consult you?"
"What? You—you... are you insane?! What kind of ridiculous delusions are these?!"
Harriet remained unshaken. She extended her palm toward the wet boat. "Just as Bella told me, there are holes in the bottom. How do you explain that, Uncle?"
"Be—Bella said what...?"
John, ready to dismiss it as nonsense, looked where Harriet was pointing. His eyes widened in horror. Water that had collected inside the boat was continuously draining out through the numerous holes in the floor.
"What is that?!"
"Why? Are you saying you don't know, Uncle? Then was it Bella, who was only twelve at the time, who did this all by herself?"
John shook his head violently, his voice rising in a desperate denial. "This is ridiculous! I've never seen those, nor do I know anything about them! Are you trying to frame our family by sinking a tampered boat?"
"Can you take responsibility for that statement? You’re implying that the House of Viscount Preston helped me fabricate evidence to slander you."
"Ugh...!"
"Just so you know, Bella told me exactly how the boat was sunk. I sent that information to the investigator before I even received permission from the Prestons to begin the salvage."
"You just cobbled it together with lies!"
As he yelled, trying to overpower Harriet with sheer volume, the investigator stepped forward and tapped John’s shoulder.
"So, you're saying you know absolutely nothing about a specific type of water-soluble glue that dissolves in cold water?"
"Hmph! Do I look like a damn carpenter to you? I don't even know what glue looks like!"
"Understood for now. In any case, Lady Harriet intends to formally accuse you of murder. This is now an active crime scene for evidence collection, so please step aside."
At the words 'murder' and 'accuse,' John’s fists clenched so hard they shook. His unease had been justified; the nightmare had finally arrived.
'Calm down. There are holes in the boat, but no one can prove I put them there. I just have to keep denying it. I'll never break.'
His reputation would hit rock bottom from the suspicion alone, but he told himself there was nothing they could prove. With a resentful glare, John turned and retreated to his carriage.
A few days later, in Genoa, the trial known as Harriet vs. John Listerwell began.