Chapter 5 - The Ledger of Lies
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The guests murmured uneasily, clearly uncomfortable with Brenda's relentless hostility in the face of such a profound revelation.
Evelyn, Brenda's closest friend and the wife of the town's most prominent real estate developer, reached out and touched Brenda's arm.
"Brenda, darling, perhaps we should just let this go for tonight," Evelyn suggested softly, casting an apologetic look toward me.
"Let it go? Evelyn, she stole from me in my own home!" Brenda retorted, shaking off Evelyn’s hand with obvious irritation.
"I know how much they’re struggling to pay their mortgage on that broken-down shack they bought!" Brenda proclaimed proudly, airing our private business.
"She sneaked up the stairs right after the salad course, and five minutes later, my emergency cash envelope was empty!" Brenda claimed, her eyes gleaming with malice.
I took a deep breath, stepping around the broken china on the floor and walking toward my overturned handbag.
"Brenda, look at the items on this table," I said evenly, pointing toward the mess she had created.
Scattered among my lipstick and car keys was a small, crisp white slip of paper with blue bank lettering.
I picked it up and held it out for everyone to see.
"This is an ATM receipt from the Chase branch on Oak Street, timestamped at four-thirty this afternoon," I announced clearly.
"I withdrew six hundred dollars in cash three hours before arriving at this dinner," I stated, handing the receipt to Evelyn.
Evelyn examined the slip of paper and nodded slowly, passing it to the guest beside her.
"It’s true, Brenda," Evelyn said quietly. "She withdrew six hundred dollars just before coming here."
"And what was that cash for, Sarah?" Mark asked, stepping forward to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with me.
"It was for your mother's anniversary present," I answered, feeling a surge of sadness at the sheer irony of the situation.
"We found that antique sterling silver tea strainer she had been hunting for at the estate auction in Overland Park," I explained.
"The dealer only accepted cash, so I pulled the money out of my personal savings account to pay Mark back for his half," I added.
"Why would I steal three hundred dollars when I had six hundred dollars sitting in my wallet the entire evening?" I asked, looking Brenda directly in the eye.
Brenda’s mouth opened and closed like a fish out of water, but her pride refused to let her back down.
"You probably wanted more! Greedy people are never satisfied!" Brenda sputtered, grasping at straws.
Richard slowly pushed his chair back and stood to his full height, his military bearing returning like an armored shield.
"That’s enough, Brenda," Richard commanded, his voice dropping an octave into dangerous territory.
"You said you saw Sarah go upstairs after the salad course?" Richard asked, his eyes narrowing with tactical suspicion.
"Yes! Of course I did! She was gone for nearly ten minutes!" Brenda insisted, nodding vigorously.
"Sarah," Richard turned to me, his tone respectful and direct. "Did you go upstairs tonight?"
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"No, Sergeant Major, I did not," I replied without hesitation.
"I used the powder room on the ground floor, right next to the coat closet in the entryway," I stated firmly.
