Chapter 9 Firing Mrs. Jones

Half an hour later, the security guards finished searching the staff quarters. They returned to the living room.

"We did not find your lost jewelry, Madam."

Jean raised an eyebrow.

Mrs. Jones hastily said, "Miss, did you drop it somewhere and forget about it? Let me help you find it. It wouldn't be good to accuse someone—"

Before she could finish, one of the maids, who Mrs. Jones had scolded before, spoke up. "You haven't checked Mrs. Jones' room."

Mrs. Jones' expression changed. She turned to the maid who had spoken and said loudly, "What are you saying? I came to the Larson family with the Miss! Why would I steal her things?"

The maid glared back at her. "How would I know? Your room's the only one that hasn't been searched."

For the past three years, Mrs. Jones acted like she was better than the other staff. It was all because she was sent with Jean when she married Tyler. As a consequence, she had offended quite a lot of people.

Jean was glad to see things play out the way it was. "Mrs. Jones, let the security guard search your room."

Mrs. Jones paused and looked at Jean. "Miss, don't you trust me?"

Jean kept her expression neutral. "How could I not, Mrs. Jones? However, it wouldn't look good if you were the only one who didn't have your room searched. As the lady of the household, I have to be fair."

Mrs. Jones gritted her teeth. Jean looked as indifferent as ever. Mrs. Jones frowned and said, "Fine. But on one condition. Only you can search my room."

She was convinced Jean wouldn't expose her even if she found anything. It was just like how she was keeping Jean's secret.

Hearing this, Jean said calmly, "They'll think I'm covering for you if I search your room. Let the guards do it."

Albert had been the Larsons' butler for a long time. When he saw Mrs. Jones's resistance, he immediately realized something was up.

He got the spare key to Mrs. Jones's room and went to search the room with the security guards.

Mrs. Jones tried to stop them, but the rest of the staff restrained her.

In the end, the security guards found a lot of jewelry in her room. They were all smaller items, but combined, they were worth several thousand dollars.

Albert brought the jewelry to Jean.

Jean looked at the jewelry. Her expression was heavy as she turned to Mrs. Jones. "I trusted you, Mrs. Jones. How could you do this to me? If you needed money, you could've just told me. I would've helped you! Now, you …" She rubbed her forehead like she was having a headache.

Seeing this, Albert reminded her softly, "Madam, we normally call the police when this happens. I know Mrs. Jones works for you, so I can't decide for you. However, we can't have her working at Oakside Villa."

Caught red-handed, Mrs. Jones was at a loss for words as well. "Miss …"

Jean looked at her for a moment, then sighed. "We're all functioning under Tyler's rules here. Everyone is equal. Deal with this as you normally would."

Hearing this, Mrs. Jones grabbed Jean's hand. "Miss, you can't do this to me. Aren't you afraid that I might expose your secret?"

Jean frowned and leveled a gaze at Mrs. Jones, who was panicking. "If you really wanted to expose me, Mrs. Jones, I wouldn't stop you."

Mrs. Jones was stunned. She looked at Jean, surprised that her threat hadn't worked. "Are you really not afraid?"

Jean smiled. "I've always wanted to be free."

Then, she glanced at Albert and said, "Take her away."

Albert nodded and told the security guards to escort Mrs. Jones off the premises. Jean made no move to help her at all.

Once she was gone, all the staff looked at each other with varying expressions. Jean glanced at them, then went back upstairs.

Once she was gone, the crowd dispersed as well.

Jean returned to her room. She lay on the bed and fell asleep.

Her pregnancy made her unusually lethargic. Moreover, her blood had been drawn, so she felt very dizzy and uncomfortable.

The loud knocking on her door woke Jean up.

She opened her eyes. Before she could say anything, Dorothy flung open the door and rushed in. She ignored the maids who were trying to stop her.

One of the maids said apologetically, "Madam, I've already told Mrs. Michaels that you're asleep. Yet, she still barged in."

Jean nodded. She glanced at Dorothy, who looked livid. She wasn't surprised to see her.

"Go back to your chores. I need to speak to my mother alone," she said, sending the maids away.