Chapter 24: The Perfect Frame

"Was it found in her room?” Jay asked with an edge of sharpness to his voice.

“Yes, but it just so happens that the roommate was the thief this time,” the enforcer said.

A whispering wave spread through the room like wildfire.

“What? Did she get influenced by her roommate? "

“Maybe… maybe she was the one who framed her roommate in the first place.”

That last remark, coming from Olive, was exactly as I'd expected of her. Olive was my personal maid, second only to Mary. To be entirely honest with you, though, I never did consider Mary to be simply a maid.

Olive addressed the rising throng, her voice with an impassioned authority that simply added fuel to the fire.

‘Think about it,’ she said. ‘She’s the only person who had access to Miss Melody’s stuff at the same time that she had access to her roommate’s.’

Another voice called out from the crowd. “Lydia has been here more than a year, and nothing has ever gone missing. Then the day after this new girl shows up, stuff begins to vanish.