Chapter 8 - The Desperate Plea
Two days before Camille's trial was scheduled to begin, Elena was working late inside her private design studio at the Vance atelier.
The room was filled with soft classical music, dress forms wearing vibrant silk fabrics, and framed sketches of her mother’s original collections.
A quiet knock sounded at the door.
Elena turned around to see Camille’s younger sister, Sarah, standing nervously in the doorway, holding a worn leather sketchbook.
"Elena..." Sarah whispered, her voice trembling with embarrassment. "I know I shouldn't be here... but I didn't know where else to go."
Elena set her measuring tape down on the cutting table. "Sarah? What's going on?"
Sarah walked into the room with hesitated steps, placing the leather sketchbook gently on the table. "I found this in my sister's apartment while packing up her belongings after the bank seized her furniture."
Elena opened the sketchbook. Her breath caught in her throat.
Inside were dozens of detailed, hand-drawn fashion sketches belonging to Elena's mother from thirty years ago—sketches that had mysteriously gone missing right before her mother's passing.
"Camille didn't just start stealing designs recently," Sarah confessed, tears welling in her eyes. "She built her entire early career on your mother's lost portfolio. She kept it hidden in her apartment all these years out of jealousy."
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Elena traced her fingers over her mother's signature at the bottom of the page, feeling a surge of emotional closure washing over her heart.
👉 Read Part 9 to see the final courtroom verdict.
