Chapter 48 The Mask Falls

• I goggled into the door to the ballroom, trying to concentrate on the hum of the conversations around me. It all felt distant, like it was a part of someone differently world, not mine. The only thing in my mind was Chloe, my necklace shining bright on her. My necklace. The one that she had stolen. I could still hear her trim voice echoing in my head, the words" I will return it in due time" ringing in my ears. I wanted to scream, to turn around right then, right now, and defy her, but something held me back. The gala, the reproach, everything was twisting formerly, and I was not relatively sure that I wanted to risk making it worse.
• " You, okay?" Theo's voice cut through my thoughts, his hand landing vocally on my shoulder. I looked up at him, and for a moment, I could not speak. The weight of it all hung heavy in the air, but I knew I had to tell him.
• I jounced but did not trust myself to say anything at first. My throat felt tight, my feelings running wild. Eventually, I broke the silence, bruiting," It's Chloe. She stole it. The necklace."