Just as she finished speaking, her gaze shifted and landed on the bulging bundle at the head of the bed.
She pointed at it with annoyance. "And what's all that?!"
Dara's heart skipped a beat. She quickly pushed the bundle under her pillow and explained in a flustered tone, "That... Those are my personal belongings!"
Karina was already striding over. "Personal belongings? You're dirt poor, came here with just a pathetic little bundle, not even a decent change of clothes. What kind of 'personal belongings' could you possibly have?!"
With every step Karina took closer, Dara's heart rose with fear. "Miss, those really are just my things!"
"Whether they are or not-I'll only know after I see them with my own eyes!"
Karina showed no intention of backing off. She rudely approached and reached to pull away the pillow that covered the bundle.
In a panic, Dara lunged to press down on the pillow tightly.
Seeing her reaction only deepened Karina's suspicion. She started shoving Dara aside roughly. "You little wretch, get out of the way! I will see what you've stolen from the Carters!"
"I didn't! I didn't steal anything!"
"If you didn't steal, then why are you so nervous?! Why won't you let me look?! Clearly, you have a guilty conscience!"
Dara had just been injured, was running a fever, and was weak all over-no match for Karina.
Despite struggling with all her might, she was easily tossed aside.
She watched helplessly as Karina flung the pillow to the floor and grabbed the medicine bundle. Dara instinctively clutched her chest.
Her heart ached.
That was medicine the young master had bought for her-it was her most precious possession.
Karina struggled to untie the knot at the bundle's opening. When she failed, she lost her patience and yanked it forcefully, tearing it open.
The medicine boxes tumbled out from the rip. She picked one up and examined it.
"Cefalexin... That's an antibiotic!"
Then another. "Acetaminophen... used for fever and pain relief..."
She threw the box onto the bed, folded her arms, and took on an accusatory tone. "Where did you get all this medicine?!"
"I..." Dara nervously clutched the hem of her shirt, not knowing what to say.
She couldn't reveal it was the young master-she mustn't, even if it killed her!
"You little thief! First you couldn't explain where the gauze came from, and now you have all this medicine out of nowhere? What, did it magically sprout from the ground?!"
The more she spoke, the angrier Karina became. She started picking up the medicine boxes and flinging them violently to the floor, one after another.
Dara rushed over, heartbroken, gathering the fallen medicine into her arms and cradling it protectively. "Miss, this really is my medicine. If you don't believe me, you can go check the storage room right now-I swear I haven't touched a single thing from the Carters!"
"You lying little brat! I caught you red-handed and you still won't admit it?! Looks like you won't cry until you see the coffin!"
Karina glared at her, and the more she looked at Dara's delicate, tear-streaked face, the more irritated she became.
How could a poor girl from some village be so beautiful?
Karina herself wasn't particularly stunning-her poise came from a noble upbringing and good acting. Ever since she was young, she'd had a natural aversion to pretty girls from humble backgrounds.
She stepped forward, grabbed Dara's bruised and battered arm, and started dragging her. "Let's go. We're going to the storage room. If anything's missing, I want to see how you explain that clever little mouth of yours!"
Her thumb happened to press on one of Dara's wounds, sending a sharp, piercing pain through her brain. Dara gasped quietly from the pain-
But didn't dare make a sound.
She feared that if she cried out, Karina would only get worse and deliberately target her injuries.
Dragging her along, they made their way from the maid's quarters to the Carters' storage room.
Along the way, they passed a few other servants. Dara gave them pitiful looks, silently begging someone to intervene.
Unfortunately, everyone was too afraid of Karina's wrath-no one dared to say a word.
At the storage room entrance, Karina gave her a hard shove, sending Dara sprawling to the floor.
"You wait right here. I'll count everything myself!"
With that, she stepped right over Dara and entered the storage room alone.
All the Carters's emergency medicine was kept there.
For convenience, a medicine inventory list was posted on the cabinet door.
It listed the names and quantities of all medicines in a clear table format.
Karina searched until she found the medicine section, then took down the inventory.
She located cefalexin, adhesive bandages, and cold relief powder-but there was no listing for acetaminophen.
Under the fever relief category, only ibuprofen extended-release capsules were listed.
"Weird... I definitely saw acetaminophen in Dara's stuff. Why isn't it on the inventory?!"
She then checked the inventory numbers against the medicines Dara had.
"The counts... actually match?! So the medicine really wasn't stolen from the Carters?!"
Snapping the inventory shut, Karina pressed her lips together in thought. Then, mimicking the medicine Dara had, she took one box of each from the storage cabinet.
When she stepped out of the storage room, the door creaked open to reveal Dara sitting outside, sobbing.
Big tears dripped from her wide, glistening eyes, rolling down her pale, smooth cheeks-she looked heartbreakingly beautiful.
Karina's gaze darkened. She pointed at her and declared sternly, "DaraSmith, I just did a full inventory. The Carters's medicine is indeed missing! And the missing items match exactly with what's in your bundle! What do you have to say now?!"
***