"No need, really! There's no need!" Karina was still struggling to make a final effort.
But Xavier's tone was unusually firm. "No, this matter must be thoroughly investigated both emotionally and rationally! Not only to give you an explanation, Miss Carter, but also to provide one to the entire hotel staff and every guest staying here!"
"Brody is someone I personally selected and transferred to be the team leader. If he did mishandle things, then I also bear responsibility, and I must apologize to all our employees!"
"Moreover, this is a matter of public order! If not properly investigated and it spreads, other guests might begin to doubt the hotel's security, which could affect our business!"
"So, I hope Miss Carter will stop obstructing me and allow me to carefully finish watching this surveillance footage, alright?"
Every word he spoke was reasonable and left Karina speechless.
But she really didn't want Xavier to see the scene of her cursing and behaving like a shrew.
She hesitated repeatedly, but still stood firmly in front of the surveillance screen, refusing to move.
Xavier narrowed his eyes, already running out of patience.
He was in a rush to return to the presidential suite to see Serena, yet this woman was still wasting his time here!
Seeing that Karina refused to move, he cleared his throat. "Alright then. If Miss Carter truly wants to give Brody some face, I'll just have him send the footage to my private email, and I'll go back to my room and watch it myself. Would that be acceptable?"
Hearing this made Karina even more panicked.
If he watched it here, at least she'd be present and could try to explain herself.
If he went back and watched it alone, she wouldn't even have a chance to say a word in her defense!
After thinking it through, she gritted her teeth and stepped aside. "Since you're so insistent, Xavier... then let's just watch it here together!"
"Alright." Xavier nodded and gave Brody a look.
Brody quickly pressed the play button on the remote, and the paused surveillance video began playing again.
Karina stared intently at the screen, hands clenched tightly, her whole body tense with nerves.
Finally, after two agonizing minutes, her figure appeared in the footage.
She first paced back and forth in front of the presidential suite.
"Xavier, I was just curious about what the most luxurious suite in the hotel looked like, so I wanted to check it out."
"Oh." Xavier replied blandly, his expression neutral, his eyes never leaving the screen.
A few minutes later, Karina began banging heavily on the door.
At first, there was no response from inside, so she persistently kept knocking until, five minutes later, Serena finally opened the door, still sleepy-eyed.
Karina then crossed her arms, took on a condescending posture, and began verbally attacking Serena.
Xavier heard every single word she said loud and clear.
Several times during the video, Karina tried to cut in to explain herself, but Xavier simply raised his hand to silence her.
As the video played on, his expression darkened more and more.
When Brody finally appeared in the footage, nearly half an hour had passed since she first started banging on the door.
In other words, Serena had been insulted by her for nearly thirty minutes!
Xavier was filled with agitation. He tugged at his collar, loosening his tie, then turned his head to scrutinize Karina. "Miss Carter, do you have anything to say?"
Karina's face turned bright red, her eyes darting about as she stammered, "Xavier, the footage... could there be something wrong with it?! I... I didn't..."
"The footage is live and recorded in real time. It only captures what happens; it can't be altered," he said coldly, his tone laced with danger. "So, what you see is what actually happened-there are no errors!"
Karina was momentarily stunned, not knowing how to respond.
"The video clearly shows that you went to the presidential suite and seriously disturbed the guest's rest with baseless insults and ridicule. Do you have anything to say for yourself?!"
"I..." Karina blinked rapidly and forced herself to speak. "Xavier, I... was provoked! That Serena bullied me first! I was just so angry that I went up to confront her and talk things out!"
"According to the audio in the footage, before Miss Knowles opened the door, you didn't know she was the one staying there. So how could you have gone to find her specifically?"
"I..." Karina was silenced again.
Two minutes passed in silence, and she still couldn't say anything. Xavier narrowed his eyes and put on a stern face. "Since Miss Carter has nothing more to say, then it's clear Brody did nothing wrong. You were the one at fault, and he simply acted according to protocol. I suggest you go to the 36th floor and apologize to Miss Knowles. What do you think?"
What?! He wanted her to apologize to Serena?!
Karina was screaming in her heart!
Serena had disrespected her from the moment she checked in at the front desk!
It was only because she called security that Brody took her away-and only then did Xavier see her behaving so badly!
Everything stemmed from that bitch Serena!
There was no way she would bow her head to her-no way she'd apologize!
"Xavier, the reason I treated Serena like that was because she bullied me earlier at the front desk and nearly threw out my luggage!"
"Oh?" Xavier raised an eyebrow, probing. "Then why don't I have them pull the footage from the front desk, and we can see together why Serena would try to throw out your luggage?"
Karina froze, completely intimidated.
At that moment, she cursed the inventor of surveillance systems with all her heart!
"Th-That's not necessary! That would be too much trouble!"
"No trouble at all. I don't mind. What are you afraid of, Miss Carter?"
Xavier was relentless.
Serena had already suffered once earlier at the front desk. To get his father to abandon the idea of marrying him into the Carters, he had gritted his teeth and endured it once.
But this time, there was no way he'd let Karina continue to bully Serena.
She owed Serena an apology-and he would make sure she paid that debt.
***