My mom and I did not take a single bite of the exorbitantly priced meal.

I planned on getting the room key first to settle in. Then, I would find a way to get a charger for my phone and get a handle on the situation.

“My last name is Shelton. I’d like the key for the top-floor presidential suite reserved in the system.”

I handed my ID to the front desk receptionist.

Just as the receptionist was about to enter the information into the computer, Sasha snatched my ID. She then casually tossed it onto the counter after a single glance.

“The presidential suite is reserved for my brother to entertain his distinguished guests!”

She crossed her arms defiantly and spoke while rolling her eyes. “Poor schmucks like you who can’t even shell out ten thousand for a meal without whining are only fit to stay in the most remote standard room on the first floor!”

I wore a deep frown.

I had been personally involved in the design of this hotel. The top-floor presidential suite had always been marked as [Reserved for the Boss] in the internal system.

Without my exclusive password, no one could change the room’s status.

She had actually downgraded my reservation without my authorization.

I had enough, so I walked straight past the counter and into the front desk work area.

“Hey! What are you doing? Who let you in?” the receptionist shouted.

I shoved her aside and placed both hands on the keyboard.

As the hotel’s actual controlling shareholder and a contributor to its system architecture, I could recite the system’s backdoor commands with my eyes closed.

In just a few keystrokes, I pulled up the status log for the top-floor presidential suite.

Looking at the data, I laughed bitterly with rage.

Since last month, the presidential suite that was listed at eight thousand eight hundred dollars per night, had been secretly resold to a group for two thousand dollars per hour.

Every afternoon, they would bring in dozens of people to take turns shooting photos. They were clearly using this hotel to pretend to be socialites.

I did not object to such behavior. The issue was the fact that they were using the suite I had reserved for myself.

Two thousand per hour amounted to sixteen thousand dollars for an eight-hour day. I feared all that money had probably gone straight into Sasha and her brother’s personal accounts!

I blurted out everything I had been thinking in one go.

A look of panic flashed across Sasha’s face, but she immediately turned the tables on me.

“What nonsense! You’re illegally hacking into the hotel’s computer system!”

She pointed at me and shouted to the security guards outside, “Security, this woman is a hacker! She’s stealing our hotel’s trade secrets!

“Confiscate their room keys immediately and kick these two cheapskates out!

Several security guards immediately rushed toward us.

My mom pointed at the lead security guard and warned him sternly, “Try and touch us. Restricting a person’s freedom unlawfully is against the law!

“You’re just security guards hired by the hotel. You have no authority to enforce the law on us!

“If you dare lay a finger on us today, can you afford the legal consequences?”

The security guards were just employees after all. My mom’s words shook them, and none of them dared take another step forward.

Suddenly, a startled cry rang out from the lobby lounge. “Oh, no! My diamond necklace is gone!”

A woman dressed head to toe in designer labels rushed to the front desk in a panic. She was stomping her feet in frustration.

“I just went to the restroom and left my purse on the couch in the lobby. When I came back, my necklace was gone!

“It’s a limited edition. It’s worth over two million dollars!

Sasha’s eyes darted around. Then, she immediately pointed at my mom and me before shouting, “It was them! Just a moment ago, these two were sitting over by that couch!

“These cheapskates can’t even bring themselves to pay a ten-thousand-dollar bill. They’re definitely the ones who stole it!”

Hearing this, the wealthy woman who had lost her necklace immediately teared up as she turned to me and my mom.

“Give me back my necklace, you thieves!” she shouted with visible agitation.

“Ma’am, please calm down. We’ve never even seen your necklace.”

I shielded my mother behind me and glared at Sasha.

“There are security cameras all over the lobby. Just pull up the footage, and everything will be crystal clear!”

However, Sasha wore a sly, cold smile and said with complete confidence, “What a coincidence. The camera near the couch in the lobby just happened to break down yesterday.

“But we don’t even need the footage. Who else in the lobby would steal something besides you two bums dressed in cheap knockoffs?”

“Security, search their bodies and their bags!”

Ignoring my objections, she forced the security guards, who had been hesitating just moments before, to step forward.

Faced with a theft case involving two million dollars, the security guards seemed to regain their confidence.

My mom clung desperately to her dignity as she clutched the tote bag tightly in her hands.

“Without a police officer present to present a search warrant, none of you have the right to search my personal belongings!”

“If you won’t let us search you, it’s because you have something to hide!”

When Sasha saw that the security guards were moving too slowly, she rushed forward herself.

Taking advantage of the chaos, she suddenly rammed into my mom.

“Mom!” I cried out in alarm and hurriedly reached out to steady her.

Sasha stuck her hand into my mom’s open tote bag and shook it violently.

There was a loud clatter.

Then, a sparkling diamond necklace fell out of my mom’s tote bag and hit the floor.

Several diamonds fell out instantly. The necklace was bent out of shape from the impact too.

My mom and I were both stunned. We had no idea when the necklace had ended up in her bag.

“You’ve been caught red-handed. What excuse could you possibly have now?

“That necklace is worth two million dollars! Now that it’s broken, you have to compensate our guest!” Sasha immediately yelled.

The wealthy woman had already rushed over to pick up the necklace and the scattered jewels.

Then, she pointed at my mom and screamed, “You old hag! You’re dressed decently, but you’re actually a thief!”

Having suddenly been framed, my mom was so furious that she was trembling all over.

“She purposely slipped the necklace into my bag when she bumped into me earlier. I didn’t steal it at all!”

Sasha stood with her hands on her hips and spoke with absolute conviction. “I slipped it in? Everyone saw it fall out of your bag!”

I hugged my trembling mother tightly, and my gaze turned cold.

“Since you dare to frame us, let’s call the police. When they arrive, they can check the fingerprints on the necklace right away.

“If there are no fingerprints belonging to my mom and only yours, I guarantee you’ll be in prison for several years!

“Without concrete evidence, none of you will lay a finger on us!”

When she heard about the fingerprint check, a flash of panic crossed Sasha’s eyes.

She did not expect me to remain so calm. For a moment, she was at a loss.

Security did not dare to do anything much either. They simply blocked our path, so we were both at an impasse.

Just then, a slightly impatient baritone voice came from the hotel lobby entrance. “What’s going on? What’s all this commotion in the lobby? What a disgrace!”

Hearing the voice, Sasha’s eyes lit up instantly.

She sprinted toward the person in her high heels.

“Howard, my brother in all but blood! You’re finally here!”

She hooked her arm around his. Then, she pointed at me and my mom as she played the victim.

“It’s these two cheapskates. Not only did they hack into our system, but they even stole a VIP guest’s diamond necklace. You’d better get them arrested right away!”

I turned my head, and my gaze landed on the man’s face.

The moment I recognized him, I froze for a second before smiling.

So, it was him!