Chapter 4: The Priceless Truth
Clara stood by her grandmother, shielding her from the spectacle. "My grandmother didn't come here to buy a dress, Evelyn. She came here because I wanted to wear the gown she made for her own wedding, and we needed to see if the boutique’s restoration team was good enough to handle the delicate lace. But after seeing the way you treat people—the way you value fabric over humanity—I don’t think I want your 'experts' anywhere near her legacy."
Clara reached out and took her grandmother’s hand. "We’re leaving, Grandma. We’ll find someone who understands that the value of a dress isn't in the price tag, but in the love stitched into every seam."
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Evelyn stood paralyzed. She watched as the two women walked toward the door. She tried to find the words to apologize, to offer a bribe, to fix the shattered pieces of her career, but there was nothing to be said. The arrogance that had protected her for years had become her prison. She was a hollow person who had been outshone by a woman in a faded coat.
As the heavy glass doors closed behind them, the showroom was deathly quiet. Evelyn looked around at the racks of expensive gowns, realizing for the first time that they were just clothes. Without the heart that created them, they were lifeless. And she, in her sharp black suit, was just as empty.
