Chapter 59
Chapter 59:
“Liam cut off my allowance,” Skye corrected. “He didn’t cut off my lineage. Or my mother’s estate p>
She leaned closer to the bars. “Get off your knees, Seraphina. You’re ruining your stockings. And frankly, the performance is derivative. I’ve seen better acting in a high school play p>
Skye turned her back on them. “Officer, remove the trespassers. If they return, call the police p>
“Yes, ma’am p>
Skye walked into the complex, the heavy gates locking behind her with a definitive clank.
Outside, Seraphina stood up slowly. She dusted off her knees. Her face was burning. The bystanders were now looking at her with suspicion and disgust.
“She’s lying,” Seraphina hissed to Jessica. “She has to be lying p>
“The guard had official records, Sera,” Jessica said, her voice wavering. “She owns it. It’s trust fund money. We… we look like idiots p>
“Shut up!” Seraphina snapped. She marched back to the taxi. “She’s hiding something. And I’m going to find it p>
Inside the apartment complex, Skye pulled out her phone.
“Alistair,” she said when he answered. “Thank you for expediting the paperwork on the Trust. The guard’s timing was impeccable p>
“I thought you’d appreciate the nostalgia,” Alistair’s voice was rich with amusement. “Besides, watching her realize she was protesting outside a fortress of your own making? Priceless p>
“She’s desperate,” Skye said. “Desperate people make mistakes p>
“And when she does,” Alistair promised, “we’ll be there to catch her p>
The Dean’s office smelled of lemon polish and fear.
Skye sat in a leather chair in the corner, her hands folded in her lap. She looked like the model student: attentive, quiet, respectful.
Across the room, the Dean was sweating. He wiped his forehead with a handkerchief. On his desk lay a letter on cream-colored stationery. The letterhead read “Vanguard Legal Group,” representing an anonymous donor who contributed significantly to the university’s STEM program. The message was clear: the donor was displeased with the harassment of scholarship students and threatened to withdraw funding if the “hostile environment” wasn’t rectified.
E𝗻𝗃𝗈𝘆 𝗋𝗲𝘢𝖽𝗶𝘯𝗴 𝗅е𝗴а𝗅l𝘆 о𝘯 𝘣elnо𝘃e𝘭ѕ.сo𝗆
“Ms. Miller, Ms. Blaire, Ms. Davis,” the Dean said, his voice stern. “We have traced the unauthorized upload of defamatory images to a student account p>
Seraphina sat in the center chair. She was wearing a modest white blouse, her hands clasped in prayer. She looked at the Dean with wide, innocent eyes.
“I had nothing to do with it, Dean,” Seraphina said softly. “I was horrified when I saw those pictures p>
“The upload came from the library,” the Dean said, looking at a report. “Logged in under the student ID of… Jessica Davis p>
Jessica gasped. She jolted in her chair. “What? No! I mean… I was there, but p>
She looked at Seraphina. Panic flared in her eyes. “Sera, you used my laptop! You said your battery was dead p>
The room went silent.
Seraphina turned to Jessica. Her expression shifted into one of deep betrayal. Her lower lip trembled.