The Mocked Miss’s Hidden Crowns novel Chapter 1598

"I'll show you."

Mr. Lane took a seat, moving slowly so Shirley could see every step. "Got it?"

"Yeah, I do," Shirley said. She was sharp and picked things up fast, already storing the details in her mind. "Mr. Lane, there are a few more spots."

"Show me where," he replied.

The two of them chatted quietly, in no rush at all, acting like the competition wasn't even a pressure at the back of their minds.

Meanwhile, neither of them noticed someone slip past the doorway.

Karan headed back to the break room. She pulled out her phone and tapped on the video she'd just recorded.

On screen, Mr. Lane—one of the competition judges—was demonstrating the experiment for Shirley. Their backs were to the camera, so you couldn't see if this was exactly the same thing as the contest... but it didn't take a genius to figure it out.

With the competition right around the corner and not a spare second to lose, what else would they be working on? Mr. Lane was clearly leaking the questions to Shirley, helping her snag that exchange student spot.

Not only that, but rumor had it the contest questions had been put together by Dr. Cole. Dr. Cole, who just happened to be friends with Shirley. Of course she would help too.

Mr. Lane. Dr. Cole. It was rigged from the start.

Karan couldn’t hold back the surge of anger crowding her chest. Her fingers closed into fists, so tight her knuckles turned white.

No way. She’d worked for years for this exchange program. She refused to just let it slip away.

Her nerves stretched thin, Karan stared at her phone with eyes that burned red and cold. If this video got out, Mr. Lane and Dr. Cole’s reputations would be finished. They brought this on themselves, playing favorites.

Served them right.

...

There were plenty of contestants from across the country, but all the attention was on two students from The Cabinda University.

The first round was a written test, answers given on the spot. The professor from Apex University handed out the questions in person. Everyone had twenty minutes to tackle five brutal problems.

As soon as the starting bell rang, the room went still.

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