Haynes fell silent for a few seconds before finally speaking. "Maybe," he said, "you just slipped and fell by ident."


    Ste hadn''t intended to waste more words on him, but right now, she was oddly curious-just how far would Haynes go, how absurd a story could he spin, just to defend Rachel?


    "So what are you saying?" Ste asked. "That you can''t even tell whether I was pushed or whether I fell on my own?"


    Haynes met her gaze, his voice low and steady. "Maybe, when you slipped, Rachel tried to grab you and pull you up, but you mistook her intention. In a moment of panic, it''s not impossible to get things confused."


    At that moment, Ste almost had to admire Haynes''s imagination. There was truly nothing he wouldn''t invent if it meant clearing Rachel''s name.


    While they argued, Jasper had already pulled Rachel from the water. She hadn''t been under long, so she was still conscious, but the moment she was back on solid ground, her whole body trembled as she broke into sobs.


    "Haynie,” Rachel cried, clutching at him, "Ms. Cameron kicked me into theke right in front of you all. Does she want me dead that badly?"


    Jasper, wiping water from his face, scowled. "I swear, I''m going to see that murderer behind bars by the end of today!"


    Ste stood her ground, utterly calm, showing not a trace of panic.


    Jasper sneered at herposure. "Go ahead, act all calm now. When you''re sitting in a police cell, let''s see if you can still keep up that act."


    Rachel turned tearfully to Haynes. "Haynie, Ste''s humiliated me time and again. For your sake-and for Keen''s ''ve always let it go. But this time she tried to kill me! You saw what happened with your own eyes. I won''t back down anymore, not after this!"


    Haynes watched Rachel, her face streaked with tears, and his lips parted slightly. "Rachel, your concert is just around the corner. You can''t afford to get caught up in a scandal right now. If word gets out that you and yourposer are at odds, it''ll ruín everything."


    Rachel stared at him in disbelief. "Haynie, are you saying I''m the one starting drama here?"


    A shadow flickered in Haynes''s eyes. "I''ll make her...apologize to you."


    Before Racher could respond, Jasper exploded. "Apologize? She pushed Rachel into the water-she tried toz kill her! And you think a simple apology is going to fix this? Did you forget she pped me just now? My face still burns from it!"


    Ste finally spoke, her voice steady. "Don''t worry, I have no intention of apologizing to any of you. If you think this is unfair, call the police. Please."


    She pulled out her phone, holding it up. "By the way, I recorded my entire conversation with Ms. Pearce earlier. So we''ll see who''s really guilty of attempted murder."


    Rachel''s face visibly stiffened, her already paleplexion turning even whiter. "What...what are you talking about?"


    Ste nced around at the others. "If I''m not mistaken, this area doesn''t have any security cameras, or maybe they''re conveniently ''broken'' again, so there''s no footage of what happened. But that''s alright. I have proof."


    She smiled at Rachel, cool andposed. "Meeting with Ms. Pearce? I''d have to be a fool not toe prepared. Did you honestly think I''d agree to meet you alone without taking precautions?"