The woman''s slender, delicate fingers danced across the strings of the
instrument.
A beautiful melody floated through the night, gentle and lingering.
For a moment, Donna simply listened, lost in the music-until suddenly, it hit her. "Wait, is this... Grandpa''s Song?"
Ms. Kensington could y this piece too!
Unable to contain her excitement, Donna pulled out her phone and began recording the scene.
Briony hadn''t touched a lute in years. At first, her fingers fumbled, the notes a bit uncertain. But soon enough, she found her rhythm, her confidence returning with every chord.
The music drifted beyond the garden, drawing in members of the production crew. The director nced at his assistant.
The assistant immediately produced a stabilizer and handed it over.
The director switched on the camera, capturing the moment with smooth, steady movements.
Ferdinand stood to the side, his own phone quietly recording.
When the final note faded, the entire group fell silent.
Then, with a rush, apuse broke out.
Briony looked up, surprised to see that-apart from Rosita, Bill, and Daisy- everyone else had returned to listen.
She hugged the lute close, gave a graceful bow, and handed it back to Donna. "Thank you."
Donna''s eyes sparkled. "Ms. Kensington, you were incredible! Have you ever studied folk music before?"
Briony smiled. "Yes, actually. My grandfather hired a folk music teacher for me. I started when I was eight, but I didn''t keep up with it after I turned fifteen."
The directorughed. "With technique like that, anyone could see you''ve got real training. I just recorded your performance-if you don''t mind, I''d love to use it in the opening for this episode."
Briony weighed her options for a moment, then nodded. "I don''t mind at all."
"Wonderful!" The director grinned. "We''ll have the editors cut it in. Before it airs, I''ll send it to you for approval."
Briony nodded again, her smile warm. "Thank you, Director."
Back in the guest room, Rosita quietly sent Daisy out.
Now, only Rosita and Bill remained.
Bill''s expression was stern as he looked at her. "You were faking it earlier, weren''t you?"
Rosita''s heart skipped a beat, but she knew there was no point pretending now. There was no way she could keep filming the show like this.
She''d dodged a bullet tonight by pretending to faint—but what about tomorrow?
They were supposed to film for
three days and two nights. If Briony
kept her to perform, there
was no way she could keep
avoiding
it.
After a long pause, Rosita finally met Bill''s eyes. She decided toe clean.
"Yes. I was pretending."
Bill didn''t look surprised. He just let out a heavy sigh. "Why put yourself through this?"
"Because I..." Rosita hesitated, her voice barely above a whisper. "I don''t know how to y folk music. I don''t know how topose at all."
"What?" Bill frowned. "Then why did you say those songs were yours?"
"I bought them. The copyrights are in my name!"
Bill''s gaze sharpened. "Are you sure about that?"
"Yes!" Rosita forced herself to sound confident.
She could never let Bill know the real truth-that she''d stolen Briony''s work.
Buying a song was one thing. Stealing was something else entirely.
Right now she was thepany''s top star, basking in the spotlight. But if Bill ever found out she was building her reputation on stolen music, he''d have something to hold over her forever.
Managers always sided with thepany in the end.
So long as she was profitable, they''d support her. But a star''s shelf life was short. Sooner orter, thepany would find someone new to promote. Mary was already waiting in the wings-Rosita@ouldn''t afford to drop her guard for even a
second.
If Bill or thepany ever got leverage over her, she''d be at their mercy once her poprity started to fade.
Tears welled in Rosita''s eyes as she looked at Bill. "Bill, I have my reasons.
Please can you keep this secret for me?"