Juniper must be so jealous!


    At that thought, the tension Ynda had been holding onto for so long finally melted away.


    Just as she was reveling in her triumph, her phone rang.


    "Hello?" Ynda said, quicklyposing herself and forcing a sweet tone into her voice when she saw it was her broadcasting program''s counselor.


    "Come to my office. There''s something I need to talk to you about," the counselor''s voice was stern. "It''s important, and we need it for next Monday. Come over right now."


    Next Monday? Isn''t that the freshman opening ceremony? Could it be? Did they really choose her to be the student representative and give the speech?


    "Of course. I''m on my way," Ynda said, her heart leaping with joy. She hung up and practically jogged to the office.


    As she neared the corner, she overheard her counselor talking to another professor in the office.


    "Shanley ising in person?" a female professor eximed. "He''s at the absolute top of the pyramid. Even major magazines and TV stations can''t get an interview with him."


    "That''s right," the counselor nodded slightly. "This year''s freshman representative is certainly in for a treat."


    "This speech is very well-written. When are you giving it to her?"


    "In a little while," the counselor replied.


    Shanley? Ynda froze, recalling a fleeting glimpse she''d caught of him from a distance at the Schwartz family matriarch Hannah''s birthday banquet long ago. His posture, his profile, his aura—he put most of the popr male celebrities to shame. She thought he might have a girlfriend... but that didn''t matter. As long as he wasn''t married, everyone had the right to pursue their own happiness.


    Perhaps if she performed well at the ceremony, she could capture his attention. Then, she''d climb the socialdder and be his wife, leaving Juniper so far behind she couldn''t catch up even on horseback.


    Just the thought of it made her future seem incredibly bright.


    "Knock, knock."


    Ynda snapped back to reality and eagerly knocked on the door, feigning a demure tone. "Ma''am, you were looking for me?"


    "Yes." The smile on the counselor''s face vanished the moment she saw Ynda, her tone turning serious. "Come in, I have something for you to look at."


    "Okay." Ynda walked cheerfully to the desk, her steps light, and nced down. She saw a beautifully written speech lying there.


    "Take a look at this," the counselor said, but instead of handing her the speech, she opened a drawer and pulled out a different file.


    Ynda''s smile instantly dropped as she read the cover, her eyes widening.


    "Report on the Investigation into the Farrell Case"? What was going on? Wasn''t the counselor supposed to give her the speech?


    "Ma''am, this is..." Ynda looked up, her voice filled with disbelief.


    "During his interrogation, Farrell mentioned a few things concerning you..." the counselor said, ncing at Ynda He ims the


    you and


    your mother instructed him to harass Juniper. The police need to verify this."


    "Of course not!" Ynda lied without blinking, immediately denying it. She wanted nothing to do with a man on death row.


    "He''s just a distant rtive of my mother''s who was always asking for money. When she refused, he must have gotten angry and decided to nder us."


    Although they had orchestrated it, Farrell had no proof.


    "Really?" the counselor asked, feeling her sincerity was a little too forced.


    "Of course," Ynda replied obediently. "I would never do anything illegal or hical."


    "I see." The counselor gave Ynda a long, hard look, a strange feeling lingering. "You can go now."


    After the perfunctory questions, she


    waved Yotanda away and picked up


    the speech, beginning to edit it.


    seriously. This was far more important than Ynda''s little


    drama.


    Go? Ynda frowned. Had the counselor forgotten to give her the speech?