Chapter 491

Lucinda was such a horrible person. Compared to Lydia… No, she didn’t even deserve to be mentioned along with Lydia.
Connor shot a chilly look at Caspian. “Still upset? Then next time, make sure she doesn’t make bets with people.” The way Connor said it, you’d think Lucinda was Caspian’s responsibility.
Caspian recognized Chris and Connor, but he was completely lost. Weren’t Lucinda and Connor supposed to be engaged? Why wasn’t Connor standing up for her? Had he already moved on?
Before Caspian could make sense of it, Lucinda bit her lip and clenched the cup so tightly her knuckles turned white. She knelt in front of Lydia, looking like she was about to march to her execution. For her reputation, she had to do this. If she didn’t, her championship title would be meaningless.
“Lucinda!” Caspian’s voice was thick with hurt as he glared at Connor and the others. He just couldn’t understand why Connor was treating Lucinda like this.
“Please have some tea.” Lucinda’s arms and legs felt like they belonged to someone else. The humiliation burned inside her, but she kept it bottled up. Lydia only smiled a little as she took the cup. “Thank you.”
In that moment, Lucinda felt like her whole world had collapsed. She had never imagined that winning the championship could feel so awful. She didn’t even remember how she left the hall. She drifted out, lost in a haze. Kylie and Cameron called her name, but she didn’t answer. She just kept walking. Grace hurried after her, eyes full of worry, and Caspian trailed along too. They followed her all the way back to the hotel. Lucinda didn’t say a word, almost like she’d shut herself off from the world.
“Lucinda, I’m sorry. I really let you down today. I should have protected you.” Caspian watched her, his face full of guilt and frustration.
Lucinda still didn’t respond. Grace finally stepped in. “Mr. Hansen, let me take Lucinda up to her room to rest.”
Caspian handed his number to Grace. “She’s really upset. If you need anything, just call me. I’m staying here too. I’ll come right away.”
Grace nodded. “Thank you, Mr. Hansen.” She was a little surprised at how much Caspian cared—he’d even stood up to Lydia in front of everyone. Not many people would do that.
Back in the hotel room, Lucinda just stared at the floor, looking completely lost. Grace sat beside her and spoke softly, “Lucinda, if you feel this bad, just let yourself cry. You’ll feel better.”
When she heard that, Lucinda broke down and started to sob. The pain inside her finally spilled over. She felt like a total failure. No matter how hard she worked, Lydia always seemed to crush her. She just didn’t get it. Why did things have to be this way2 Lydia was just some girl from the countryside-how could she be so talented?
“Grace, why? Why can’t I be as good as Lydia?”
Grace’s heart broke a little. She wrapped an arm around Lucinda and said quickly Don’t talk like that. Tome, youre the best. Lydials. nothing compared to you. She just got fucky. You’re in a whole different league.”
“But she’s Melody Mastro. She’s my mentor’s mentor. She even helped me fix the music I won with. How am I supposed to compete with her?” Lucinda’s spirit was completely crushed.
Grace hadn’t realized Lydia’s words would hurt Lucinda so deeply. She frowned and said, “Lydia did this on purpose. She hid the fact that she’s Melody Mastro, just to set us up. kucinda, she’s so sneaky. If you’d
known who she really was, you never would’ve competed with her today, right?”