Chapter 184

“Lottie Mr. Lane looked at her, brow furrowed, clearly feeling a little hurt.
“Are you not going to listen to me?” Charlotte raised her eyebrow, her smile a little too sharp to be comforting.
Before she finished speaking, Mr. Lane dropped into a chair and grinned up at her, as if to say, Look, I’m being good.
Charlotte couldn’t help but twitch her lips in a half-smile. Such a stubborn old man.
Seeing that Charlotte was willing to stick around, Jim finally let out a breath and turned to Mr. Baker. His tone was cold. “So, what’s this I’m hearing about Charlotte cheating?”
Mr. Baker, who already understood exactly what was going on, quickly distanced himself. He explained the situation as briefly as possible.
“So you decided she cheated just because she got a high score?” Jim’s voice was tight with anger. He turned a frigid stare on Ronald. “Mr. Lee, you’ve taught so many kids. How could you just accuse them without proof?”
Ronald’s face lost all color. He opened his mouth, but his voice barely came out.
“You’re going to apologize to Charlotte and Shirley. Now.” Jim’s tone left no room for argument. Right now, he just needed to keep Mr. Lane calm.
Apologize? Ronald glared at Charlotte, his fists clenching at his sides. He didn’t want to do it, but he knew he couldn’t risk upsetting Mr. Lane or Jim. He dropped his head and mumbled, completely insincere, “I was wrong to accuse you. Sorry. Let’s put this behind us.”
That was supposed to be an apology?
“Oh, I’m not accepting that,” Charlotte said quietly. Her head was lowered, but there was a cool edge to her smile.
Shirley looked at Charlotte, then copied her, voice barely above a whisper. “I don’t accept it either.”
Ronald’s face twisted with frustration. “I apologized. What else do you want?”
Charlotte lifted her head, meeting his eyes with a cold, steady look. “I want you gone.”
The room went silent. Her voice was so confident, it was like she already knew he’d be forced to leave Vanguard High.
“You want me out just because I made a mistake? Do you think you can speak for the board?” Ronald spat out the words, trying to save face.
Even Eleanor frowned at that.
Ronald was one of the most respected teachers at Vanguard, maybe even in all of Cabinda. This
alone wouldn’t be enough to get him: fired.

Charlotte just smiled, a little icy but calm. “If I want you gone, you won’t be staying.”
Before anyone could respond, Mr. Baker’s phone started to ring, breaking the tension.
“Hello?” He answered and listened for a moment, his eyes suddenly flicking over to Ronald, wide with shock.
Ronald felt a chill run down his back as Mr. Baker stared at him. He didn’t know why, but his heart started to race.
“I see,” Mr. Baker finally said,
hanging up. He took a moment before he spoke, sounding like he could hardly believe it. “Mr. Lee, someone has reported you to the Boat
for accepting bribes, running
illegal tutoring off campus, all sorts of violations. They even said you insulted students.”
“The Board is sending investigators. If it’s all true, you’ll lose your license and your job.”
Ronald’s face shifted from pale to almost green. His legs nearly gave out and he stumbled backward voice shaking. “Who reported me? innocent! Someone set me up!”
I’m
In the corner, Charlotte’s lips curled into a slow, satisfied smile. “What a coincidence,” she said, her voice soft but clear. “It was me.”