Chapter 601

Stella had barely stepped onto the balance beam when Janie rushed up from behind and slammed right into her. Stella wobbled, arms flailing, and just managed to grab the iron chain before she tumbled into the sand pit below.
Andrew’s voice echoed across the course, full of outrage. “Seriously? That’s insane. It’s just a game.”
“Isn’t that a foul?” someone else called out.
“As long as she doesn’t use her hands, it’s fair,” another replied.
The beam wasn’t exactly towering, but it was high enough that a fall—especially with that kind of push-would leave a mark. Over the next few obstacles, Stella got shoved again and again, hitting the ground more than once. Still, every time she fell, she just picked herself up, brushed off the dirt, and kept going.
“Who does Team 4 think they are?” someone muttered nearby, shaking their head. “That’s way over the line.”
Shirley’s face twisted with worry. “Maybe Stella should just sit this one out. This isn’t a race, it’s a mugging.”
Charlotte didn’t say a word. She just watched from a distance, her expression growing colder by the second.
Janie finished first, clocking in at two minutes and thirty seconds. That gave Team 4 the top women’s score and pushed Janie into the final round.
Stella finally stumbled across the finish with a time of three minutes, twenty seconds. Not a great result. Actually, it was the slowest on her team.
As soon as it was over, Shirley and Andrew hurried to her side, checking her over for injuries.
“I’m okay, really,” Stella said, dusting off her hands. Her cheeks were flushed and, somehow, she looked genuinely happy. “Charlotte, I did it. I finished.”
For a while there, she hadn’t thought she could.
“You did great.” Charlotte handed her a bottle of water, her lips curling into a gentle smile.
“The last group is up Andrew glanced at Charlotte, a little uncertain. “Charlotte, are you going to run?”
Team 1’s best time among the girls was three and a half minutes. Team 4’s best was two and a half. Yesterday, Charlotte had come dead last in the training drifts Forget making it to the finals-no one even knew if she could beat her own team’s time.
“Maybe you should just skip this one,” Andrew suggested quietly. If Charlotte got hurt, Anthony would be worried sick.
Everyone else was thinking the same thing as they eyed her doubtfully. Charlotte was the picture of someone pampered-pale skin, bright eyes, perfect features. The obstacle course was way tougher than a simple run.
Cotton checked his team’s scores,
then walked over to Charlotte. The second he met her icy gaze, his heart skipped a beat. There was something about her features. that reminded him of Donald No wonder he always felt a weird rush of nerves around her. It had to be the connection.
“Even if you end up last, my team never gives up at the starting line.” Cotton
struggled to keep his voice steady, looking away to hide his own surprise. “So even
if you’re scared, just make it to the end.”
Charlotte took a swig from her water
bottle, tossed it to Andrew, and
rolled up her sleeves. Then she glanced at the girls on Team 4, who were decking from the sidelines Her voice was cool and even
“What’s their best time?”
Andrew blinked, thrown off by her sudden confidence. “Two and a half minutes.”
That was a whole minute faster than their own team’s best.
Janie had only gotten into The Cabinda University because of her athletic skills. If it
were based on grades, she wouldn’t have stood a chance.
“That’s it?” Charlotte’s lips curled into a cold smile. “That’s no problem.”
Everyone around her stared in shock.
No problem? Did she really think she could beat Team 4?
Was she being serious right now?
Most of the girls in the whole training camp couldn’t even break two and a half minutes. Charlotte-Number 91—was coming off as ridiculously confident.