NovelBookChapter 387
As for Rachel's "terminal illness," Deanna had already heard the whole story from Jasper not long ago.
Apparently, there was now a cure; as long as Rachel followed the doctor's orders, she'd make a full recovery.
Deanna, however, was far from convinced.
This so-called terminal illness of Rachel's? Most likely just an excuse to cozy up to Haynes.
She was a woman herself-did Rachel really think she couldn't see through another woman's little tricks?
If this had been before, Deanna would have exposed the lie to Haynes in a heartbeat. But now, she chose to
keep quiet.
Because she'd cto realize that Haynes was actually considering getting back together with Stella-he even
wanted Stella to be Keen's mother again.
The thought made Deanna break out in a cold sweat.
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She and Stella had already burned their bridges. If Stella cback, wouldn't that make Deanna look like a fool?
She'd much rather see Rachel in the family than let Stella walk through that door again.
So, Deanna lounged back in her chair, watching the unfold before her like a show.
Stella and Marvin were putting on a decent performance, but Deanna figured it was all just memorization-rote
learning, nothing more.
She could only imagine how many tutors Stella must have begged for help these past few days, how late she'd
stayed up every night just to prepare for this competition.
Deanna was certain: Stella didn't really know French.
Just then, Haynes returned, having finished up a call with his assistant.
His work schedule was always packed, so it was a rare occasion for him to make tto watch Keen's
performance today. Even so, his phone hadn't stopped ringing all afternoon.
But when Keen was on stage with Rachel, Haynes had switched off his phone, choosing to focus on their act.
Given the duo's high score, he wasn't surprised. If anyone knew Rachel's talent, it was him. Keen had never
neglected his studies either. Their victory seemed practically inevitable.
The last call had dragged on a bit, so by the tHaynes cback, the performance onstage had already
ended.
He glanced at the two people under the spotlight-Stella and Marvin his dark eyes narrowing.
Turning to Callie, he asked, "What happened? Did they forget their lines?" Callie's mouth hung open, her eyes
fixed on Stella with a newfound curiosity.
At her brother's question, she finally turned his way. "Forget their lines? Why would you think that?"
Haynes looked around at the buzz of the crowd. "What, did they mess up the performance?"
If it wasn't forgotten lines, it must have been a disaster on stage. In Haynes's mind, Stella apparently didn't have
a single redeeming quality.
Callie shook her head. "No, actually, they were amazing. Practically flawless. A bunch of judges even gave them
perfect scores. But-one judge suspected them of cheating."
She quickly filled Haynes in on what had happened.
Jasper, overhearing, couldn't help but joke, "Haynes, I'll give Stella this-she really put in the hours. She almost
made it believable. She must have been desperate to impress you and Keen. Still, fake is fake. No matter how
much you polish up a stone, it'll never turn into a pearl. The judge saw right through her, didn't he?"
But before he could finish gloating, Stella suddenly spoke up-in a long, fluent stream of French.
The entire room froze.
Rachel's mocking smile faltered before it could fully form.
Stella said, “Mr. Franco, using your academic credentials to belittle others is incredibly rude. Having someone like
you-a judge who openly mocks housewives and looks down on others' education-makesseriously question
the fairness of this panel. And as a language judge, shouldn't your foreign language skills be above the rest?"
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