She put on Bluetooth earphones and played the audio. First came static, then Sammy’s voice: “Roschelle, why’d you contact me?” After Sammy spoke, silence hung for a while. Moments later, Alarieka heard a woman’s soft chuckle: “Sammy, I can help you.” Alarieka’s eyelashes fluttered slightly. Clearly, this was Roschelle’s voice. Sammy sounded wary: “Why would you help me? How could you help me?” Roschelle murmured: “Mr. Durant, no need for such wariness. I’m a contestant too. I get it. If someone used backdoor dealings to steal my spot, I’d be just as furious as you–maybe more.”
Sammy’s breathing grew ragged, emotions clearly churning. Roschelle continued: “I’m helping because I’m a contestant like you–someone who only wants to compete fairly. I dislike Alaricka’s backdoor dealings as much as you do. Simple as that.” Sammy Durant stayed silent for a long while. Rose spoke again: “Will you just stand by and watch Alarieka pull backdoor dealings to push other contestants out? If this continues, the competition loses all fairness. You’ll face this in your future contests too.” Sammy finally burst out: “How can you help me?” Rose chuckled lightly: “I’ve got someone on security. Contact him then–he’ll let you in. What you do after is up to you. I’m prepping for semifinals now, no time to help.” After a pause, Sammy said heavily: “Alright…” “Alarieka? Alarieka? What’s on your mind? Alarieka?” Alarieka lifted her head from tangled thoughts, noticing contestants seated ahead turning to scrutinize her carefully. She pocketed her phone: “What?” “Where’d you drift off? We called you multiple times!” One woman leaned closer, whispering: “Today… was that real or fake?” Alaricka’s voice cooled: “What do you mean?” The woman grew urgent, louder: “Your prelims weren’t this strong. How’d you improve overnight?”
Alaricka gave a light laugh: “You misjudged. Today wasn’t great–might not even make finals.” The woman frowned skeptically: “Impossible, everyone saw–” “Nothing’s impossible,” Alarieka said flatly, eyes emotionless. “Maybe I improved overnight. Or maybe you misheard.” Exchanging doubtful glances with her companion, the woman muttered: “But everyone heard…” Alaricka shut her eyes: “Enough. Someone’s still performing. Don’t disturb her.” The woman snapped her mouth shut, shooting Alarieka an indignant glare before dragging her friend away. Exhausted after handling semifinals and Sammy’s issue, Alarieka drifted asleep to gentle piano notes. She awoke to increasing rustles around her. Opening her eyes, she saw Rose performing onstage. Alarieka’s gaze remained steady, taking in the woman in white. Rose sat poised at the piano, her gown cascading to the floor. The off-shoulder neckline highlighted elegant collarbones. A soft, warm smile graced her face as fingers danced across keys. Truly breathtaking. Even someone as wary as Alarieka admitted Rose possessed charm enough to captivate Kieran, Patrick, Neil–and countless other accomplished men. Alarieka scanned the audience, spotting the man seated directly before Rose. Kieran’s head tilted upward. His utterly still posture revealed intense focus. Kieran Argent was always busy with work, coming home late and leaving early had become his norm. But now he’d been keeping Roschelle Whitaker company here for three or four days, pushing all work matters aside. Truly living up to his reputation as the devoted man. Alarieka Huston narrowed her eyes slightly. Roschelle Whitaker’s piano fundamentals were indeed solid, but her compositional skills left much to be desired. Nearly every piece Rose created herself was truly unfit for public performance. Otherwise, in her past life, she wouldn’t have needed to steal compositions and claim them as her own. This lifetime, she’d even resorted to attaching her name to works by the deceased Lindsey Weaver. Judging by Rose’s semifinal performance, she’d undoubtedly advance to the finals.