Chapter 2 - The House of Cards
Chaos erupted. It didn't start as a wave; it was an explosion.
Parents were shouting. Reporters who had been covering the commencement for local news were screaming into their cell phones, desperately calling their news desks. The flashes that were meant for smiling graduates were now strobing violently as they captured Arthur Sterling physically wrestling with campus security.
"It's a deepfake!" my mother shrieked, clawing at the arm of an officer. "She's insane! Arrest her!"
Chancellor Montgomery stood entirely still on the stage beside me. He looked from the frantic scene below to the calm expression on my face. "Clara..." he breathed, his face pale. "The science wing... that funding was meant for student scholarships."
"I know, Dr. Montgomery," I replied softly. "There are gigabytes of files on that drive. Bank transfers, forged signatures, and Julian's purchased term papers. It's all there."
Sirens wailed in the distance, growing louder by the second. Real police were coming. Not just campus security, but the city department.
May you like
Julian, realizing the gravity of the situation, did what he always did—he abandoned ship. He turned on his heel and tried to sprint through the crowd. He didn't make it ten feet. A group of football players, furious that their scholarships had been slashed the previous year due to "budget cuts," formed a wall. They crossed their massive arms, blocking his escape.
For the first time in twenty-one years, I looked at my family and felt absolutely nothing. No fear. No longing for their approval. Just the cold, hard satisfaction of justice.
