Chapter 582

"What are you implying? Are you confessing you used connections to get in?"

Cassandra Brown's eyes widened in shock. The rumor she'd casually spread turned out to be true after all.

"You actually pressured Mr. Herty into accepting you as his student!" Her voice trembled with indignation. "Mr. Herty is this orchestra's pride, and you're tarnishing his reputation!"

Evelyn Carter couldn't be bothered to argue with someone like Cassandra. These were the types who couldn't achieve what they wanted and resorted to slandering others out of spite.

Truthfully, their jealousy stemmed from one simple fact—she was Leonard Herty's only protégé.

"Let me make something clear," Evelyn said icily, her fingers tightening around her cello case. "This marks the second time you've provoked me. Don't test my patience."

Her gaze swept over Cassandra with undisguised disdain. Initially, Evelyn hadn't cared much about the internal selection competition. But suddenly, the thought of making Cassandra taste bitter defeat became irresistibly appealing. As the principal cellist, losing to a newcomer like Evelyn would be utterly humiliating.

"What better way to silence her than by crushing her in the competition?" The thought brought a dangerous glint to Evelyn's eyes.

"Care to make it interesting?" Evelyn's lips curled into a challenging smile. "Whoever wins the selection. If you lose, you'll publicly apologize to me before the entire orchestra."

Cassandra scoffed, tossing her hair over her shoulder. "You? Honestly believe you can outperform me?"

She'd heard Evelyn play during orchestra rehearsals shortly after she joined. The amateurish technique, the rookie mistakes that took years to unlearn—it was painfully obvious Evelyn was merely a hobbyist.

The audacity of this novice challenging her, a professional who'd been playing since childhood, was laughable.

Confidence oozed from Cassandra's smirk. "Fine. But when you lose, you'll admit before everyone that you used connections to join and coerced Mr. Herty into teaching you. Then you'll resign from the orchestra permanently. Agreed?"

Evelyn hesitated, taken aback by the severity of the terms.

Cassandra pressed her advantage, voice dripping with mockery. "What's wrong? Suddenly having second thoughts?"

"No," Evelyn replied evenly, meeting her gaze. "I simply don't know how to confess to something that never happened."

"Spare me the act," Cassandra sneered. "No one ever admits they used connections."

As tensions escalated, Evelyn's phone vibrated insistently in her pocket.

Alexander Whitmore's name flashed on the screen.

Stepping aside, Evelyn answered in a hushed tone. "Yes?"

"That internal selection competition your orchestra's hosting in two weeks—I just received an invitation."

Evelyn paused, recalling Leonard mentioning external participants would be invited to vote. The inclusion of outsiders from prominent families helped maintain voting impartiality by preventing internal factions from forming.

"Yes, that's correct."

"Are you competing?" Alexander's voice carried subtle curiosity.

"I am," Evelyn confirmed softly.

Alexander's tone warmed with amusement. "It's been years since I last heard you play. This should be... interesting."

His lighthearted teasing coaxed a small smile from Evelyn. "I've improved tremendously. Prepare to be impressed."

"There's something else you should know."

"What is it?"

"Mr. White is dead."

The words struck Evelyn like a physical blow.

It took her a moment to place the name, though it rang faint bells in her memory.

"That man who nearly assaulted Isabella at Eclipse Lounge last time—he was detained for over two weeks and just released yesterday. This morning, they found his body in his own bar." Alexander's words hung heavily between them.

Evelyn's breath caught. "That's... unexpected. What happened?"

"The official report lists it as suicide."

The silence that followed was deafening.