Chapter 5

Right before the graduation ceremony began, I handed over my complete timeline and all the raw, unedited evidence to my advisor and the Academic Integrity Committee.

My degree conferral was temporarily suspended pending the results.

I took my seat in the audience.

Vivian was sitting in the very first row. Riding on the back of my stolen project, she had been named the Valedictorian.

Grant sat beside her, invited back to give a speech as the alumni representative. He kept turning his head, scanning the crowd. When he finally spotted me, he tried to get up, but Vivian held him back.

I didn't even give him a second glance.

The ceremony began.

The university president gave his address, the dean spoke, and then the degree conferral commenced.

Two hours passed. The final student walked off the stage.

I remained in my seat.

"This officially concludes our degree conferral ceremony—" the president announced.

Suddenly, a familiar voice echoed through the microphone.

"Hold on. We are not finished. There is still one student who has not received her degree."

Adrian and Professor Reed, whom I was supposed to meet at Chicago O'Hare International Airport tomorrow, had somehow appeared right in the middle of the graduation ceremony.

The auditorium instantly erupted into a frenzy.

Professor Reed was a member of the National Academy of Sciences, an internationally renowned AI scholar, and the President Emeritus of Easton University. His presence was a massive honor.

And Adrian's appearance caused just as much of a stir. If Grant was a famous young professor, Adrian was the brightest star next to Professor Reed—destined to completely eclipse him one day.

The university president practically sprinted over, smiling so hard his wrinkles bunched together. "Professor Reed! It's usually impossible to get a meeting with you. What brings you here today?"

Professor Reed smiled warmly. "I came to attend my student's graduation. But I sat through the whole thing, and I never heard her name called to the stage."

The president froze. "Which student? Hasn't everyone already been up?"

At that moment, Adrian spotted me in the audience and smiled.

"Mara, come here."

Stunned, I nodded and walked toward them.

I thought I was fighting this battle alone today. But Adrian and Professor Reed had flown all the way here to back me up.

Professor Reed looked at me with fatherly affection. "I liked this girl the moment I saw her work. You haven't received your Master's hood yet, have you?"

I shook my head.

The president caught on quickly and turned to the Dean of Academic Integrity. "Go get Mara's eligibility ruling, right now."

The Dean looked incredibly uncomfortable. "This student was previously accused of plagiarizing someone else's work. The accuser is Professor Mercer's daughter. The committee was preparing to revoke her degree."

Immediately, my advisor grabbed a microphone and spoke from the stage.

"Mr. President, the person who plagiarized was not Mara. It was Vivian Mercer."

The crowd gasped. The entire auditorium descended into chaos.