Chapter 5

Vanessa pointed a sharp finger at Lily.

"Apologize to Chloe right now, and we'll leave it at that."

I knew exactly what she was doing. She wanted to brand Lily a plagiarist. Even if we proved her innocence later, the stigma would follow a child for years. Just like the supermarket incident when she was three, the fear of being pointed at would haunt her forever.

I immediately covered Lily's ears and glared at Vanessa.

"You're calling my daughter a thief. Prove it."

Vanessa slapped Lily's winning piece and Chloe's runner-up piece on the table side-by-side.

"Look at the linework and the details! What else could it be but plagiarism?"

A few of the judges nodded in agreement.

"Mrs. Reed is right. The two paintings are remarkably similar."

Mrs. Reed?

Vanessa was actually parading around as Adrian's wife. No wonder she had the judges eating out of the palm of her hand.

"What's going on here?"

I was about to set the record straight when Adrian walked over.

Vanessa was faster. She shoved the paintings under his nose, her voice instantly dropping an octave into a soft, helpless pitch.

"Adrian, I hate to make a scene, but look."

"I'm sure Lily didn't mean to, but we can't encourage this. What if someone is teaching her bad habits?"

She didn't name me, but every word was a poisoned arrow aimed at my parenting.

"Adrian, how could you possibly think I would teach her to do that?!" I demanded.

Adrian just rubbed his temples and looked at me with profound disappointment.

"Claire, drop it. Stop targeting Vanessa."

"Look at how you're raising her."

I stared at him, utterly disbelieving.

Lily stepped forward, her voice frantic. "Dad, I didn't copy! I promise!"

Adrian looked down at her. In front of the entire crowd, he delivered the final blow.

"Apologize to Chloe, Lily. Now."

It was such a simple sentence.

But in that split second, the last flicker of light in Lily's eyes went out completely.

That was your last chance, Adrian. You're out.