As Evangeline rolled down her window, she was met with a surprisingly gentle face, so different from the stern, unyielding security guard who used to give her a hard time about leaving campus."I heard you were coming today. Go on in."The electronic gates swung open, and she drove onto the campus grounds.Her timing could have been better; Alex was tied up in a meeting.Once she knew where to find him, and keeping in mind his trouble with walking, Evangeline made her way to him.In the conference room on the thirteenth floor of the main teaching building, all the teachers of Avalon University were gathered, led by Vice Chancellor Tarry Dentwil, to kick off the day's meeting.Evangeline had barely reached the conference room door on the rarely visited thirteenth floor when she noticed the door was carelessly left cracked open. The voices from the meeting inside were crystal clear."Okay, so the main point of today's meeting is to lock in our choice for the Department of Music's
Outside the conference room, Evangeline recognized that unmistakable voice. It was Tarry, famous for his stubbornness back when she was a student. Garold, though, she did not remember at all.However, that was not odd. She was not a music department student, so why would she know their faculty?It looked like Tarry had met his match in Garold, who seemed even more headstrong. It was bound to be quite the showdown.As for whether she would end up teaching at Avalon University, she was not too fussed about it.Evangeline did not have much to do, so she grabbed a stool and sat down, watching the showdown in the conference room like it was some kind of secret tea party.Tarry was not playing favorites this time, not with Garold or anyone else."Okay, everyone, not just Garold—if you've got beef with my decision, today's the day to air it out. Speak your mind, because you won't get another shot at this!"The room was full of uneasy glances. A few people looked like they were about to
Evangeline was on the verge of rising to showcase her prowess to everyone.The conference room was abuzz when Tarry, at his wit's end, bellowed, "Quiet down, everyone!"With the room silenced, he pressed on, "Look, I get it. You're all worried, and that's fair. But I've sent Mr. Alex Gordon to fetch Ms. Evangeline, and she'll be here any minute. To iron out this whole mess, I say we give Ms. Evangeline a shot."If she nails the gig as our music department's new violin teacher, we'll give her a month to prove herself. If she doesn't wow us, then she's just not cut out for it. Our department isn't a playground for amateurs. If she's not up to the task, she won't stick around, will she?"This middle ground seemed like the best way to tackle the issue at hand.Everyone bought into the idea, and the meeting rolled onto the next agenda item.Evangeline, upon hearing the plan, did not rush into the room to make her case. Instead, she settled back onto her stool.A one-month trial? Piec
A sleek black Range Rover, understated but shining with luxury, zipped down the street, while Walter did not hesitate to ring up Evangeline.Lucky for her, the thirteenth floor of the main teaching building was a ghost town, and the conference room was buzzing with chatter, so her phone's sudden ring went unnoticed.She saw Walter's name on the screen, and her brow creased with annoyance.To dodge his relentless nagging and not put off her chat with the school folks, she figured she had better get this headache out of the way.The moment she answered, Evangeline let her irritation show, no holds barred. "Mr. Walter Gordon, in case you missed the memo, we're about to be exes. If it's not life-threatening, can you not mess with my day, please?"She had worked hard to lock away her feelings for Walter. If he kept popping up, how was she supposed to forget him?Walter was having none of it, even more ticked off than she was. "Who says I've got nothing important? Trust me, this is top
Evangeline was not playing Walter's game. "Walter, even if we don't mention our divorce's cooling-off period or even if we were still married, I still have the freedom to do what I want. So back off, okay?" She was beyond frustrated.She could not stand this version of Walter; everything about him just got under her skin. She had once loved him deeply, only to be met with his indifference. She was done pouring her heart out, yet he was all over her business."Do you really think I want to meddle in your life? Alex has decided to work at Avalon University, and you're here today to teach violin, right?"Her eyes darkened, and she snapped, "Walter, you're the worst! Have you been spying on me?"Walter completely ignored Evangeline's fury, his voice a deep rumble of menace. "Evangeline, didn't I tell you to keep your distance from Alex?"Alex starts working at Avalon University, and you're all too eager to show up. What do you think that makes me look like? And what about the Gordon f
At last, the operating room light went off. The medics wheeled Lydia out, straight to the ICU.The next 12 hours would tell if she would make it through without complications. If she did, she would be out of danger.With the prisoner's life in jeopardy, the police on watch bore the weight of responsibility, standing vigil outside her room.After Walter got the information, he wasted no time telling David to strengthen the security around Lydia. There was no way they were going to let her slip away.Evangeline peered through the ICU's observation window at Lydia, who was hooked up to a bunch of tubes and fighting for every breath. A storm of rage swirled in her eyes.Was this karmic retribution?It felt like just yesterday when her own mother, Yessica, was the one in the ICU, a tangle of tubes keeping her alive.Was it time for the bad guys to get a taste of the same medicine?Lydia finally had to live through agony worse than death—she was going to suffer a million times more t
Walter rattled off his words at lightning speed.Evangeline heard him, but her mind just went blank trying to piece them all together.'Whatever,' she thought, 'I'll just have to trust Walter.' In her state, there was no way she could wrestle someone away from his clutches.She pushed down the whirlwind of emotions inside her. Before she could get a word out, Walter's voice, laced with concern, reached her ears."Head back and get some now. I'll stay with Lydia. The second she's safe, you'll be the first to know."Just then, Wade, who had finished all the paperwork, came rushing in. He barely had a moment to feel relieved when he spotted Walter, that jerk, getting too close for comfort."Walter, back off!"Like a gust of wind, Wade was there, knocking Walter's hand from Evangeline's shoulder and pulling her to safety behind him.He had already clashed with the Gordons over Evangeline, and Walter was no exception. No more playing nice.Wade glared at Walter as he laid down the
Holden was still standing there, looking a bit lost, when Jack swooped in with a plate of toast and milk, shoving Yale's tray aside. "Bro, you're out of touch. What kid wants to eat plain oatmeal these days? They're all about this toast and milk combo," boasted Jack with a smirk.At the back, Aemon and James were as quiet as statues, just watching to see which breakfast Evangeline would pick.Evangeline could not believe it. She had just woken up to find the Foster family in a silent showdown. Yale and Jack were in a breakfast battle, while Aemon and James seemed to be taking silent bets. Only Holden, the life of the party, was not picking sides. Instead, he was right there, chattering away in Evangeline's ear.Faced with two totally different breakfast options, Evangeline suddenly propped herself up, ready to make her choice.This day just could not go on like this!Faced with two breakfasts, if Evangeline picked one, she would tick off the uncle who offered the other.If she re