"I can't do anything. I'm sorry."
I patted his shoulder without a word and packed my bags that same night.
So this was Nolan's idea of compensation.
First destroy everything I had, then toss me scraps like some kind of charity case.
Disgusting.
The day I moved out of the corrugated tin shack, Nolan's car appeared on the Riverton highway.
He watched me through the window.
There was a hint of exhaustion in his eyes, though his refined composure remained intact.
He waved, and several attendants immediately stepped forward to help with my battered suitcase.
As if we'd never fallen out. As if he was simply here to bring me home.
At the house in Riverton, he poured me a cup of hot tea.
"You always liked this after grading papers. Said it helped you focus."
I took the cup. My fingertips touched the warm ceramic, but my whole body felt cold.
I knew better.
Every gesture of care from Nolan was warmth on the surface, calculation underneath.
I set the cup down and looked him straight in the eye.
"I don't want to talk about the past. If you really want to make things right, stay out of my life."
Nolan frowned. Something dark flickered across his face.
"Corinne, I know you're bitter. But don't be stubborn."
"I'll have the school reinstate your teaching credentials. Stay with me, and no one will dare touch you."
"If Christine bothers you, I'll keep her away. Just rest here for now."
His tone left no room for argument. He clearly intended to keep me under his thumb.
But Christine was never one to stay in her lane.
The day after I moved in, she showed up with a pack of reporters.
"Corinne! You're back and you didn't even tell me?"
"The exam scandal—yes, you had your part in it, but you've already paid the price."
"On behalf of everyone, welcome back to Riverton!"
She was the real culprit, yet here she was playing the gracious peacemaker for the cameras.
Then she handed me a necklace with a jade pendant.
"Just a little gift. If you ever need money or help, come to me anytime!"
Her performance fooled everyone.
That night, the local tabloids were plastered with headlines:
EXAM SCANDAL CONVICT RETURNS TO RIVERTON—PRINCIPAL FOX TAKES HER IN OUT OF LOYALTY!
VICTIMS' FAMILIES OUTRAGED: WHY DOES THE CRIMINAL GET TO LIVE WELL?
Overnight, Nolan became the noble principal who stood by his people. Christine became the generous, virtuous girlfriend.
And me? I was thrown back into the spotlight, drowning in hatred all over again.
Whether by accident or design, Christine leaked the address.
After that, families of the victims gathered outside every day, holding signs and shouting. Some threw rocks through the windows.
Less than a week later, my parents showed up.
It was the first time in ten years they'd come to see me.
When I saw them standing at the door, something small and fragile stirred in my chest.
"Mom, Dad, you—"
Before I could finish, my father spat at my feet.
"Don't call us that! We don't have a criminal for a daughter!"
My mother gripped his arm, her voice like ice.
"Corinne, you killed all those students. You should be rotting in some hole, not clinging to Principal Fox and Christine."
"Christine's too polite to say it herself, so we're saying it for her."
"Get out of here. Or we'll have someone drag you out."
