Chapter 4

The headline alone was explosive enough, and combined with the Cyrus family's reputation in Hampson City, the stream's viewer count shot up exponentially.

Comments flooded the screen like a waterfall.

[Holy crap! Brothers going at each other like this? This is insane!]

[These parents are way too biased. They won't even check the facts, and they're already talking about locking him up in an asylum?]

[This guy's got guts, standing there with a knife like that. So cool.]

[The steamer seems shady though. Did he actually steal the spot?]

When Rick saw that I'd gone live, he lunged forward, desperate to grab the phone out of my hand.

"Turn it off! Turn it off right now! You have no shame, but we still have a reputation to protect!"

I sidestepped him smoothly, holding the phone up, and kept talking to the camera.

"Mr. Stark, since you're so convinced I stole Bill's spot, why don't you say your 'ironclad proof' one more time? In front of a few hundred thousand people, this time."

Put on the spot, Shane had nowhere to go. Sweat beaded on his forehead as the viewer count kept climbing in front of the camera.

But he'd probably already decided I was a washed-up dropout who could never have gotten into a real university. So he steeled himself and shouted, bluffing through the fear.

"An honest man has nothing to fear! Nick Cyrus dropped out of school for a year and never even sat for the National Exam. The whole school knows that for a fact!

"And Bill topped the entire grade. Does that even need proof? That photo of you sneaking around outside Braxton University's gates is the evidence right there!

"You must have used some hacker to tamper with the Education Department's records!"

I gave a cold smile at the camera. "Everyone hear that? A teacher at a top prep school actually believes a hacker can just waltz in and rewrite the national college admissions system.

"That kind of legal illiteracy is genuinely impressive."

Sensing the tide turning against him, Bill kept up his gracious act, sighing heavily at the camera.

"Don't blame my brother, everyone. He probably just acted on impulse. I'm not angry at him. As long as he gives the acceptance letter back and reverses whatever he changed in the system, I'll let this whole thing go."

"Give it back?" I let out a short laugh, like I'd just heard the joke of the century.

"Bill, if you're so sure that letter is yours, then there's just one small requirement. Your score actually has to clear Braxton's cutoff."

In front of a few hundred thousand live viewers, I dialed the police directly, then called the State Department of Education's oversight hotline.

"Hello, I'd like to file a report under my own name. The Cyrus family of Hampson City is suspected of unlawful confinement.

"Also, someone here is suspected of exam fraud and false accusation. I'm requesting that the Department of Education step in immediately to verify the exam scores and admission records."