Chapter 4

A month later, on a Friday afternoon, the parent group chats exploded.

I was in the administration office verifying the schedule for the next week when my phone started vibrating violently.

Seconds later, someone dropped a link into the school's public forum.

The headline made my eyes burn.

[Eighteen-Year-Old Prep School Student Breaks Down: 'I'm Too Terrified to Go to Class After What My Math Teacher Did to Me']

The thumbnail of the video showed Chloe in her school uniform, her eyes swollen like plums, sobbing into the camera.

"I hesitated for so long... I didn't know if I should speak up," she whimpered.

"He's a highly respected teacher, and I'm just a student. That night, after everyone left, he kept me behind..."

She didn't finish the sentence.

But the silence she left was more damaging than any direct accusation.

The comment section was already in a state of absolute fury.

[Another monster hiding behind a teaching license.]

[The school needs to fire him immediately!]

[It takes so much courage for a young girl to stand up like this.]

[Doesn't this guy have a daughter of his own? Does she know what a creep her father is?]

My hands shook so violently I almost dropped my phone.

The ghost of the internet mob from my past life was clawing its way back to me.

A second later, Richard called.

His voice was steady, but noticeably hoarse. "Sophia, don't look at the internet."

I could hear a massive commotion on his end of the line.

People were shouting in the hallway:

"Mr. Richard, did you really do it?"

"Is the school calling the police?"

"Are Chloe's medical reports real?"

I closed my eyes, forcing myself to breathe. "Where are you right now?"

"The third-floor conference room. Mr. Harrison called me in to explain."

"Don't say a word. Wait for me."

I slammed the phone down and ran out of the office.

As I passed the middle school building, I saw my daughter, Hailey, sitting in the corner of her counselor's office.

She was clutching her backpack, her eyes bloodshot from crying.

On the desk in front of her lay a crumpled piece of paper.

Scrawled on it in black marker were the words: Creep’s Daughter.

My brain went entirely numb.

In my past life, this was the exact moment Hailey stopped going to school.

She had locked herself in her room, asking me over and over again, "Mom, Dad isn't a bad guy, right? Tell me he didn't do it."

I walked in and knelt in front of her. "Hailey."

The moment she saw me, she burst into tears.

"Mom, everyone is saying Dad did something horrible..."

I pulled her into a tight embrace.

"Your father did nothing wrong."

"And this time, I am going to make sure everyone shuts their mouths."

Her tiny body trembled in my arms.

I handed her over to a colleague I trusted completely, then turned and stormed upstairs.

The hallway outside the conference room was packed with people.

Parents, teachers, board members, and a few strangers holding up smartphones to film.

One woman in a beige blazer and heavy makeup had her phone camera pointed directly at the closed door.

I recognized her instantly.

Amber, a local influencer who specialized in "social justice" content. She was also Chloe’s cousin.

In my past life, she was the mastermind who packaged Chloe as the ultimate victim.

She had edited out all the logical loopholes in Chloe's story, leaving only tears and dramatic silences.

She had gained millions of followers off those viral videos.

Later, she even launched a masterclass on her TikTok, teaching young girls "how to protect themselves from predators," making a fortune in the process.

As I approached, Amber was speaking directly into her livestream.

"We are currently live outside the administration building at prep school."

"The teacher in question is inside, but the school administration has been completely silent. We have to ask: is academic prestige being used as a shield to protect a predator?"

The surrounding parents started chanting in agreement.

"Make him come out!"

"Stop hiding him!"

"Suspend him now!"

I pushed the heavy double doors open. Inside the conference room, Richard sat on one side, his face completely pale.

Mr. Harrison stood at the head of the table, sweating profusely.

Chloe was curled up in a corner, a blanket draped over her shoulders, her body shaking as she sobbed.

Next to her lay a medical report.

Soft tissue contusion.

I looked at those words and wanted to laugh. They didn't even bother to change their script from my past life.

Mr. Harrison looked at me like I was a ticking time bomb.

"Sophia, thank god you're here."

"The situation is completely out of hand. You need to convince Richard."

I asked coldly, "Convince him to do what?"

He lowered his voice, leaning in.

"Just have him issue a temporary apology and step down for a few days."

"The school will offer Chloe some financial compensation to quiet down the media. We need to stop this from escalating."

I stared at him.

"Richard did absolutely nothing. Why on earth should he apologize?"

Mr. Harrison’s face turned red. "This is not the time to be stubborn, Sophia!"

Chloe suddenly let out a loud, dramatic wail.

"Sophia... do you think I'm lying?"

She lifted her face, tears streaming down her cheeks.

"I know you're his wife. Of course you don't believe me."

"But what girl would ever make up something like this? Why would I put myself through this nightmare?"

Amber’s camera immediately shoved past the doorway, aiming straight at my face.

"Sophia, as a woman, why is your first instinct to protect your husband instead of supporting a vulnerable student?"

I looked straight into the camera lens.

In my past life, this exact question had nailed me to a cross.

The moment I tried to defend my husband, the internet branded me as an "enabler" and an "accomplice."

This time, I wasn't going to let them control the narrative.

I pulled out my phone, unlocked it, and dialed 911 right in front of everyone.

"Yes, I’d like to report a crime."

"We have an active case of extortion, defamation, and malicious slander taking place right now."

The entire conference room went dead silent.

Chloe’s crying abruptly stopped. Amber’s smug smile froze on her face.