The first headline appeared before sunrise.
Ava Montgomery saw it on her phone at 5:47 a.m., the blue light of the screen piercing the darkness of her dorm room.
WESTBRIDGE UNIVERSITY FACES BIAS ALLEGATIONS AMID STUDENT OUTCRY
Her chest tightened.
She scrolled.
More headlines followed.
SCHOLARSHIP STUDENTS TARGETED IN ELITE COLLEGE SCANDAL
POWER, PRIVILEGE, AND SILENCE: INSIDE WESTBRIDGE
WHO IS AVA MONTGOMERY? THE HEIRESS WHO SPOKE UP
Her name.
Everywhere.
She sat up slowly, heart pounding, the weight of it all pressing down on her at once. The anonymous article from the night before had detonated like a bomb, and now the shockwaves were rippling outward—beyond campus, beyond control.
Her phone buzzed again.
A text from Jaxon.
Jaxon: Are you awake?
She typed back immediately
