Kyrie Ironhowl's Arc

Chapter 6 of 13

Kyrie pulled out her phone and showed him the photographs. The sponsorship letter. The waived verification. The payment receipt that proved someone had paid triple the entry fee to skip the rules everyone else followed. He studied each image without speaking, jaw tight. Then he pulled an old log book from a drawer behind the desk, flipped through yellowed pages, and set it down between them. One entry was circled in faded red ink. "Three years ago," he said. "Different house, same arrangement. We caught it after the competition ended. Voided the placement, returned the prize money, changed our verification process." He tapped the circled entry. "Except we didn't change it enough, apparently." He closed the log book and looked at her. "I believe you. This is fraud, and I'll bring it to the competition board tonight." Kyrie felt the tension in her shoulders ease. Then he leaned back against the desk. "But if I move on this now, the board will demand to know how I found out. I'll have to report that you broke into a locked records room." He paused. "They'll disqualify you. Unless I wait until after the competition ends to file the complaint. Your choice, Ironhowl. Justice now and you're out, or justice later and you stay in." Kyrie stared at him. She could win this year. Beat her rival on skill alone. But the noble competitor would be there too, with her stolen design, taking a placement they didn't earn. She thought of every second-place finish, every year of bitterness. Then she thought of what winning would mean if she let a cheater stand on that podium beside her. "File it now," she said. "I'll take the disqualification."