Chapter 58 A Stain

• Things were just as hectic on the other end. Abigail seized the opportunity to pass another piece of paper to Luna while no one else was looking. Luna's expression remained blank, but it was as if they had an unspoken agreement—she slipped the piece of paper into her pocket and covered her shirt over it. They both edged closer to one another and were about to exchange a conversation when they heard Joan's high-pitched voice.
• "I noticed that you finished all of your design drafts when I visited you earlier today, Luna. That's impressive. I heard that the theme left a lot of the other designers stumped—they couldn't come up with anything, even after working on it for up to one week." Joan's statement carried an implicit message that everyone else could understand. Yet, when Abigail glanced at Joan's expression, she noticed that there wasn't a hint of malice on her face. In fact, she seemed to have genuine admiration for the other woman.
• The rest of the crowd no longer said much. The designers simply stared at Luna, who had a smile on her face. Everyone couldn't help but recall what Joan had asked Luna the night before. Did she really contact Sean to ask him about the theme last night? Was she trying to come up with the drafts before us? Abigail could sense the suspicion and hostility in the rest of the designers' gaze, and she froze for a moment. Joan is obviously trying to tell everyone that this competition is rigged. She's telling them that the winner has been pre-determined and that they wouldn't be able to win the grand prize regardless of how hard they try.