Abby

As Karl speaks, my fingers worry the hem of my white chef’s coat, now no

longer pristine but splattered with sauce and tiny stains and the remains of

haphazardly cooked meals. It feels like a perfect representation of my inner

world right now: once untarnished and lily-white, but now stained and weathered

from the trials I’ve been through today.

We’re still standing in the supply closet, and the air feels thick. Karl is standing

over me still, his hand pressed into the door next to my head, sandwiching me

there with his body.

Enter title…

My wolf stirs ever so slightly, but now is not the time; I just found out that Karl

tried to talk to the judges for me, and I’m not sure how to feel about it.

“Abby…” he begins, his voice trailing off for a moment as his eyes search mine.

Finally, he pushes away from the door and crosses the small room, running his

hand through his hair for what feels like the millionth time in the past few

minutes.

“Just tell me, Karl,” I murmur, blinking away the tears that are threatening to

spill.

He pauses, then draws in a deep breath, and turns to face me again. “Abby,

yes, I did talk to Logan; but I never tried to bribe anybody. I hope you can

believe me in that regard.”

nod, because despite the whirlwind that this competition

reason to lie to me right now. His integrity is

as he promised

why talk to

and I can

you’re an incredible chef, Abby. The

deserve the way he

The word hangs

away for a brief moment, gathering

it’s as though there’s a

like there’s something that he wants to tell me but he can’t get it

out.

about you, Abby. He

to make him see that you are putting

competition. That’s it.”

what to say. There’s a

and dread knotting itself around my stomach: gratitude for

Logan, but also dread

me are, nothing Karl can say

of this doomed

with the sous chef?” I

whisper. “What happened, really?”

crosses Karl’s face. “He was

him in the act, tried to

but I swear, Abby, I never

Karl,

never hurt anyone in this sort of context. Not in a

not

guards didn’t

guards think I’m

footage looks… Anyway, it doesn’t

won’t be

stare down at the floor unblinking, staring at my feet. Outside, I

life again: “Contestants, this is your two minute

the stage in two minutes.

say anything, Karl’s hand reaches out

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