_Zarelle's POV_
It took three men to haul Thessaly out of the pool, her soaked dress clinging to her body like wet tissue paper. Water streamed from her hair in dark rivulets, and her makeup was long gone.
The moment her feet touched solid ground, she whirled around to face me, pointing an accusatory finger at me.
"She pushed me!" Thessaly shrieked, her voice cracking with hysteria. "Everyone saw it! Zarelle pushed me into the pool!”
The crowd murmured, but I noticed their expressions weren't quite what Thessaly was hoping for. Instead of righteous indignation on her behalf, I saw skepticism, amusement, and more than a few poorly hidden smirks.
I calmly brushed an invisible speck of dust from my shoulder, the gesture deliberate and dismissive.
"What I did," I said, my v
