Tanya’s POV

Everyone’s eyes are on Lily as she comes to the front of the stage, and from the sidelines a professional-looking investigator steps out from the crowd, coming up to stand beside her. He holds a file and carries a bag that he sets on one of the tables, unloading its contents to reveal perfumes that he places down.

“I’ve done a detailed investigation of Malik’s perfume store where Tanya use to work.”

My body shudders with uncertainty, standing by Marco as I turn to face Lily whilst she continues addressing the judges and the crowd. “These are perfume samples sold at Malik’s store,” she hands them out to the judges. “As you’ll soon realize, many of these perfumes smell exactly like my winning perfume creations from previous competitions.”

The previous silence dispels as the crowd mutters and whispers amongst themselves. The judges each receive a sample, and take a sniff, nodding their heads in agreement, urging her to continue. “I don’t know how Tanya got the recipes for the