When the magazine’s team was back at their office, all the content they had captured was transferred to the computers, and they immediately started working on the article and the MyTube video. Of course, they didn’t include the sensitive footage, but by company policy, they couldn’t delete it without confirming with the editor-in-chief. The interviewer watched the video again, and sighed.

  “What am I supposed to do with this ? If the boss decides to talk about it, we’ll be in conflict with Mademoiselle Cyrielle’s side ! Well, whatever, I’m just a normal employee, I’m not paid to make such difficult decisions.”

  She stood up and walked with a determined stride to the editor-in-chief’s desk. However, she didn’t notice that behind her, the intern was discreetly looking into her computer.

  ‘My sary is clearly not enough for all the work I do ! If you aren’t pnning on giving me a raise, I better take care of myself. I’m sure the press will pay a lot to have this info !’

  He copied the file on a USB key, and walked away without being seen.

  Unsuspecting, Cyrielle was back at the stables for a jumping test. So far, she had only performed dressage with Coline and the riding instructor, but after she voiced her idea of participating in a show jumping competition, she was called to pass a test. Cyrielle wasn’t riding Ariane this time, she needed a horse with more energy to score high, so she was on top of the chestnut gelding that Coline liked to ride. The obstacle course was a standard one, with the wooden bars pced at a medium difficulty. After all, it was simply a test.

  “Are you ready ?”

  The instructor was looking at Cyrielle, elegantly sitting on top of the horse with her back straight, her long braided hair resting on her shoulder. She was wearing a beautiful riding suit with white pants that she had customized herself by embroidering golden patterns. The gelding was trampling the sand impatiently, ready to rush forward as soon as Cyrielle would give him the signal.

  “Yes, I’m ready.”

  “Ok. Three, two, one… Go !”

  He started the timer, and the horse jumped towards the first obstacle, almost touching the wooden bar when he flew above it. Cyrielle immediately reigned in his energy.

  ‘Calm down. It’s two strides before the next one, don’t get too excited.’

  It was a bit rough because they weren’t used to each other, but they quickly found their rhythm, and after only three obstacles, their bond was already visible. The gelding was attentive to his rider’s signals, lengthening or shortening his strides depending on her indications, but without losing his speed and power. When they finally jumped the st obstacle and the instructor checked the timer, the man ughed bitterly.

  “I don’t know what I was expecting. Of course you would also be skilled at show jumping !”

  Her score wasn’t just perfect, it was enough to win a competition with a difference so big from the others, that she wouldn’t be contested. It was just a standard obstacle course for the test, but the instructor had the intuition that, even in a real competition, Cyrielle would win without breaking a sweat.

  “I am not that skilled, this child is.”

  She patted the horse’s neck, and the gelding started trotting in pce, ready to go at it again. Of course, Julie was outside the arena with her phone, recording the whole scene.

  ‘The fans will love it !’

  After dressage, the new equestrian trend would surely be show jumping.

  ***

  A few days ter, Cyrielle was at a high end restaurant. She opened the door, attracting attention in her purple bzer and velvet pants. After scanning the room for a while, she noticed a smiling red haired woman sitting near the window, and walked towards her.

  “Hello, madame Sarmer.”

  “Oh, please call me Manon. It’s nice to see you again. I saw that you are still riding these days.”

  “It’s a hobby.”

  “Like singing is ? You are quite funny, excelling at something and decring it’s not that important. Come, sit down.”

  She gestured to the seat in front of her, and Cyrielle followed her words, immediately adopting a perfect sitting etiquette. Manon Sarmer didn’t show it, but inside she was quite impressed.

  ‘Would you look at that ? I think I already ate with the more prominent figures of the industry, but none of them had that kind of elegance. I was right, she is extraordinary.’

  After ordering their food, Cyrielle’s gaze met Manon’s. The petite woman, with shoulder length red hair, was dressed as usual, with a white shirt and bck pants. Nobody would be able to tell that she was soon reaching her sixties. Cyrielle discreetly cleared her throat.

  “I got a call from Hyena the other day. I heard you helped ‘Heavy Protector’ and you mentioned my name. I wanted to thank you, these men really deserve to be taken seriously.”

  The singer smiled.

  “It’s nothing, I genuinely enjoy their music. I discovered them with your MyTube channel, you see, so it’s all thanks to you. I didn’t do much.”

  “I’m still grateful.”

  There was an awkward silence. The two women didn’t know each other, so it was hard to find a topic of discussion. After agonizing over it during the entré, Manon decided to make a bit of small talk. What music Cyrielle liked, what her inspirations were for her album, if she preferred to py the piano or the guitar… Finally, when they had finished the main dish, the atmosphere seemed to be less tense. That’s when Manon Sarmer decided to cut to the case.

  “I thought about it for a long time, but I would really like it if you could have a feature in my new album. I think your voice would blend beautifully with mine. What do you think ?”

  Cyrielle calmly took a sip of water, but inside she was screaming.

  ‘Am I dreaming ? I am, right ?’

  [You are not. Manon Sarmer asked you to sing for her album. You should say yes.]

  ‘Wait, I can’t ! I mean, if she asked then I should, but I’m not that great or well known, how can I be featured with her !’

  [Accept reality quickly, and answer.]

  ‘It’s not that easy !’

  Cyrielle took a deep breath internally, put the gss back on the table, and raised her head.

  “If you think it would be good, then I accept.”

  A misunderstanding was deepening in Manon Sarmer’s mind.

  ‘She doesn’t look that excited, does my status not mean anything to her ? Well, she really only seems to care for her craft. That must be the reason she said ‘if you think it would be good’, she isn’t interested in working with me if the result isn’t a good song. I never met someone so dedicated to art, it’s incredible ! She was fascinating before, but I might end up respecting her at this speed. Maybe I’ll learn a thing or two while working with her.’

  Not showing her thoughts, she suppressed her smile and extended her hand to Cyrielle.

  “I look forward to working with you ! We’ll create the best song anybody has ever heard !”

  The elegant woman took her hand and nodded politely.

  “I look forward to it too.”

  ‘The idol of french youth’ was going to make an appearance in the album of ‘the favorite personality of french people’, if any reporter heard about it they would be going crazy.

  The rest of the meal went really well, the two women were discussing their ideas and the general direction of the song they wanted to make. After having a wonderful evening, they separated in front of the restaurant and each walked towards their respective cars. That’s when, suddenly, Manon called Cyrielle back.

  “Oh my gosh, Mademoiselle Cyrielle !”

  Tilting her head in confusion, Cyrielle turned to face the singer, who was running towards her.

  “What is happening ? Is it true ? Are you okay ?”

  Manon Sarmer was in a state of shock, her breathing was heavy and ragged, but maybe it was because she had run.

  “What are you talking about ?”

  Hesitantly, the woman handed her phone to Cyrielle. The Internet was bustling, with news articles popping out every second.

  {Mademoiselle Cyrielle has a panic attack, what happened ?}

  {Is it PTSD ? Anonymous source says : ‘She has lived through terrible things’}

  {[Mademoiselle Cyrielle] It almost ended her life ! Panic attacks and their aftermaths}

  {Should we talk more about anxiety amongst celebrities ?}

  {The crack in Mademoiselle Cyrielle’s perfect image : She broke under the pressure.}

  {The night that scared her neighbors, what happened to Mademoiselle Cyrielle ?}

  It was never ending, and the articles were getting more outrageous each second.

  -Brrr Brrr

  Cyrielle felt her pocket vibrate. Her phone was blowing up, with every acquaintance calling or sending text messages. It was a mess. She inwardly took a deep breath. She knew this would happen, you can never hide a secret from the press when you are a celebrity, everything ends up in the open one day. She was already grateful it hadn’t happened earlier. But this event would surely deal a big blow to her current projects.

  She put on an elegant smile and turned to the panicked Manon.

  “Well, it did happen. Will you still have me in your album ?”

  It was Cyrielle’s greatest fear. Not that people would discover she was inadequate, she had accepted that it would happen one day, but that she wouldn’t be able to do new things and grow. The opportunities that came her way ended up being as important to her as it was to Path of Destiny. She didn’t want her new life granted by the system to shatter.

  But contrary to her fears, Manon Sarmer grabbed her hand tightly.

  “Of course, I want to sing with you ! That kind of thing is not enough to stop me ! And I know how passionate you are about music, I would never retract my offer for such a thing. In fact, I’m getting so angry ! Who would use your mental state and your vulnerability to attack you ? The person who did that is a bastard ! And who made you so bad in the first pce ? Tell me their name, I’ll use everything that I have to make their life a living nightmare !”

  Cyrielle smiled. Her words resembled those of Bernadette Dupuit. The world might explode, but she would still be happy as long as she had good people by her side.