Chapter 104
[ 1,021 words ]
The easiest way to control someone’s future is to become the reason they still have one.
~ Rebel Beast
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“You have got to be kidding me p>
Those were the words Aria muttered by the time she finished reading the email.
For several long moments, she remained seated on the toilet, staring blankly at the screen as her brain struggled to process what she had just read.
Eniola wanted her to get close to Rhydian Drakhar and Caelis Cobryn. Had the woman completely lost her mind? That wasn’t an assignment but a death sentence.
She might as well save everyone the trouble, slit her own throat, and be done with it.
How exactly was she supposed to pull something like that off when even Eniola herself had described the mission as carrying “unique risks p>
Aria let out a groan and dragged a hand through her hair. She should have known there would be a catch.
Why else would someone as powerful as Eniola Moore relocate her family from Westmoor Province to Nova City out of the goodness of her heart? No. Nothing that valuable came without a price attached.
She had simply been too distracted by everything happening around her to ask just how expensive that price would eventually become.
Or maybe she hadn’t been distracted at all. Maybe she had seen the warning signs from the very beginning and chosen to look the other way because the alternative had been leaving Davina behind.
For one reckless moment, Aria opened the reply box, her fingers hovering over the keyboard as she considered ending the arrangement before it had truly begun.
Then she stopped.
What about Davina?
According to the contract, Davina’s education and housing were guaranteed the moment she signed. Even if she walked away tomorrow, those benefits were supposed to remain untouched.
Provided Eniola never had grounds to invoke the fraud clause.
Aria frowned. The more she thought about that single sentence, the less comfort it brought.
Who decided what qualified as fraud? Would it be an independent court? Or would it simply be Eniola Moore?
Maybe she hadn’t been nearly as clever as she’d thought when she agreed to the contract.
Aria slowly lowered the phone onto her lap.
For the first time since signing her name, she couldn’t shake the uncomfortable feeling that she hadn’t entered a partnership but had stepped onto a chessboard. The pieces had already been arranged, and she had simply mistaken choosing a side for choosing the game.
Suddenly, Aria found herself considering the assignment from a different angle.
Perhaps getting on Rhydian’s good side wouldn’t be impossible after all. He had already shown an unusual interest in her. He was a dragon. Maybe all she had to do was stroke his ego a little, play along, earn his trust, and—
Aria froze.
Her eyes widened in horror. Surely she wasn’t entertaining the idea of seducing Rhydian Drakhar just to complete this mission.
A groan escaped her.
Aria Aspen, what is wrong with you?
That wasn’t who she was, and she refused to become the sort of person who climbed into another person’s bed simply to get what she wanted.
Even then, say she somehow managed to earn Rhydian’s trust without crossing that line, there was still Caelis.
That beast man was an entirely different problem.
Unlike Rhydian, Caelis didn’t even pretend to tolerate her existence. If anything, he looked at her as though she were an inconvenience that had somehow wandered into his territory. Aria had little doubt that if the opportunity ever presented itself, he wouldn’t hesitate to turn her into stone.
And that was the person Eniola expected her to befriend?
No. The woman had completely lost her mind. She couldn’t do this.
Resolute, Aria was prepared to tell Eniola exactly what she thought of her impossible assignment when a dull thud echoed from somewhere beyond the restroom. Immediately, her fingers stopped moving.
Her brows furrowed slightly.
Then a second sound followed, except this time it was quieter. It was almost as if something was being dragged across the floor.
Every muscle in Aria’s body tensed as she remained perfectly still, straining to listen.
Silence.
Slowly, Aria locked her screen and slipped the phone back into her pocket. Carefully, she unbolted the stall door and eased it open.
The restroom was empty.
She stepped into the aisle, her gaze sweeping across the sinks, mirrors, and entrance.
Nothing.
The sounds had disappeared as suddenly as they had come. Maybe she had imagined them. Or maybe the academy was finally getting into her head. Either way, there was no point lingering here.
She would respond to Eniola later, back in the safety of her room. Besides, if she stayed away much longer, Brittney would undoubtedly come searching for her. And Brittney’s curiosity had a way of bulldozing through boundaries Aria preferred to keep firmly in place.
Aria walked over to the sink, washed her hands, and dried them on the towel dispenser beside the mirror. Then she reached for the door.
The moment it swung open, she stopped dead.
Two bodies lay sprawled on the floor directly outside. Both young men wore the navy uniform of House Therion and looked unconscious.
A chill crawled down Aria’s spine. Her gaze lifted from the motionless figures to the man standing a few feet away.
Rhydian Drakhar.
Her breath caught so violently it almost hurt. Instinct took over, and Aria opened her mouth to scream.
“Don’t make a sound p>
The command settled over her like invisible chains, and the cry died in her throat before it could escape, almost as though an unseen hand had wrapped itself around her voice and refused to let it pass.
Rhydian stepped over the unconscious Therion students without sparing them a glance and walked toward her.
Aria instinctively retreated, taking one careful step, then another, never taking her eyes off him.
She watched cautiously as Rhydian Drakhar stepped into the restroom and shut the door behind him.
Aria swallowed.
There was no escape for her now.
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