I want blood.
And I’m not stopping until I get at least one of them.
Downtown Newport is gray, windy, miserable, and somehow perfect for the mood I’m in. I’m pacing outside a coffee shop that isn’t even open yet. My breath fogs. My hands are shaking.
Tristan jogs over, shoves his hands into his hoodie pocket.
“Bro. You look like shit.”
I laugh. It’s hollow. “I feel worse.”
Before he can answer, X walks up—hood up, jaw tight, eyes scanning the street.
“Not here,” X mutters immediately. “Not in the open.”
“I can’t talk about this anywhere,” I snap. “I’m so fucked up, guys. This is so fucked up.”
Tristan leans against the wall. “Deep breaths, Shakespeare.”
“I’m serious,” I growl. “I’m in love with her. I’ve been in love with her. And I lost her over this stupid, elitist, golden-spoon, bloodline bullshit!”
A couple walking a dog glances over. X shoots them a warning look.
I press my palms to my eyes, my voice cracking.
“I ruined everything. I broke up with her for my mom’s sake. And what did I do? I left her to the wolves. And they tore into her.”
Tristan snorts. “Bro—if I were Jade, I wouldn’t take you back either. You look like you haven’t slept since the Revolutionary War, and you smell like regret.”
X elbows him. “Not helping.”
I rake my fingers through my hair, pacing again.
“How do I get her back?” I ask. “How the hell do I fix this?”
X sighs. “First? Accept that Royal Oaks is in full panic mode. The administration already made calls. They’re not taking sides. They can’t. If they expelled the girls behind this, they’d lose half their endowments.”
I swear under my breath. “Of course. Because money means more than a girl’s dignity.”
“Security footage?” Tristan asks.
“Cut,” X says. “Like, conveniently cut. Cameras go dark. No footage. No timestamps. No trace.”
I clench my teeth so hard it hurts. “So they’re going to get away with it.”
“Unless,” X says, “someone finds out who actually did it.”
I look between them.
“Maybe I won’t get her back,” I admit quietly. “But maybe I can get her justice.”
Tristan’s eyes flicker with something dark. “So what’s the play?”
I swallow.
“We infiltrate from the inside.”
X raises an eyebrow. “Meaning?”
