Chapter 4

Someone grabbed me and pressed my head down onto the shards again and again.

Sharp, splitting pain came up from my forehead, nowhere close to the pain in my chest.

Within seconds warm blood ran down my face and dripped onto the floor.

My face was covered in blood. I was past feeling it.

Kieran stared at the blood on my face, and for some reason his chest felt tight.

"Know you were wrong yet?"

I didn't say anything.

He gave a cold laugh. "Keep going. Until she knows."

Nash spoke up suddenly. "Kieran, if this keeps up she's going to die."

Kieran only rocked his hand lazily. "What, feeling sorry for her? Did you forget who took the photos…"

Just then Camille fainted.

Nash scooped her up without hesitating, didn't look at me once, and left.

His face had an urgency I'd never seen on him.

Kieran turned back to me, irritation flickering in his eyes.

"See? Nash has never cared about you. Stop reaching for things that aren't yours. You don't deserve them."

"Camille is my little sister. If anything happens to her, we won't let you off."

After they left, I cleaned up my wounds alone.

The moment I walked out of the hospital, the professor called.

"Wren, it looks like we'll need to leave earlier than planned…"

At the hospital, Kieran felt suddenly on edge, and he couldn't say why.

He shook off the mess of his thoughts and stepped into the room.

The next second Camille was waving her phone at him, delighted.

"Kieran, Nash, I can't believe you actually sent Wren Hayes away for me!"

The two men froze.

"What are you saying? Who's sent Wren away?"

"She'd never leave. I don't believe it."

Kieran and Nash spoke at the same time, pressing her.

Camille was stunned by the way they looked at her, caught off guard.

When she didn't answer, Nash got more frantic.

Gone was his composure. He gripped her hand and pushed.

"Say something. What did you mean just now?"

She cried out in pain and tried to pull free. "Nash, you're hurting me. Let go and I'll tell you."

Nash finally realized what he was doing and let go.

"Sorry, Camille. I'm just worried. Why did you say we'd sent her away? What is going on?"

Kieran said nothing, but his stare on Camille didn't move.

Seeing how worked up they both were, Camille felt jealousy rise in her all over again.

Why did Wren Hayes get to have them this concerned about her?

It had always been like this. If she hadn't constantly poisoned them against Wren, made them hate Wren, they'd have stopped caring about her long ago.

She could not let that happen.

Both of them belonged only to her.

Camille swallowed it down and said gently, "Nash, I only heard it from someone else. They said there's a notice up at the university. Wren's going abroad with Professor Ellsworth."

"And everyone's saying that with her photos out there she can't show her face anymore, so she latched onto the professor to get out."

"But how would she be capable of that? You two must have pressured her. Otherwise why would the professor take a dead weight like her?"

The room went dead silent.

Nash looked like all the air had gone out of him. He just stood there.

He muttered, "How is that possible? The photos were all taken down. How could that be why she left?"

He had taken those photos, yes, but only because he'd agreed to help Kieran get back at her.

He'd never meant to drive her away.

Kieran's face went grey.

He strode forward and grabbed Nash by the collar.

"You told me the photos were handled. Did you leak them on purpose?"

Nash shook his head hard. "She's my girlfriend. Why would I leak them?"

"I went along with you. I just wanted to scare her. Someone really did see them and pass them around."

"The moment I found out, I had every copy pulled and told no one to speak of it again."

Camille squeezed in between them and took hold of Nash's sleeve, fragile.

"Nash, Kieran, isn't she just… angry because I broke her bracelet? She's just trying to get a reaction out of you."

Her voice was thick with tears. "It's my fault. I shouldn't have worn the bracelet that day."

Kieran gave a short, thin laugh. "You're right. She's lived here her whole life. She wouldn't just leave. She's sulking."

"I need to go home. See you later."

Nash chased after him without a word.

"Camille, the doctor says you're fine. Look after yourself. We have someone to find."

Camille was left alone in the room.

She threw everything off the table, furious.

"Why? I grew up with them. Why do they care so much about that cheap little…? She is never coming back."

Kieran floored the gas all the way home.

The whole way, he thought maybe she'd lost it because he'd broken the heirloom her grandmother gave her.

Fine. He'd have an exact copy made. Give it to her as an apology.

This time he'd gone too far. That was all.

She never stayed angry with him. She wouldn't this time either.

Nash was just as jumpy.

He'd been in the wrong about the photos to begin with, and now he was tearing himself apart about not stepping in at the lounge.

His head had not been working.

He kept calling her the whole drive.

Every call hit the same message. Phone turned off.