Violet
Nervously, I glanced from Kylan, who sat beside me, to Esther, who stood with her back turned, staring out of the window.
She had taken us to her office, only to let us sit in silence-and my anxiety shot through the roof as I thought of a thousand reasons why she might’ve wanted to see us.
Did I do something wrong?
Would she take back the pass for the strike now that she knew who I was with?
If it was just to congratulate me on being Kylan’s mate, she could’ve done that at the door, so what was it?
Was it about Adelaide?
Every now and then, Esther let out a sigh, but just as I expected her to say something, we were met with silence again. Kylan already seemed to be over it, matching her sighs with his own as he sat with his arms crossed.
“Have you already made up your mind about what you’re going to say?” he asked impatiently when he couldn’t take it anymore.
“Kylan!” I hissed, slapping his knee.
“Or can we go now?” he finished. “It’s been a long day, for both of us.”
Esther turned around, her sharp eyes locking onto Kylan. It was fun and all that he didn’t take any of her classes, but I did. She looked at him as if she wanted to say something, but then her eyes shifted to me and softened.
“For how long have the two of you known you’re mates?” she asked.
“Since the festival,” I replied softly.
“Since the festival,” she mumbled, raising her brows for a second before walking over to her chair and sitting down.
“I believe we haven’t met properly, Kylan,” she said. “Is it okay if I call you that?”
Kylan responded with a shrug. “It’s my name, is it not?”
For some reason, Kylan was giving her a lot of attitude, and I feared I might’ve pushed it onto him without meaning to. Just because she had been hiding things from me didn’t mean she was a bad person.
Esther ignored him and turned her attention back to me.
I met her gaze, unsure what to expect.
“I think you and I started off on the wrong foot,” she began, rubbing her chin.
“No, we didn’t?” I frowned. “You recommended me for the Elite team-”
“Yes, but then I ignored you, didn’t I?” She exhaled softly, leaning back in her chair.
I didn’t answer. It was true-she had ignored me. And for the longest time, I had wondered why. I was curious about her connection to Adelaide, which seemed to make her avoid even looking at me-and now I couldn’t help but wonder why she was willing to speak to me right now.
“Violet, I want you to know that you can rely on me,” she said, nodding with a gentle smile. “You can come to me with anything-and I mean that.”
I nodded back, though I was unsure whether I believed her. In the beginning, I had so many questions for her, but now? Now, I didn’t even know if I could trust her.
“Someone slipped a note under my office door this morning,” Esther said suddenly.
My heart raced as I looked at Kylan, who had not changed his cold gaze for a second. He just kept looking at her, observing her.
“And the note said something very interesting.”
“Yes?” I whispered, carefully.
Esther’s gaze sharpened. “I’m under the impression that Chrystal Wyrnsbane, along with some other students-Amy Shila, Mavis Gilbert, Alice Ann, and Amber Lindsay-tricked you and hurt you.”
I swallowed hard, my stomach twisting with confusion. Other than Amy, I barely knew the names of the girls Chrystal had gathered to gang up on me-so how did the person who supposedly left the note know?
I turned to look at Kylan, but his expression still remained unchanged.
“This is a very serious accusation,” Esther stated. “Is it true, Violet?”
Kylan appeared to be calm-too calm. Could it have been him?
No, he had been with me all morning.
My mouth went dry as I tried to find the words to say. “I…”
“You can tell me, Violet. It’s okay,” Esther said. “I’ve already sent word for all of the girls to be sent home so we can open an investigation,” she said. “But I can only do so with your permission. It’s up to you to make an official report.”
My mind was still with the fact that Chrystal, and all the other girls, possibly getting suspended. A relief washed over me at the thought of her not being here…temporarily.
That was a good thing, right?
I blinked at Kylan, and he met my eyes. What if it was really him who had sent the note as a way to protect me, even if I told him not to?
That’s what I thought for a second before I saw the genuine confusion written across his face. He seemed just as surprised as me.
Or was it a test?
A test for what? Well, I wouldn’t know, but I didn’t know anything anymore.
I looked into Esther’s warm eyes, suddenly wondering if perhaps I had been overreacting and I could trust her-that maybe she did want to help me.
“Violet,” Esther said, her tone firmer this time. “If something happened, I need to know. Now.”
Suddenly, her voice wasn’t that soft or gentle anymore. It was pushy, as if she expected an answer that would please her.
“I need to know exactly what happened to make an official report,” she continued, digging her nails into her desk. “I need to know if she hurt you, and how you felt when she did. Were you angry, sad?”
I felt my chest tighten as the memories returned. My fists clenched as the fury traveled through my veins, and just like earlier, the ring on my finger felt hot.
It was the only thing keeping me sane.
“Both of you,” Esther continued, her eyes flicking to Kylan and then back to me. “If you’ve got something to say, now is the time.”
Still no words could leave my mouth. She was acting strange, almost desperate, and it made me uneasy.
“You can trust me, Violet,” Esther tried again. “Just like Claire, your mom? I was close to Claire. She always confided in me with everything. She even called me Mama Esther-so you can trust me.”
Claire?
So she was close to Mom?
As I hesitated, I felt Kylan’s finger tracing soft circles on my thigh. For a second, I froze, confused by what he was doing-but then it hit me.
He was writing.
N…O…
No…
I peeked at him out of the corner of my eye, and he didn’t look at me, but the message was clear.
He didn’t want me to tell her anything.
“No one hurt me,” I spoke immediately, putting my trust in Kylan. He was the only one I should trust. “Nothing happened…and no one hurt me. I don’t know who gave you the note, but it’s not true.”