Page 36 of Interion

Adrian's gaze shifted to me, then to Naoki and Adele. But when he opened his mouth, Ethan and Miverik beat him to it, speaking in unison:

“It was Kyller. We saw everything.”

My eyes went so wide that for a moment I was afraid they'd pop out of my head.

“That's a lie! You've got to be kidding me!”

“Who was responsible for this, Adrian?” the director demanded. His face was red, veins bulging in his neck.

Adrian’s confused gaze swept over me, Adele, and Naoki. Then, taking a deep breath, he told his father:

“It was both of them.”

Chapter 10

I was screwed.

In short, that’s what was running through my head as I walked from the woods to the academy director’s office.

After all the drama with Naoki, they called for help. Adele and I stayed handcuffed while we waited for the paramedics and the administration called our guardians. Naoki had his eyes fixed on Adele, glaring at her furiously, but because of the tracheostomy, air couldn’t pass through his vocal cords, so he couldn’t speak. I wondered if he’d defend me after I’d saved his life, but judging by the disgusted look he shot me when he wasn’t mentally cursing the blonde, I figured the answer was no.

After help arrived, we were dragged through the woods like two highly dangerous criminals, escorted by the substitute trainer and the director. Aish stayed too—the only person who looked at me with kindness. The whole way there, the handcuffs jingled on my wrists, so tight my hands went numb. It made my stomach churn. I had to keep telling myself the handcuffs weren’t shackles.

I wasn’t in the forests. I wasn’t a slave.

Now Adele and I were in the director’s office, sitting uncomfortably in black armchairs in a small room while we waited for our guardians. All I could think about was how disappointed Ambrose would be—by the abyss, my heart sank just imagining his disapproving look.

Adele, on the other hand, seemed perfectly cheerful beside me.

“If you hadn’t interfered, you wouldn’t be in trouble,” she said, her eyes fixed on a painting behind the director’s desk. It was a drawing of Interion’s symbol—three circles intersected by internal lines, representing the walls.

I was so angry and felt so wronged that I was afraid to open my mouth and end up yelling at her, which would only make my situation worse. So I pressed my lips into a tight line, holding back the urge to respond.

“I had everything under control,” she grumbled, and I rolled my eyes. “You were stupid to interfere.”

This time I stared at her, and it was another terrible idea, because when I did, my determination went out the window the moment I saw her sly expression.

“You know, you’re absolutely right! This might have been the stupidest thing I’ve ever done. I should’ve known a snake would bite the hand of anyone trying to help it. It’s instinct, isn’t it?”

“Help?” she asked, laughing.

“I only got into that damn fight to defend you, Adele. How can you stoop so low?”

“Defend me?” Her brow furrowed so deeply that even her tightly-pulled ponytail shifted slightly. “Sweetheart, you can’t even defend yourself. All you did was serve as a punching bag. You’re nothing but a weak loser who doesn’t have the guts to fight back.”

I huffed and clenched my fists so hard I felt my nails digging into my skin.

“See? That’s what you do when someone pisses you off—you hide and take it out on yourself. And I’m the one who’s wrong?”

“You almost killed a student, Adele. On what planet is that doing the right thing?”

“Ever heard that the best defense is a good offense? Well, once you start living by that, your life will change.”

“Change into what? A life behind bars?” I asked incredulously. She seemed to consider this, then looked at me with an insane gleam in her eyes.

“Sounds like a good place.”

I stared at her like she was an alien.