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The Dean scowls at him, but answers. “We have security camera footage of Miss Sweeney entering the room shortly after Mr. Verver exits. She is in the room for approximately twenty minutes before she is captured on video leaving.”
Gideon makes a disgruntled noise, but his fingers are flying over the screen of his phone. I know without looking that he’s texting Hardin, Fielder, and Ezra. We reach Putnam, and before we enter the building, the dean stops and looks at Gideon. “You are not needed, Mr. Brightwater. I am sure you have a class to attend.”
He gives a wolfish smile, curling an arm around my waist that both Cohen and Gabe sneer at. Though likely for different reasons. “Nope, no class to run off to. I’m not going anywhere.”
The threat is apparent. Try to make him leave me and see what it gets them.
I don’t know if the dean knows the true purpose of his school, of the history here, but it seems like he might as his face pales and a sweat breaks out on his forehead. He licks his thin lips and looks between the two of us. “You can wait outside my office.”
Gideon makes a noise likewe’ll see, and then we’re moving forward again, up to the second floor of the building and through the Dean’s reception room, where his personal assistant looks up and follows all of us with her eyes. Cohen stops just outside the dean’s office door and places a firm hand on Gideon’s shoulder. “You can wait out here.” He indicates the row of burnished wood chairs lined up against one wall.
Gideon doesn’t release his hold on me. “I’m not letting her go anywhere with that fucking rapist without me.”
The word drops like a bomb, explodes over the office and I have to resist the urge to duck for cover. Dean Hardstark clears his throat. “Interesting that you use that word, Mr. Brightwater.”
Gideon’s gray eyes move from Cohen, still holding him back, to the older man. “And why is that?”
Cohen’s jaw ticks, and his cool green eyes run over me, like he’s going to judge my reaction to what he’s going to say next. “Because that is the word that was painted on Mr. Verver’s wall.”
Nineteen
The silence is deafening in that tiny reception room. Or it is until Gideon lets out a chuckle. “Glad someone finally called him on it.”
Frowning, I glance up at him, wondering if he doesn’t see how bad this is for me, how terrible this is. I haven’t kept quiet about what Gabe almost did in those woods. I haven’t been mum on how fucked up it is that he’s still walking around. I certainly haven’t been quiet about my hatred of him.
If this was a normal magic free world, I wouldn’t be concerned. Not in the slightest. But this new world I live in has magic users. Casters who can make things appear that aren’t there. It’s not like it would be hard for Julie to make herself look like me, fuck up Gabe’s shit, and leave me with the consequences.
It’s definitely more than possible that is exactly what she did.
And now I’ll get kicked out again, only this time I won’t be given the opportunity to finish out the quarter.
Gideon glances at me and gives me a squeeze of reassurance.
But I do not feel reassured, not in the slightest.
Relax, Sweeney. You’ll be fine.
We aren’t letting you go anywhere.
It takes me a moment to realize that Fielder and Ezra’s voices are in my head, and they aren’t in the room with us.
We’re handling it, love.
I want to ask how they’re handling it and I also want to ask why Gideon didn’t just communicate via the spell rather than texting them, but I don’t. I have bigger things to worry about, like the dean looking at me like he just asked me a question.
“Miss Sweeney,” Hardstark says expectantly. I sigh and move away from Gideon, shrugging off his arm when he tries to keep me with him.
“I’ll be fine, Gideon,” I assure him, holding him back with a hand against his stomach. “I promise. Wait for the others. I can handle this.”
Gideon’s gray eyes run over me before flicking up to Gabe. “If you say one fucking thing to her, I will end you.”
I glare up at him.Maybe don’t threaten him in front of a security guard and the dean, yeah?
Gideon glares back at me.If you’re going in there without me, I’m damn well gonna make sure he doesn’t so much as twitch in your direction.
Leave him be, Ro. We’d all do the same.
We’ll be there soon.Fielder assures me.
