Chapter 52: CHAPTER FIFTY-TWO | A SHE

CHAPTER FIFTY-TWO | A SHE

ASPEN

“Adrian…” She cleared her throat loudly. “Yes, I have seen him before. He was Ronan’s roommate before I heard that he died.” She rushed her words.

“You knew?” I asked in disbelief.

“I never intended to keep it from you.” She said, raising both hands in surrender.

“Excuse me?”

“I swear.” She looked at me with something close to pity, but I refused to buy that. “When I realized that Ronan wasn’t saying anything about it, I decided to keep quiet.”

I scoffed angrily as I stared at the woman before me. “I really can’t believe this.” I muttered.

“How am I so sure that you guys didn’t kill him?” I glared as the feeling of betrayal sank into my heart. The fact that I had teamed up with these two to search for Adrian’s murderer made it even more painful.

“No!” She barked almost immediately. “Ronan would never do that. You know him.”

“I’m sorry, I don’t know him anymore.” I replied harshly and stood up from the bed, walking toward the door.

I touched the doorknob and turned back to face her. “Thank you for hosting me tonight.” I said quietly, then turned the knob and walked out of the room.

The evening breeze blew harshly against my face, and I heard the door open behind me.

“You’re dressed in a lady’s pajamas.”

I looked down at my body and rolled my eyes. “So you can’t leave now. The whole school will know you’re a lady.” She added with a small chuckle.

“Shit.” I muttered and walked back into her dorm.

“I’m sorry.” She whispered as she closed the door behind her.

“This is not about being sorry. It isn’t.” I snapped. “It’s about the fact that I trusted you guys, and you never told me that very important information.”

“Ronan was scared.” She blurted out, and suddenly the room fell silent. “Scared that you would suspect him of the murder.”

“Excuse me?”

“He was your first suspect, wasn’t he?”

“Well…” I stammered, avoiding her eyes.

“Now you can see why he never told you.” She shrugged lightly.

“That’s still not an excuse.” I rolled my eyes.

“It’s not, but it still is.”

“Why in the world are you supporting him?” I asked angrily.

“Because he’s my man.” She yelled, and the words pierced deeply into my heart. “I don’t want him to be a murder suspect.” She added, and I almost scoffed.

Coming from the mouth of the lady who had framed her boyfriend for countless murders she had committed.

“Okay.” I said dryly and lay on the bed, staring at the ceiling like it held all the answers I had been searching for.

“Alettoi mentioned something about Pulp to Ronan.” I sighed heavily.

“Are you for real?” Rachel asked as she sat on the other side of the bed.

“Yeah, and it sounded like Alettoi knows me.”

“Oh my goodness.” Rachel gasped almost immediately. “That’s bad.” Her voice trembled with fear.

“Wait… what?” I asked as I sat up, suddenly alert.

“Alettoi is a monster. He shouldn’t know about you.” She said in a cracked, terrified tone.

“Can you please tell me what’s going on now?” I half yelled, unable to control the anxiety creeping into me.

“If Alettoi is here, that means he has something up his sleeve, and it could be dangerous.”

“Okay… so how is that related to me?”

“That’s what I’m trying to figure out.” She stood up and walked toward her reading desk.

I followed behind her as she pulled out the chair and sat down. “Did you hear him say anything else?” She asked while turning on her laptop.

“No.” I shook my head. “I was asleep, but Ronan’s voice woke me up. That was when I heard Alettoi say something about me. I wasn’t sure what he said, but he sounded like he knew me. Then he went straight to asking Ronan if I knew Adrian was his roommate before he died.”

“Oh my goodness.” She gasped softly.

“What is it?” I asked, curiosity burning in my chest.

“I think…”

The loud slam of the door cut Rachel short. Her eyes snapped toward it, and I saw pure terror on her face.

“You need to hide.” She whispered urgently.

“What the heck?” I muttered as I allowed her to lead me to her walk-in closet.

“I’ll be right back. Please don’t make any noise.”

There was horror written all over her face, and I suddenly wondered who it was.

“I’m coming.” She closed the closet door, and I heard her footsteps approach the entrance.

“Father?” She called in a shaky voice, and I almost gasped, clapping my hand over my mouth.

“Why are you doing here?” I heard her ask as the door closed.

“I was told you ordered my men to release your boyfriend and his clown.” He growled.

“They didn’t do anything, Father.” She managed to say, her voice trembling.

“You don’t tell me what to do.” He yelled, and I heard the sound of shattering glass.

“Oh my goodness.” I whispered to myself.

“Don’t make me react, Rach.” His harsh voice pierced the air.

“I’m sorry, Father.”

“Sorry for yourself.” He replied coldly.

The room was quiet for a while before I heard the door close shut again.

“Damn.” I whispered. I couldn’t believe Rachel was the one who released us.

The closet door opened, and her eyes met mine. I gulped, completely lost for words.

“You can come out now.” She said quietly and walked toward the bed.

“I’m sorry.” I managed to say.

“Why are you sorry?” She turned to face me.

“For putting you in trouble.” I finally said.

She turned away and lay on the bed without responding.

“But why did you do it?” I asked.

“They’re still looking for you, Aspen, and it’s only a matter of time before the guards start noticing that you’re a she.”