Chapter 33 Chapter 33
The slap rang out like a sharp crack that echoed around the room—and for a second, time stood still.
“Ah!” Soraya's roommate screamed, pointing at her in horror. “Caroline, who do you think you are, hitting her?!”
Soraya was stunned, her hands automatically flying to her face. Her disbelief was palpable: she had never expected to be hit like that.
“Caroline, how dare you hit me?!” she said, her voice trembling between anger and shock.
But Caroline remained motionless, cold as ice. Her eyes were like blades.
“You deserved it.” The sentence came out short, sharp. “Touch my things again and I'll do it again.”
The tension between the two was longstanding; they had been rivals for too long. Before, there were limits—even when a boy was involved. Now, however, everything had changed: Soraya, believing she had lost any “protection” Caroline might have had because of her connection to Edward Collins, decided to attack. She wanted to humiliate her publicly, thinking she would not react.
“I tolerated you because you were with Collins,” Soraya spat, her voice full of venom. “But now that he's broken up with you, do you really think I'm afraid?”
The provocation inflated Soraya's chest—and she had the stupidity to raise her hand again to strike.
Caroline didn't back down. With the icy coldness of someone who had learned not to show weakness, she grabbed the girl's wrist and, in a calculated impulse, pushed her. Soraya lost her balance and fell, her body hitting the metal platform hard—her head scraping against the iron. A cut opened up, and a scarlet stain sprouted on her forehead.
“Oh, Soso!” Kate screamed, jumping in panic when she saw the blood.
In the room, the division was clear: Caroline and Tania in one corner; Soraya and Kate in the other; two girls watching, neutral, not getting involved. The silence was only the prelude to more flying emotions.
Kate, furious and blind with rage, lunged forward as if to avenge her friend. But before she could reach Caroline, her foot caught on the treacherous floor—and she fell, her face crashing into the floorboards. A sharp cry escaped her when she felt her scraped nose and the metallic taste in her mouth.
“You bitch!” Kate whimpered, rolling on the floor. “How dare you?”
Soraya, feeling dizzy, brought her hand to her blood-soaked forehead. The shock drained the color from her face, and for a moment, her pride faltered. Still, the anger burned.
Caroline watched everything with cold eyes—unhurriedly picking up the things that had been thrown on the floor. Her every movement was precise; there was a dangerous calm there, that of someone who knows they have won the battle before it even begins. When she was done, she slowly got up, wiped her palm, and walked over to Soraya.
“The next time you touch a single thing of mine,” she said slowly, without raising her voice, “it won't be just a slap.”
The words fell like a sentence. Tania held Caroline's arm, asking for silence, but no sound of defiance returned. The other girls just watched, exchanging glances: respect, fear, surprise. The image of the old Caroline—docile, submissive—had been shattered; in her place, someone had emerged who no longer accepted humiliation.
Soraya, her forehead bleeding, clenched her teeth until they turned white. Her face trembled with anger — but also with fear. She tried to back away, but Caroline's voice echoed again, calm and deadly:
“If you want the top bunk, get a ladder. I'm not leaving here.”
The room shook with the silence that followed. No one else dared to move her. Soraya, her hand trembling, tried to formulate something—a threat, an insult—but the certainty in Caroline's eyes silenced everything.
At that moment, everyone realized that she was no longer the same Caroline as before. A line had been drawn, and those who dared to cross it would feel the consequences.
Nicholas was silent for a moment—and on the other side of the line, Caroline could almost hear the air becoming denser.
When he finally spoke, his voice was different. The elegant, lazy calm was gone; his tone was low, cold, and full of authority.
“What's her name?” he asked dryly.
“Soraya... Soraya Mendez,” Caroline replied hesitantly. “She and a classmate, Kate, left the dorm saying they were going to call Soraya's brother. He's... kind of dangerous.”
On the other end, Nicholas let out a brief sigh, the sound of someone trying to contain their anger. “And where are you now?”
“In the third-floor hallway, in front of the dorm,” she replied. “Everything is still quiet.”
“Stay there.” His voice was firm, unquestionable. “Don't move.”
Before Caroline could respond, she heard the click of keys and the muffled sound of instructions being given. Nicholas seemed to be talking to someone—his voice quick, impatient, almost somber.
“In ten minutes, they'll be there.” He spoke to her again, now more controlled. “Four men, all mine. You'll recognize them by their Wolf Corporation badges. They won't let anyone near you.”
Caroline opened her mouth in surprise. “Nicholas, I didn't mean to cause trouble. I just...”
“Caroline.” He interrupted her, his voice returning to its low, engaging tone. “Don't think that. You're my wife. It's my duty to protect you.”
Those words took her breath away for a moment.
Her heart, which was still racing from the confrontation in the dorm, seemed to slow down.
Nicholas, on the other hand, was far from calm. As soon as he ended the call, the gentle smile disappeared completely.
His eyes darkened, and his expression turned cold.
He dialed another number.
“Enrico.” His voice was sharp. “Send security team three to the Film Academy. Now. No delays.”
“Yes, sir.” The butler replied promptly. “Are there any additional instructions?”
Nicholas paused and said, in a tone that made it clear this was not a request:
“I want to know everything about the Mendez family in São Paulo. Everything. And I want it today.”
When he hung up, he rested his elbows on his knees and rubbed his chin, his eyes half-closed.
They dared to touch my wife...
In the bedroom, Caroline was still holding the phone, not sure whether to laugh or worry.
She had never heard him sound so... dangerous.
This was a completely different Nicholas Wolf from the one who had smiled at her over breakfast.
“Don't move,” he said... she murmured to herself, sitting on the windowsill in the hallway.
Minutes later, the sound of firm footsteps echoed through the building. Four tall men, dressed in black uniforms, appeared on the stairs—discreet, but with a presence impossible to ignore.
The silver badge on their lapels reflected the name Wolf Corporation.
Caroline blinked in surprise.
Nicholas really wasn't kidding when he said he would take care of her.
The bodyguards approached and one of them bowed slightly.
“Ms. Wolf, we are here to escort you.”
Caroline was speechless.
Ms. Wolf.
For a moment, she could only think of one thing:
if Soraya dared to show up now with her “powerful” brother, the battle would be very different from what she expected.