Chapter 44 The last chance
Chapter 44: The Last Chance (Liam’s POV)
The notification on my phone screamed for attention, but I moved faster. I caught Elena just as her thumb was hovering over the "Share" button for a second platform.
"Don't!" I gasped, sliding between her and Maya. I gently but firmly pushed Elena’s hand down.
"Get out of the way, Liam!" Elena snapped, her eyes flashing with fire. "This is our way out. This is the truth!"
"It’s a suicide mission," I hissed, looking around the parking lot to make sure my father’s security wasn't closing in yet. "If you post that now, my father will have this whole school locked down in five minutes. He’ll delete it, he’ll sue Maya’s family into the ground, and you’ll be gone before you can say 'scholarship.' You have to trust me for once."
Maya looked skeptical. "Why should she trust the guy who just denied her in the hallway?"
"Because I know how they play!" I whispered urgently. "Give me one week. Just one. There’s a massive History midterm coming up. If I pass it without 'help,' and if I can get the original files from the coach's office instead of a grainy video, we don't just stop the Millers. We take down the whole system."
Elena looked at the phone, then at me. I could see the battle in her head. She wanted to burn it all down right now, but she knew I was right about my father’s reach.
"One week, Liam," she said, her voice like ice. "If you don't fix this by the time the test results are out, I’m posting everything. I don't care if I go down with you."
The next morning, the atmosphere in Mr. Henderson’s History class was like a pressure cooker. Henderson wasn't like the other teachers; he didn't care about last names or big donations. He was old, cranky, and obsessed with the French Revolution.
"Listen up!" Henderson shouted, slamming a thick stack of papers onto his desk. "I don’t care if your name is Vance, Miller, or Smith. This midterm is fifty percent of your grade. If you fail, you fail my class. And for some of you," he looked pointedly at me and Jax, "that means you’ll be watching the hockey championships from the bleachers. You have one week to study. No shortcuts. No 'donations.' Just brains."
Jax leaned back in his chair, smirking. He didn't look worried. He probably thought the folder on that video Maya had was still coming his way. I, on the other hand, felt a cold sweat breaking out. I was actually going to have to learn this.
"Vance!" Henderson barked. "Since you and Ms. Marycynthia are already so 'well-acquainted' in the library, she will remain your tutor for this week. If he fails, Elena, I’ll know you weren't doing your job."
The class erupted in whispers. Chloe’s head snapped toward me, her face a mask of fury. I didn't look at her. I kept my eyes on the back of Elena’s head.
The library was silent that afternoon. The "King" and the "Ghost" were back in our corner, but everything had changed. The air between us was thick, not just with hate, but with something else—something that felt like a live wire.
"Open the book, Liam," Elena said. She didn't look at me. She was busy highlighting dates in her own text.
"I can't focus," I admitted, tossing my pen onto the mahogany table.
"Focus, or find a new hobby. Because hockey is over for you if you don't memorize the Fall of the Bastille."
I leaned forward, closing the gap between us. The scent of her—that fresh, rain-like smell—was driving me crazy. "Why are you still helping me? After the hallway? After I lied to everyone?"
Elena finally looked at me. Her dark eyes were guarded, but I saw a flicker of that chemistry we couldn't kill. "Because I'm a professional. And because I want to see you actually earn something for once in your life. I want to see if there’s a real person under that expensive jersey."
"There is," I whispered. I reached out, my fingers grazing the back of her hand. She didn't pull away this time. Her skin was warm, and I felt a jolt go up my arm. "I'm doing this for us, Elena. If I pass this test fairly, my father loses his leverage over my 'academic success.' I can tell him to go to hell."
"You talk a lot, Liam," she said, but her voice was softer now. She looked down at where our hands were nearly touching. "But you’re still wearing Chloe’s ring."
I looked at the gold band on my finger—the one her father gave me. I pulled it off and sat it on the table with a sharp clack. "I’m not wearing it for her. I’m wearing it so they don't suspect I'm planning to jump ship."
The tension in the library shifted. It wasn't about History anymore. I stood up and walked around the table, standing behind her chair. I leaned down, my breath warm against her neck.
"You think I'm a puppet," I said, my voice dropping to a jagged low. "But even puppets can bite the hand that pulls the strings."
Elena turned her head slightly, her lips inches from mine. I could see her pulse jumping in her neck. "Then bite, Liam. Stop talking and do something."
I leaned in, but just as our lips were about to touch, the heavy library doors swung open with a bang.
"I knew it!"
It was Chloe. But she wasn't alone. She had a man with her—a man in a dark suit with a camera around his neck.
"You think you’re so smart, Elena?" Chloe hissed, walking toward us with a wicked smile. "You think the 'tutoring' excuse works every time? My father hired a private investigator the moment you moved into the basement."
The man held up a tablet. It showed photos from three minutes ago—me leaning over Elena, the ring sitting on the table, the way I was looking at her.
"It doesn't matter if you pass the test, Liam," Chloe said, her voice full of poison. "These photos are going to the board tonight. 'Student-Tutor Misconduct.' You’ll be kicked off the team, and Elena? She’ll be banned from every university in the country for academic seduction."
I felt the world drop out from under me. I had been so focused on my father that I forgot how dangerous Chloe could be when she was jealous.
"Chloe, wait," I started, stepping forward.
"No," she said, her eyes flashing. "I gave you a chance. I gave you the dinner and the apology. But you’d rather play in the dirt with her."
She turned to leave, but Elena stood up, using her cane to steady herself.
"Wait," Elena said. She didn't look scared. She looked... calm. "You want to talk about misconduct, Chloe? Let's talk about the flash drive in your pocket."
Chloe froze. Her hand instinctively moved toward her blazer pocket. "I don't know what you're talking about."
"The one with the midterm answers," Elena said, stepping closer. "The one you stole from Henderson’s office this morning. I saw you on the security feed when I was with Maya. If those photos go to the board, that drive goes to the police. Who do you think they’ll punish more? A boy in love, or a girl who stole a state exam?"