Page 14 of A University of Betrayal

I laughed sarcastically and turned to reach for my T-shirt and bandages.

“A chance... The last thing you can expect from me is a chance.”

How many times had he begged Bastien forone more chanceor for him to clean up the mess he left everywhere he went?

I wasn’t Bastien – even if I sometimes wanted to be – and I wasn’t obliged to doanything.That was the beauty of my position at the Receptum. The day they had chosen Adrian as the future heir. It had been clear to me that I was going to enjoy my life to the fullest.No obligations, no regrets.Back then, it was also calledthe privilege of the second-born.I didn’t really owe Nicolaj anything, even if I was living at his expense, but everyone in the brotherhood did, so what? The point was that I could do whatever the hell I wanted. And if there was one thing I didn’t like, it was the fact that Bastien’s younger brother was interfering, maybe even trying tochangethings.

“Actually, I shouldn’t care. About nothing. Just like I do for you.” I admitted those words were harsh, but it was all I had left to keep him away from me. “I hope you realize you don’t belong here and pack your things as soon as possible.”

I recognized something like regret in his eyes for the first time, which felt like a triumph. I wanted him to feel what he had made me feel all these years.

I turned away because it was a good time to leave, but he grabbed my arm, which upset me a little.

I looked at him, overwhelmed. His look was serious again, as if we’d never had this conversation.

“I’m going to prove to you that I’ve changed. Think what you want of me. I will prove to you that this family comes first for me. You have my word.”

His words sounded sincere, too sincere to be true.

I tore myself away from him.

“I don’t give a fuck about your word.”

It was all I could say before I turned around and walked away.

Chapter 5

Larissa

Alan Wake

Petri Alanko

Larissa DeLoughrey,no... Something had goneverywrong somehow, and now I was here, drugged. In truth, it wasn’t the Copelands, but theDeLoughreyswho had their nose deep in the drug business. Suddenly, everything made sense. Adrian’s behavior, all the money, the fact that their house wasn’t on the map…

Shit,what had I gotten myself into again? Hadn’t I wanted to put this shit behind me?

I looked at the door through which Bastien had disappeared. I realized he was standing in front of it. I felt it somehow… heard his heartbeating?How was that possible?

I looked at the other door and then over to one of the windows. Several chances to escape. Maybe my only ones. But I was obviously drugged, and maybe it wasn’t a good idea to run. Properties like this were usually well-guarded by bodyguards, and if they were all as inhumanly skilled as Bastien, my chances of escaping were extremely small.

I had no choice but to take part in this dinner. Maybe they would help me. But who was on the estate who would helpmeescape?

I turned to the huge closet and opened the elegantly decorated doors, which were the same color as all the other furniture here.Black.The clothes inside were the complete opposite.

“Holy shit...” I exclaimed when I discovered the countless dresses. From royal blue to blue-green to burgundy. My hands glided over the fabrics. Velvet, silk, and lace.

How rich was this family that I could just take a dress from this wardrobe and wear it? Were they playing with me? Did rich families do things like that?

Once again, I let my eyes wander through the collection and finally decided on a burgundy velvet dress that fitted tightly around my waist but fell loosely to the floor.

Well,then I would play along with their little game, whatever it was.

As I slipped off the nightdress, my gaze automatically fell on the crosses and the burn marks that ran along the curves of my chest. I hadn’t looked at my breasts for a month, nor at my hips, which didn’t look any better.

My body was a battlefield of my past, and slipping into this sumptuous evening dress was just another facade hiding the truth.

Hastily, I pulled the dress on, trying not to put my hands on my stomach, trying to keep them away from my body and focus on the dress, my vision glazing over.