Chapter 32
Ren
The bell rang, and I sucked in a deep breath, jerking out of my thoughts. I glanced at Blake’s empty seat. He had missed class again today.
Ethan had a checkup with his doctor this afternoon, and Theo and Blake went with him. I’d hoped to hear something by now. I just couldn’t stop thinking about Ethan and the agony he must be in. The physical pain was bad enough, but losing Ella…it was too much.
The class filtered out, but I remained seated and focused on the tests Mr. Sharpe had given me to mark. He had two junior classes, and I had finished grading a little over half of them.
He rose from his desk, and even though I was looking down, I saw him walking toward me. I put a small check mark and moved on to the next question.
“I thought you’d be done by now,” Sharpe said as he stopped at the edge of my desk.
“That makes two of us,” I said, not bothering to look up as I drew an X and then two more checkmarks.
I couldn’t shake the image of him with Patricia. It was probably nothing, but my mind wouldn’t let it go. Why were they meeting so late?
“If this is too much for you, I can always find someone else to help. I would’ve asked Blake, but considering he is absent again, I doubt he will be reliable.”
I looked up from the grading and stared at Mr. Sharpe. Was he doing this on purpose? Trying to piss me off so I’d quit? Or was this some other kind of test I wasn’t aware of? Because I couldn’t figure out what being an asshole got him.
“I’m perfectly fine. Those two piles are complete, and I only have a handful left.
If you like, I’ll drop them off in your office when I’m done.
And as for Blake, he took his father, who was shot, to the hospital for his check-up,” I said, flatly.
“I’d appreciate you not being so ignorant and condescending toward Blake. I find it very unprofessional.”
His jaw twitched, and his eyes went from cool to hard, but he didn’t intimidate me. I had started asking myself, What would Edmundo Genovese do? or WWEGD, for every situation like this. I waited for Mr. Sharpe to respond, but he seemed unnerved by my candor and at a loss for words.
“Don’t take too long, Davies,” he said, scooping up the completed piles as he walked away.
That was enough. I was done with Sharpe’s attitude and sick of people talking down to me.
“It’s Genovese,” I said firmly to his retreating back.
Sharpe stopped and slowly turned around.
“I guess you hadn’t heard. I’m surprised, considering it was last week’s hottest gossip after my father arrived and caused a scene. My father is Edmundo Genovese, and from now on, I would like to be addressed with my proper name.”
The words, and treated with respect, were insinuated by my tone. I held Sharpe’s stare, unbothered by his arrogance. He licked his lips, his eyes betraying his shock and maybe fear. It was hard to tell since the look was quickly masked.
“Very well, I’ll call you Ms. Genovese.”
It was technically Mrs. now, but that was still on a need-to-know basis.
“Or Ren, I’m good with either,” I said, giving him a small smile and marking the next test. “I’m glad we got that settled.”
I checked off a few more questions and then glanced up at Mr. Sharpe when he didn’t leave.
“Was there something else you wanted to discuss?” I made sure to use the same condescending tone he’d given me of late.
“No, just leave the papers in my office,” he said, and I nodded while continuing my work.
Mr. Sharpe grabbed his leather briefcase and marched out.
“Well, now, that was icy,” Liam said.
I glanced over at the exit closest to me. Most of the classrooms were designed with two doors in case of a fire. At some point, Liam had opened it and was leaning against the frame. I couldn’t say when he had arrived. He was stealthy like that.
“It was definitely something,” I said, double-checking that I hadn’t missed anything before placing the test aside. “He’s always been tough, but this is different. He’s been strange ever since I got back from my accident. What do you think is going on?”
Liam shrugged and walked inside.
“I don’t know. But until you’re done, I’m going to snoop around his desk.”
“I doubt he left anything.”
“Maybe, maybe not, you’d be surprised how stupid some people are,” Liam said, and strolled to the front of the class.
I quickly finished the last few and collected my things. Flicking my ponytail out from inside my jacket, I shouldered my backpack, then grabbed the test papers.
Liam was inspecting the garbage he had dumped on the desk, using a ruler to sort through the pile.
“What are you hoping to find among the banana peels and tissues?”
“No idea, but when I find it, I’ll know,” he said.
“And what if there is nothing to find? You said that your guy couldn’t pull up anything shady on him. No large transfers of money, no family connection to Patricia, not even a speeding ticket.”
“Everyone has skeletons they don’t want the world to know about. When someone seems too clean, they’re probably hiding something.”
Liam used the ruler to swipe everything back into the wastepaper bin. Setting it down, he looked at me.
“Has he said anything inappropriate?”
“Like sexual?”
Liam nodded.
I shook my head. “No.”
“Ever seen him slip anything into his coffee?”
“You think he’s drinking on the job?”
“I think he’s hiding something. Until I figure out what that is, I don’t trust him, and I don’t want you to be alone with him.”
Liam tucked a wild, runaway piece of hair behind my ear and then ran his thumb over the blue necklace he’d given me. I shivered at the intense look in his eyes.
“I was thinking of spending a weekend away with you and Theo. Would you like that?”
Liam’s voice took on that sexy, seductive edge that drove me crazy.
“Sounds amazing,” I said, heat flushing my cheeks at the possibilities.
“Good, I’ll set it up.”
He held out his hand, and my eyebrow shot up.
“Don’t make a big deal of it,” he said, and I smirked as I linked our fingers.
Liam was far more affectionate now than when we first got together. And now and then, he took it a step further. Holding hands for everyone to see was big for him.
Our feet echoed in the quiet hallway. There were only a few stragglers left in classrooms as the janitors moved in to clean for the day.
“I’m going to text Vadin,” I blurted out. “Like other than for the dinner.”
In typical Liam fashion, he just kept walking and didn’t say anything.
“Are you asking for my permission,” he asked.
My hand tightened on his fingers.
“No. I’m just wondering what you think? I value your insight.”
We stepped outside. The sun had been strong all day, and there was no wind, so it felt like spring. It was a nice change from the harsh bite of winter.
“Are you reaching out as his granddaughter? Or as Mrs. Genovese, princess of both the Genovese and Mikhailov bloodlines, daughter of the most powerful Don of Dons, and heir to a criminal empire?”
Despite the warmth, I could still see the puff of air I let out as we walked down the path.
“Wow, hearing the title out loud is overwhelming.”
Liam pulled open the door to the main building, and we went inside.
“Both,” I said, following Liam down the hall to the teacher’s offices.
They were located on the first floor, in the same wing as the freshmen classrooms. Having not arrived until junior year, I had never been down here before.
“What is your main driving force to make contact with him,” Liam asked.
“He said that he regrets what happened with my mother. Maybe I…I just need someone to fucking apologize for destroying my family. Is it really too much to ask that someone take responsibility for ruining lives? My mother and I were almost killed and forced into hiding. It pisses me off that Lawrence caused so much damage and never cared. We know that Christov has no remorse, but Vadin is my family. My flesh and blood. He let all this terrible shit happen. So yeah, I want to know what exactly he regrets.”
“Will it make you feel whole if he says sorry?”
I glared up at Liam, but he ignored the silent berating.
“Probably not,” I said, sighing.
“But you still want to hear it?”
I looked around to make sure no one was around as I pulled him to a stop.
“Don’t you ever want to hear something just because it brings you a little bit of peace? Like, I’m sorry, or I was wrong, or you were right. Have you ever just needed to hear the words?”
“I’m not criticizing your choice, just making sure you understand what is driving you to reach out to a man who, by your own words, destroyed your family.
He held your mother prisoner. Betrayed your father and knew Christov abused your mother and did nothing to stop it.
Ultimately, it is because of Vadin and Christov that your mother ran, and you ended up with a fake identity.
We still don’t know if he is the one who had your mother murdered.
Is he after you next? The hit in Canada wasn’t successful, so now he’s come to finish the job himself. ”
I shivered.
“Will his apology make up for any of it?”
Liam had made his point. I looked down at my feet, but he touched my chin and raised my head. He searched my face, and I knew he was doing his mind-reading thing. He wasn’t really, but he was so damn perceptive that it felt like it.
“No, it won’t change anything,” I said.
“Then I ask you again. Why reach out?”
My shoulders rose and fell as I gathered my thoughts.
“Because my dad told me his version, and we’ve speculated on other things.
I want to hear from the person who set all of this heartbreak in motion.
I want to know why he hated my mother and cared so little about me that he allowed me to live in such a toxic environment.
And you’re right, we don’t know if he tried to kill me twice, but maybe I can get some answers. ”
“Then prepare yourself, you may not get any of that. Vadin could give you a sob story or an outright lie. You will need to decipher the truth. This will hurt your heart. Sometimes, when we dig too deep, we expose ourselves to more pain and things we can never unhear, unlearn, or unsee. Be sure that forming a connection with this man, even just for answers, is what you really want.”
“How did you get to be so wise?”
He gave me a mischievousness grin.
“I listen…a lot.”
We continued down the hall until we got to the office that Mr. Sharpe shared with Mr. Martelli.
I knocked, and a moment later, Sharpe opened the door. To my shock, Vicky sat in a chair behind him with a textbook open. She looked at me, rolled her eyes, and turned away.
“Yes, Ms. D…Genovese?”
Vicky snorted, and I could hear her bitterness.
“Was there anything else you wanted me to do,” I asked, holding out the completed tests.
“Yes, part of your TA duties includes office hours. I’ll be letting my students know that you are available for extra help. I’m busy right now, but you’ll get more specifics on the date and time later. Be prepared to keep some of your days and afternoons free and have a good evening.”
I nodded, and Sharpe closed the door in our faces.
“Well, isn’t that interesting,” Liam whispered as we walked away.
“Yeah, looks like we were wrong and it was just a parent-teacher conference with Patricia after all,” I said.
“It certainly looks that way,” he said, but his tone was laced with scepticism.
Liam didn’t say anything else, and I let it go for now.
If there was one thing I had learned from my time at Wayward, it was to stay alert. You never knew where the next punch was coming from.
Ding.
My phone vibrated in my pocket, and I pulled it out. There was a text from my dad.
Dad: Hi there, Lilya. I must cancel our dinner this Sunday. I’m leaving town for a few days, but I will be back sometime next week. Massimo and a few guards will remain behind. They are available for your protection if you wish to leave Wayward. Please use them.
An irrational fear swept through me. What if he left and never came back? It was silly, but I bit my lip and had to force the fear down.
R: Okay, no problem. Where are you going?
Dad: Italy, there is a bank issue that I must deal with personally. I’ll bring you back something special. Ti voglio tanto bene, a presto, figlia mia bellissima.
R: I love you, too, Dad.
“What’s wrong,” Liam asked.
“My dad is going out of town for the rest of the week.”
Liam gave me a little smile.
“Don’t worry, he’ll be back,” he said, knowing me all too well.
Nodding, I let him guide me toward the cafeteria.
God, how I wished I could gather everyone I loved, put them in a protective bubble, and never let them leave.