Page 138 of Brutal Game

A past that was, thankfully, beginning to dim, making way for the bright future ahead of me.

But first I had to deal with whoever was calling my name.

I turned to see Dave Lawson standing there, hands in his pockets.

“Hey,” I said, startled.

“I owe you an apology.”

I looked him over, confused at how contrite he seemed. “For?”

He looked around to make sure no one else was listening. “I knew what Coach Jensen did to your brother. Knew it was true. Almost walked in on them, once. I’m sorry.”

Anger, bright and fast, filled me. “You fucking?—”

He lifted a hand. “I know. Believe me, I know. You and Asher deserve to rip my head off. I wanted his position on the team so badly, so I convinced myself it was consensual, and didn’t say anything.”

I processed his words.

“If you want to kill me, I get it. Or sic Jack on me. That works, too.”

I considered retribution for a moment. We’d needed his help, and instead of telling the truth, he’d used my brother’s pain for his own benefit.

“Who else knows?” I asked.

“Just me.”

I exhaled slowly. I could sic Jack on him. Could do worse.

But these days, revenge and justice didn’t carry the same weight they used to. My brother had his position on the team and his scholarship back—if and when he was ready. Joshua Jensen lay six feet under, worm food, something I didn’t lose any sleep over. Destroying Dave—what would it do, except reopen old wounds that were finally healing?

“I called your brother already. Apologized to him. He swore at me and hung up.”

I smiled faintly. “Good.”

“Aviva,” Dave said. “I truly, truly am sorry. I’m sorry for everything you went through, and if I can ever make it up to you?—”

“You can,” I said. “The next time you see someone take advantage of their power, you’ll act on it. You hear me?”

He nodded. “No matter what.”

“What are you two talking about?” Jack asked as he approached us, eyeing Dave with distrust.

“I’ll tell you later, baby,” I said, standing on tiptoe to kiss him. “But we need to get to class.”

With that, I put Dave Lawson behind me, in the past, taking Jack’s hand and pulling him toward the present.

There wasa strange woman sitting in Professor Johnathan’s seat when we arrived.

I gaped.

“Um…”

“Hi, I’m Dr. Maria Peters,” she introduced herself. “I’ll be replacing Dylan Johnathan for the remainder of the semester.”

I turned to Jack. “What did you do?”

Jack smirked. “Pulled some strings.”

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