Page 50 of Theirs to Ruin

Conroy paused, as if he wasn’t going to leave so easily, then he turned to me. “One more thing. Since you and Ava were roommates, your apartment is now a place of interest. We’re applying for a warrant, but it would be easier if you just gave us permission to search your room. Same goes for looking through your phone."

I had nothing to hide, but the idea of them going through my stuff made me uneasy. As for my phone…

My earlier text exchange with Bianca suddenly flashed through my head. She’s heard what Ava had said about me taking drugs and she’d threatened to teach Ava not to messwith me. But there was no way Bianca had killed Ava. It wasn’t Bianca’s ability to kill I doubted; it was her ability to leave me at the scene and on the hook for Ava’s death.

Dad’s lawyer pushed her way past Dad. "We all know the smart thing here is to follow procedure,” she said. “Go ahead and apply for the warrants, but I'll be surprised if you get them."

Conroy scowled. “Fine.”

The officers made their way to the door. The room felt like it was pulsing with tension, and I was grateful when the door finally clicked shut behind them.

My dad rounded me, his eyes blazing with anger.

“Why the hell didn’t you tell me about this roofie incident?”

Chapter 21

Camille

Iswallowed against my dry throat at my father’s angry question. He wasn’t a man anyone wanted on their bad side, not even me. I didn’t know what lay ahead of me, what punishment he’d decide I deserved. All I knew was I had to own this.

“Dad, I’m sorry. I made a mistake going there. I?—”

The door opened. It was Georgia Keele, my father’s aide, a sharply dressed woman with a blond bob and a computer tablet in her hand. My dad turned to her. They shared a brief, intense exchange, consisting mostly of my father pointing at the screen and murmuring in clipped tones.

Once Georgia had the information she needed, she gave me a cursory nod and exited the room, the door clicking softly behind her. Dad turned to back me, and I braced myself for his wrath.

“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you about sneaking into that bar and getting roofied,” I began. “But I was fine. I just didn’t want you to worry, so I didn’t say anything.”

He stared at me, his gaze piercing, then said, “I want to see the police report. Is there anything else I should know?”

“Like what?”

“Were you sexually assaulted?”

I flushed. “No. I wasn’t. I never even left the bar.”

I spent the next five minutes giving him a brief rundown on exactly what had happened, including that Kage had intervened and saved me.

“This is the O’Hare boy?” he asked.

I nodded, and he stroked his chin thoughtfully. After a long pause, he finally nodded. “Thank you for finally telling me. Now, Camille, since the doctor has assured me that you’re out of danger, I must be going. I hope you understand.”

“Of course, Dad,” I said. Even though I was used to him leaving, it still hurt.

“Before I go, however…”

Despite not wanting to attend CU at the beginning, I didn’t want to leave. I wanted to stick it out here. Reach Tier One. Maybe even learn what happened to Ava. I didn’t want to leave Bianca or Simone. Or Dante or Kage. But I was pretty sure my father was about to pull the plug.

I swallowed against a suddenly dry throat. “What is it, Dad?” I whispered.

"I've arranged for you to meet with theconciliantisin the next few days.”

What? Now that I hadn’t been expecting. An order to come home and prepare myself for a match in the future, sure. But this?

"You want to arrange my marriagenow?” I squeaked. “After everything that’s happened?”

He raised an eyebrow, his composure never faltering. "Especiallyafter everything that's happened."

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