Page 95 of The Ruthless Note

Serena squeezes my hand and takes off behind him.

Principal Harris and the guidance counsellor are the last to leave.

The door clicks shut.

It’s just me and Miller.

I turn my attention to the smug man sitting across the table. All that money and power, more than I can ever see in a lifetime, and yet he takes such twisted pleasure in screwing over the people who have nothing.

“There were nicer ways to tell me you wanted out of our deal,” I say, my voice low and dark. “Ways that didn’t involve dragging innocent people into this.”

He dismisses my words with a shake of his head. “You’re the one who brought them into this, Miss Cooper. Not me.” Miller leans back and the chair creaks, protesting his weight. “Did you really think you could blackmailme?”

I see him scan my face, note my furious expression and find amusement in it. This is all just a game to him. One he can play because he’s rich, powerful and has a guaranteed win.

I fold my arms over my chest, refusing to be intimidated. “I guess this means you don’t care if your daughter goes to jail.”

“You little slip of a thing,” he says smugly. “So reckless. So completely ignorant to how the real world works.” The chair creaks again as his shoulders roll forward and his eyes fill with dark excitement. “Who will believe you? You already told the cops it was a misunderstanding. And even if you wanted to push it, I’ve already spoken to all my lawyers. If you come at us, we’re going to tear your statement apart limb from limb until youwishedyou’d never been born.”

My nostrils flare as I turn to him. “You’re pathetic.”

His laughter bounces against the ceiling and pings all around me like a nightmarish game of pinball.

I scowl. “You put us in a gladiator ring. You want us to bludgeon each other for your amusement. That makes you a sick bastard.”

He stops laughing, but he’s still wearing that cocky grin. “As much as you probably won’t believe me, this really isn’t my doing, Miss Cooper. We truly don’t have the budget for all three of you nor the interest in keeping more than two. This is the way life works. Good luck.”

I grab my backpack and storm out of the conference room.

When I get to the hallway, Dutch is there, leaning against the wall, one long leg stretched out while the other is braced behind him.

It irks me to see him so confident in himself. So untouchable. Even the way he slides to his full height and runs his fingers through his blond hair pisses me off.

I glare at him, letting the hatred wash anew. I never would have been caught in Miller’s web if Dutch hadn’t given the order to mess with my grades. I never even would have gotten on Christa’s radar if he hadn’t spent so much time trying to kick me out of Redwood.

Now things are this tangled, ugly mess, not just for me but for the people I consider my friends.

And I have no idea how I’m going to get myself out of it, much less them.

Dutch takes sharp steps toward me, his eyes somber. “What was that? What did Harris want with you and Sol?”

“Ask him.”

Dutch grabs my wrist. His angry eyes light on me. “I’m asking you, Brahms.”

My jaw clenches, and I let the words spill out of me. “They say there’s not enough space in the music program for all three of us. They want to kick one of us out.” Tears are burning the back of my eyes because, once again, I’m getting kicked in the teeth just for daring to exist.

“The hell? I thought dad forced you back into Redwood? Are they trying to get back at him?” The words are whispered under his breath.

“This isn’t about your dad. The person Miller really wants to punish is me, but Sol and Serena got caught in the net because they’re close to me.”

Dutch drops my hand. “You’re close to Sol?”

“That’s all you heard?” I let out a disbelieving scoff. “You know what? Forget it. It was a waste of time to tell you anything.”

The bell chimes again.

I knock into Dutch’s shoulder as I head down the hallway. He’s a prick as usual, but today, I really do have bigger things to worry about.

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