Page 88 of Ruthless Legacy

Chapter Twenty-One

I‘m quiet on the drive to school. Giving my statement was harder than I’d expected it to be. When my voice had wavered, Archer had clasped my hand in his and stroked his thumb over my palm in reassurance. Seeing the CCTV from the side of the café had been even harder for me to watch. It was like watching it happen to someone else. Like I couldn’t equate that the girl on the screen was me. My stalker had been all in black, his face covered by a balaclava. There was no way they could identify him from the footage they had. My stalker had been clever and covered his face and hair.

We pull up at the academy and Archer kills the engine and I shake my head, pulling myself out of my thoughts. When I realise, he isn’t making a move to get out of the car either, I look over and he’s sitting there just watching me.

“What?”

“Scarlet. I need to tell you something. I wish I could take it back now, do things differently. Fuck, how do I explain?” He bangs his fist on the steering wheel.

I can’t get a read on his expression. Is that regret? Guilt?

“Okay. Well, spit it out Savage.”

There’s a loud thump on my window, making me jump sky high. “Morning mum and dad.” With my hand on my chest to calm my racing heart, I turn to find Seb standing at my window, grinning at me. He opens my door and holds it open for me. “Are you two planning on coming in today, or just staying here in the car park?”

I look back at Archer as I’m about to climb out and he just lightly presses his fist to his forehead and mutters that it doesn’t matter. Whatever it is he wanted to tell me, it obviously wasn’t important. I climb out of the car and Vee bounds over and links arms with me.

“How are you feeling?” Her big expressive eyes look me over.

“I’m okay. I think.”

She rubs her hand along my arm in comfort. “Well, you now have four bodyguards. Everywhere you go, we go. You need to pee. I will go with you. You need to go for a run… yeah, Archer will go with you. I don’t do running.”

I smile at my friend. She always makes me smile and lifts my mood and I love her for it.

“Eliza!” I stop in my tracks, hearing my brother’s voice, then see him striding towards me with relief etched across his face. He ploughs into me and throws his arms around me. “Are you okay? Calvin told me about last night.” He pulls back and does a scan of my body. “Are you okay? Are you hurt?”

I smile at him and gently pinch his cheeks. “I’m okay, I promise. Take more than some creepy arsehole with a knife to take me down.” I’m doing what I always do, putting on a brave face to protect my little brother.

“Don’t do that,” he says with a deep sigh. “Don’t pretend you’re okay when you’re not.”

I shake my head, keeping the smile plastered on my face. “Hey. I’m okay, I promise. Yeah, it was scary, but I’m here. I’m safe.” I’m not sure who I am trying to convince more — him or me.

He pulls me in for another hug. “Me and you against the world,” he whispers in my ear so the others can’t hear.

“Always,” I tell him as we pull apart. “Now, go on. Get to class and stop worrying,” I insist shooing him away with my hand and, with some reluctance, he leaves and catches up to his friends who are waiting for him near the school’s main entrance.

We head inside and I falter in my steps when everyone stops what they are doing and stares at me. Great! It looks like news has got around my attack last night.

“Don’t worry about them. They’ll have something else to gossip about by lunchtime,” Vee assures me, glaring at the people staring as we walk past them. All four of them walk me to my first class, much to my embarrassment. Archer insists he’ll be here at the end of class to take me to my next one.

As I enter the room, I find Georgie glaring at me from behind her desk. “Are you banging all four of them now? It’s really pathetic that you have to make up stories about being attacked to keep his attention.”

“I’m pretty sure gang-bangs are your thing, not mine, George,” I counter-back as I take my seat at the back of the room next to Silver.

Her cold eyes follow me as she yells at me that her name is Georgie, not George, and I can’t help but grin that I got a rise out of her. I know full well what her name is, but calling her George is such fun.

“Good to see you’re alive and well, princess,” Silver greets, leaning back in his seat, his legs stretched out under the seat in front of him.

“Don’t you start,” I hiss. I pull my tablet out of my bag and dump it on my desk.

“Seriously though, are you okay?”

I look up at him and see genuine concern there. “I’m fine.” I twist in my seat to face him. “Hey, could I ask a favour?”

He bobs his head side-to-side. “It depends what kind of favour, princess.”

I look around the classroom to make sure Georgie or anyone else isn’t listening in, and I lower my voice. “I need you to do some digging for me. I think my mum might have lived in the next village. I need to find out where she lived and if she has any living relatives.”

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