Page 45 of Bad Boy Billionaire Protector

“We wish you luck in your endeavors over the next two nights. Let the games commence.” The Professor declared gleefully.

I wondered what happened to those in the past who didn’t pass the tests. Was this the moment I would find out about how the students died? Of course, I had my own theory about what was really going on in The Order. From the information Adam gave me, I knew that the Professor had been blackmailing some members of The Order to keep their secrets. He had somehow found out about their deepest, darkest secrets and had threatened to release the information to their families if they didn’t pay him vast sums of money. We had evidence of payments being made to a secret bank account, all from made up names who didn’t exist. Andrew had done some digging and had been able to trace the payments back to those who had died.

Returning my attention to what was at play in front of me, one of the masked people stepped out of the circle and led the five of us candidates to a set of puzzles, similar to those Amber had to pass, except they were harder and we had to complete them on our own and not in a group. I passed the puzzle test easily and was the first person to finish. We all passed this test. I noticed Professor Owens nodding and smiling at my first triumph.

The second test had us running around the woods trying to hide from the inner circle. The object of the game was to not get caught. There was extra incentive not to get caught since the ones hunting us carried cattle prods with them. I heard the prods being used and the screams of people being caught. I easily passed this by hiding in a massive old tree trunk at the far end of the woods. I almost didn’t hear them calling the end of the test. When I arrived back at the clearing, two people had been eliminated and were taken away and bundled into a van.

For the third test, we were paired with a member of the inner circle for hand to hand combat. They had close combat weapons like knuckle dusters while we had only our bare hands. The person I was fighting was weaker than me, and I knew I could take him easily. Before long, I had him on the ground and was kneeling on top of his chest. This stuff was kind of easy, and I thought it was all a bit lame and tame. I wondered when we were going to get to the good stuff.

During a break, I cornered Professor Owens and had a little fun poking the bear.

I rounded on him. “Tell me, Professor Owens, I’m curious about the deaths of several students who attempted to gain entry into the inner circle. Did they make it this far? Did they disappear because they lost at these games and were punished?”

He frowned, blindsided by the question. “I…uh, well of course those deaths were devastating to the community and to the students’ families. Why would you think their deaths had anything to do with The Order?”

“They were all in The Order, and they were attempting to make it into the inner circle. Then, they killed themselves. It’s more than a bit strange, don’t you think?”

He rocked on his heels. “My theory is that they must have been ashamed of failing such a prestigious thing and couldn’t take it anymore.”

“Bullshit.”

“I’m sorry what?”

He stared at me with thunder in his eyes. I had struck a nerve.

“That’s bullshit and you know it. Why would they all kill themselves? Why would they all die in the same way? You know it doesn’t make sense…”

I trailed off and waited for his reaction.

He narrowed his eyes and stabbed his finger into my chest. “You ought to be very careful, Christos. You’re treading into murky waters. You could upset many powerful people and put yourself in danger.”

“Are you threatening me, Professor Owens?”

He chuckled and looked across at the group as it began to come together again, then looked back at me. “Oh, Christos. I’m merely warning you. What do you think would happen to the beautiful and innocent Miss Valentine if something were to happen to you? Of course, I would try to keep her safe but I couldn’t guarantee it.”

I stepped closer to the professor and stared him down. “That won’t be necessary. Nothing is going to happen to me. And nothing is going to happen to Amber. You get my meaning?”

I felt murderous. I would give anything to tear this animal apart piece by piece. He was going aftermygirl. He had made his intentions clear. I would do anything to keep Amber safe. Even cut the bastard into a thousand tiny pieces and throw him into the sea to get rid of him for once and for all.

If only murder wasn’t illegal.

Chapter 22 – Amber

Amber,pleasedon’tignoreme. I love you more than anything else in the world. I miss you. Get back to me, please.

I get it. You need your space. I’m here for you when you’re ready. I love you.

Mason had been leaving messages for me for the last three days and I had been ignoring them because I didn’t know what to say to him. But now I had a clearer mind and had gotten over the initial shock of finding out Adam was still alive. I missed Mason terribly and wanted to see him again. I’d found a new perspective on things and realized that Mason was the best person I know. He really hadn’t wanted to lie to me. He’d only done what he had to do because it was his job. He hadn’t intended to take advantage of me or hurt me.

I glanced at my phone and scrolled through some more of the text messages. They were really sweet and romantic and made me smile. It was the first time I’d smiled in days. I really missed him. I thought I’d seen him earlier today, but when I looked for him in the crowd he wasn’t there. It just made me feel worse for not speaking to him or seeing him. I just felt so sad and wanted to be with him.

Besides, I had more questions and needed more information. The only way to get that was to contact Mason and ask him.

I was so happy that Adam was alive but I felt a huge amount of uncertainty at seeing him again.How was he going to take the news that I had moved on without him?I shook my head. I couldn’t bring myself to think about him. Not yet. When this was all over I wanted to make sure that things would still be all right between us, but in a platonic way.

With a renewed energy mixed with apprehension, I waited outside Mason’s Classics class for him to come out. Professor Owens came out before Mason and he looked at me strangely, his eyes pinning me. He was so close he could have reached out and touched me. It felt as though he was undressing me with his eyes. I shivered and turned away. But I could still feel him staring at me, and when I looked back he was looking at me with lust in his eyes. He was disgusting. I wished that Mason would hurry up. The longer I stayed here the more creeped out I became. It felt like the professor was hunting me like a wild animal. I shivered again.

Mason eventually came out of the classroom. He looked surprised when he saw me. IMy whole body electrified when I saw him. He was just so handsome. I had missed that face, that dreamy smile, and his amazing body.

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