Chapter 4

No wonder Wendy had told me not to come to campus. It turned out I'd already become everyone's target.

Besides the thread still boiling on the school forum, little posters of me were stuck up on bulletin boards all over campus.

Princess No. 3 of Mansion Eight, Escort No. 36 of the Enigma dynasty. Apparently I led a very rich double life.

I photographed each one as I passed.

By the time I reached my dorm building, Wendy was tearing a poster off the door outside our room. Her little face was flushed with fury, and she looked ready to fight anyone who came near.

"Our Frey isn't that kind of person. Don't you dare slander her."

Wendy was going at it with a few of Sheila's cronies. One of them shoved her hard, and she went down.

I walked toward them, phone up, filming the whole thing.

"Everything you're doing right now, I'll pay it all back to you one day, twice over."

I stared at the three of them, expressionless. The moment they saw the camera, they panicked and bolted.

I sent Wendy back to the dorm and went to find Sheila.

I'd just reached the door of Sheila's room when I caught the conversation inside.

"You have no idea, when I heard Caleb Gilbert and Freya Cox were getting engaged, I was so worried for Shelly. I thought she was just going to hand them over to each other, no fight at all."

Another voice let out a cold little snort. "As if. Shelly's said it all along, she and Caleb are the real thing."

The line turned my stomach. I was about to push the door open when a voice message came in from Wendy.

I quickly stepped aside and picked up. "Wendy..."

"Frey, hurry over to Professor Lambert's, please. These rumormongers are unbelievable. Professor Lambert only said a few words in your defense, and now they've turned on her too."

"They're saying Professor Lambert was selling herself right along with you."

These utterly heartless creatures. Last life they hounded me and my mother to death. This life I got my mother out of harm's way early, and now they'd turned their aim on the teacher who'd been kindest to me.

I would never let them off easy.

Walking, I texted Wendy: Wendy, help me get in touch with that senior of ours over at the law school. Have him draw up a complaint for me about Sheila slandering me.

Wendy and Burton Delgado from our law school had gone to the same high school, and she'd mentioned him to me once at a mixer. He was the only person I could think of right now.

I had Sheila's contact, so I sent her a message: Sheila, I'm warning you not to push your luck. Knock it off while you can. You want Caleb Gilbert? He's yours, take him. But if you dare hurt Professor Lambert, I'll come at you with everything I've got.

After I sent it, there was no reaction from Sheila. She's actually sharp. She knew that at a moment like this, saying more wouldn't necessarily help her, so silence was the smart move.

No reply from her, no matter. My plan wasn't changing.

On my way to find Professor Lambert, I called Caleb Gilbert.

The second the call connected, Caleb acted like I'd be the one begging him.

"Freya, I told you, throw your little tantrum and be done with it. Don't take it so seriously. Think about it, who else would want you if you left me?"

The line was so absurd I didn't know whether to laugh or cry. Why had I ever loved this man? And who exactly had handed him that sense of superiority?

"Caleb Gilbert, I'm formally notifying you. Pass this along to Sheila. I'm going to sue her, officially. She can sit and rot in a cell."

When Caleb heard that, his voice suddenly climbed.

"Freya, what the hell are you trying to do? I already told you, Shelly was just joking. Do you really have to blow it up into some huge deal?"

"This time I'm blowing it up into a huge deal. You and your girl-buddy can go off together, only it'll probably be in prison."