Betrayed, Then Back For Blood

Chapter 46

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Brandon trailed behind Ashton like a shadow, holding a cup of bubble tea in his hand. He offered it to Briar with a polite nod. “Miss Jennings, Mr. Wade picked this up for you on his way.”

Criar rolled her eyes, biting back a laugh.

She wasn’t one to turn down a kind gesture, so she took the cup and muttered a quick “Thanks.”

Ashton glanced at his watch, as if waiting for someone. Noticing Briar hadn’t touched the drink, he nudged her gently. “Give it a try. How’s it taste?”

Briar lowered her gaze, poked the straw into the cup, and took a sip. The chilled bubble tea was refreshingly sweet, with chewy, bouncy pearls that hit all the right spots. “It’s really good,” she said, her voice softening.

“Glad you like it,” Ashton replied, a satisfied nod accompanying his words. Just then, hurried footsteps echoed nearby. His gaze shifted from Briar’s lips, still damp with bubble tea, to the direction of the sound–just in time to see Frank barreling toward them. The warm smile on Ashton’s face vanished, replaced by a steely glare.

Frank, seeing Ashton’s intense stare, stumbled, almost falling. He even started mentally preparing for how he’d call an ambulance after Ashton inevitably beat him up. Trembling, he stood before Ashton and managed a shaky greeting. “Ashton…”

let out a cold

Brandon, hoping for a hint, but Brandon kept his eyes fixed straight ahead, giving

taking her to the infirmary, but instead, he

conditioning. She watched, utterly bewildered, as Marvin and Frank stared awkwardly at each other. Ashton

down, but that didn’t stop him from painting a version of events that would play well with Ashton. He emphasized the parts Ashton would

with Lydia, Mia, and Abbie in tow, the atmosphere in the

Briar, but she knew Frank, the department heartthrob, and Principal Marvin. She frowned, puzzled–Marvin rarely got involved in petty student squabbles.

Abbie froze, their confusion deepening when they

if they didn’t know who he was, the

confidence they’d wielded against Briar earlier evaporated, replaced by

two of them didn’t know Ashton, but his aura alone was enough to

thought hit her. ‘Why is he here? And why is he sitting next to

be… that Briar had Ashton

paled at