One Night With My Alpha Professor by Eve Above Story

Chapter 261

Audrey

“Does this man look familiar to you?”

Edwin slowly pushed the drawing across the cold metal interrogation table. Sophia sat on the other side of that table, her hair hanging in her face, her eyes ringed with dark circles, and her orange jumpsuit wrinkled.

She’d been in solitary confinement for days, and yet somehow, she still hadn’t cracked.

But she would today. Because the drawing that Joseph gave us… It had to mean something. And Sophia knew what it meant. We were sure of it.

Her expression was unreadable as ever as she slowly leaned forward and inspected the drawing. There was a brief silence before she shrugged and leaned back in her chair.

“I’m afraid I don’t recognize that man,” she replied casually.

I leaned forward, pressing my fingers into the cool metal. “Really? Because that little human boy with soot in his lungs, Joseph, seemed pretty adamant that this man–‘Mr. B‘–had something to do with his torment.”

Sophia’s lips curled into a small smile, cold and humorless. “Children say and do the darndest things, don’t they?”

My blood began to boil at the corrupt orphanage director’s cool attitude. I wanted to throttle her until she finally spilled whatever secrets she was hiding. And I almost did. I could feel my muscles tingling to leap across the table and show her what happened to people who didn’t cooperate.

But then Edwin’s hand brushed against my arm, pulling me out of my temporary stupor. “Tread lightly,” his voice echoed through our Mindlink. “She’s cracking. I can feel it.”

He was right; I could see the flicker of something in her eyes, the tiniest crack in her calm facade.

So I took a breath to steady myself and stepped back, letting my mate take over.

“Let me tell you what I see,” Edwin said, his voice deceptively soft. “I see the face of a man. A man who is apparently connected to you. A man who is involved in the illegal buying and selling of human children from your orphanage.”

Sophia remained silent.

“At least, that’s how it seems,” Edwin said, folding his arms across his chest. “Perhaps I’m wrong. And perhaps, if I sentence you to death, I’ll never get the opportunity to find out if I am wrong.”

Her smile faltered. Just for a second, but it was enough. “You’re bluffing,” she said with a huff.

But when it comes to children,

know,” I said slowly, carefully, “then

before she said a little too quickly, “I don’t know what you’re talking about. I–I don’t know any ‘Mr.

her face for any crack in the mask she had so carefully constructed. She was

it. The tiniest shred of uncertainty in her mind. The barest fracture in

could steel herself

me, and I was

me–children crying, men in uniforms, unmarked vans. A pile

an envelope fat with cash. “He wanted me to instruct you to put this money toward your infirmary. We need the kids healthy

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Chapter 261

flipped through the bills in her hand. “I hope he left extra for me. I won’t sink

There’s plenty left over for

phantom wind, I was thrust out of Sophia’s mind. Those mental walls of hers slammed back up, thicker than before, but

through the bond so Edwin could see for himself. “She has been selling the children. To

widened. “Atticus B.,” he said slowly. “I can think of one

suddenly felt as if the floor disappeared from beneath my feet. Mr. Black…

this true?” I asked, turning to face Sophia again. “This ‘anonymous benefactor‘ of yours… Was his name Atticus

as she realized that she’d been

she choked out. “I–I just took the money. He… he wanted the children in good condition before they were taken. Some…

was sick, wasn’t he? Atticus didn’t want him because he wasn’t healthy

tears

what she had done. She could have refused the offer, could have said no. But she

each other and left the interrogation room. Sophia’s sobs were cut off as the door slammed shut behind

was holding. “But we can’t just storm one of the trucks. We

table, a couple of candles casting flickering light on the walls. Peter ran his hands through his hair in one

We needed as many minds working on this problem as we

we should follow one of the trucks,” Charles, who was pacing behind the sofa, mused. “See where they’re headed, then

up on one of those