Chapter 45

AUGUST 25 – THURSDAY 1:20 PM

B lake

I rolled my eyes as I walked into my new bedroom and found Theo kissing Ren. As if Myles and all his poetic prose weren't bad enough. I had agreed to this, but fuck me, I wanted to hit my brother—in all of his perfect glory—every time I saw him touch her.

And, of course, Theo would plan a few days away, and it would go perfectly. No shootouts. All sweet gestures and a ride on his bike to add extra sex appeal. If the rest of us tried that, the building would collapse around us, or a hurricane would try to sweep us away. Unbelievable, I wanted to steal the horseshoe he had shoved up his ass and beat him with it.

Ren jumped when I dropped the box at the foot of the bed. Theo glared at me. "What? I'm working. Something you're supposed to be doing."

"How did I end up stuck in a room with you again," Theo asked, and I shrugged.

"No clue. Maybe Dean Henry was sick of you and Liam keeping everyone up all night," I said. He looked at me like I was ridiculous.

"You don't normally get a new roommate each year," Ren asked, and I shook my head.

"Nope. It's pretty much whoever you start with freshmen year. You're with them until you graduate. Well, everyone except Vicky. She couldn't keep a roommate if she paid them, and we've never even heard of a room of three before." Nash, Liam, and Myles were all in the same room.

"That's weird. I know why I got a new roommate, and I'm happy it's Ivy, but I just thought that was the norm." Ren looked between Theo and me. "Is it safe having the two of you live together?"

"I've lived in the same house with him my whole life. I think I can handle one year of school," I said.

"Him is standing right here, but yes, we should be fine," Theo grumbled, walking to his side of the room and opening a box. The hallway was loud and chaotic as students, school helpers, and even parents wandered around. Music was playing from almost every room.

I sat down on my bed and opened my box. I traveled fairly light, but I did have a few things I liked to have out, and now I had a picture of Ren and me in Canada. Ren sat down beside me and put her head on my shoulder. We stared at the frame in my hands. That small act made everything all better.

"Have either of you heard from Myles," Theo asked.

"No," we answered together.

"That's good," Theo said, and Ren sat up straight.

"Why is that good?"

He shrugged. "No news is good news. If he were in trouble, he'd call. If he were dead, we'd already know. Silence until he's back is what we want." Ren shuddered beside me, and I pulled her into my side.

"Are you fucking kidding me?" We all looked at the door as we heard Nash bellow.

"I guess Nash just found out he has two roommates." We laughed and, unable to resist watching the drama unfold, walked over to Nash's new room next to ours.

The room layout was impressive. It was much bigger, with a communal table that could easily fit six. The vibe was very Knights of the Round Table.

"I don't do roommates. What the hell is this," Nash asked as we stepped into the room. Liam was already lounging on his bed, watching as Nash stomped around. "And who the hell has the third bed?"

"Myles, when he gets back," Liam answered.

"How the hell am I supposed to get laid with the two of you in here?"

Liam shrugged. "The way you do any other time and go somewhere else."

Nash glared at him, but Liam kept tapping on his phone and ignored the tantrum and the unraveling.

"You better not think about having sex in here…oh shit, neither of you. The fucking dean dropped me in the middle of an orgy that I'm not hosting. Worst nightmare ever." Picking up his box, he turned it over and dumped it on his bed.

"Of course, that would be your major concern," Ren commented, and Nash's furious gaze locked on her as if happy to finally have a target for his rage.

"Don't you have boxes to unpack? Or something, anything to do on your side of the school like…dust? I've seen way too fucking much of you lately." If he was trying to hurt her, it didn't work. She just smiled until he snarled like an angry dog before marching into the bathroom and slamming the door.

"This should be an entertaining year," Theo said as he walked over and sat on Liam's bed. They were never cuddly. That just wasn't them, but there was tension in the way they looked at one another. They used to be on the same page, but after Canada, everything had turned on its head.

"We should get naked before he comes out," Liam said, an evil smirk spreading across his face. He looked directly at Ren. "You know, give him a real show."

If he was hoping to make Ren jealous, he missed the mark, just as Nash had. I almost burst out laughing as she slipped her hand into mine. "Well then, we better get going. Take lots of pics. I want to see Nash's face. Enjoy, boys," she sang sweetly as we walked out the door and down the hall. "Are they acting strange to you?"

"Yeah, I thought you would know what was up." She shook her head.

"I hate this. I don't want them to break up because of…well, everything that's happened since we left my house…or what was left of my house." She came to a sudden stop. "I still can't reach my dad. I've tried every few days and sent countless texts. They all go unread. Either he's changed his number and didn't tell me, or…something bad has happened. Maybe I shouldn't care, but I do. There's a feeling in the pit of my stomach that he's been pushing me away on purpose. Maybe he was pushing me and my mum away because of Lawrence. Then again, he could've taken money from Lawrence for the information about me and ran. Shit. Am I just grasping at straws? I don't want to think the worst of the man who raised me. Whether he's my biological father or not, he's the only father I remember. I need answers and not just confirmation of my paternity. I don't even have access to the house here to do my own DNA testing. Dammit, I wish I'd thought to take an old comb or something of his from Canada. Sorry, that was a lot."

"Shit." I ran my hand through my hair, tugged Ren back into mine and Theo's new room, and closed the door. "Shit, shit, shit."

"What is it?" Ren crossed her arms as I paced.

"I suck at keeping shit from you. Okay, please don't be pissed we didn't say anything right away. There has been a lot going on, and Myles's birthday was coming up, so we thought it was best to keep this to ourselves." She narrowed her eyes, and I swallowed. "Theo and I got confirmation that your mother was married to that Christov guy, which I know you knew, but we saw a photo of you as a baby with your mom in Russia. We think Christov is definitely your bio father. Neil fell in love with your mother and adopted you, making you a Davies to protect you. We also found out that Christov was violent and not good to your mom." Her eyes softened, and I could see her thinking. Walking over, I placed my hands on her shoulders.

"How do I find out for sure? Can we somehow get Christov's DNA? Do you have any connections that could help?"

I shook my head. "I know someone you do need to meet. But Christov can't help. He is…well, he's dead." Her eyes went wide. "We don't want to reach out and ask too many questions that could lead to where you are. We still don't know who exactly is after you. If your mom ran from her in-laws that would cause a huge embarrassment for them and your mother's family."

"How did he die?" I just stared at her, and her mouth dropped open. "You think my mum killed him and went on the run?"

"I think it's very likely. We can't find a coroner report, and like I said, we can't just call. If his family is still seeking revenge, then they could be the ones after you."

My hands fell away from her shoulders as she walked away and sat down at my desk. "This is insane. Just when I think things can't get any more outrageous, they do. I'm trapped in a movie of spies and espionage, and I can't get out. I want to be a girl. Is that too fucking difficult?" She looked up at me. "I am not my mum. I had no control over anything that happened. Why kill me?"

Sighing, I sat on my bed and stared at her. "That's not how our world works. We don't live by the same laws as everyone else. If I killed someone from a prominent family, there would be retribution, and if they couldn't get to me, they would go after those closest to me. An eye for an eye."

"But they already killed my mum."

"We don't know if those that killed your mom and the attack on us at the house are the same group of people," I said, hating to lay this on her.

"Great…just great. Who told you all of this?"

The door opened, and Theo growled, "I fucking told you not right now, so just give me time…." He froze when he saw us, and I realized that he was talking to Liam, who was behind him. "Apparently, we both had the same idea for a private conversation." His phone buzzed. He looked at it and rolled his eyes. "Just as well anyway. Ren, Dean Henry is requesting our presence. Apparently, we are needed for freshman orientation."

"Me? Why," she asked.

"Because we are number one and two in the Senior class. He wants to show us off like shiny toys," Theo said.

"It's more like one and one, but I get it."

"Nope, pretty sure I still have a point on you," Theo said and crossed his arms as Ren stood.

"Not for long. I plan on leaving you in my dust this year," she said, hitting my brother with a challenging glare.

"Bring it. I can't wait to see you try. But at the end of Senior year, the V for victory and valedictorian will be pinned to me." He gave her a cocky smile, and she growled as she stomped across the room.

"Let's go, we wouldn't want to disappoint the dean, now would we. Unless, of course, you two would like to continue your private conversation," she said teasingly.

"Wouldn't need a fucking private conversation if it wasn't for you," Liam snarled. It was as if the air was sucked out of the room as Liam glared at Ren and then Theo. "Guess we'll talk later," Liam turned around and walked away. Silence fell on the three of us.

"Great move-in day. I'm already having so much fun," I said and then burst out laughing.

Ren smiled but then pointed at me. "We're not done with our conversation. Don't think I'm going to forget."

I raised my hands in surrender but prayed that she did. Telling her about Christov was just to keep her from snooping any deeper. Knowing Ren, she'd hunt down a phone number and call the Ivankovs to bitch them out because she thought their retaliation on her was ridiculous. That was bad enough, but telling her about my mom and Nadia wasn't something I wanted to do.