Semua Bab The Professor Wants Me and So Does My Bestfriend: Bab 221 - Bab 230

RiverI had barely shut the car door behind me when I pulled out my phone and dialed Silas.He picked up on the second ring. “Still on him,” he said without needing a greeting. “Our guy just made another drop.”“Anything useful?” I asked, pressing the bridge of my nose with my fingers.He hesitated. “Not really. Same route. Same routine. Nothing we haven’t seen already.”I exhaled slowly. “Keep at it. Stay out of sight. I’ll call you if anything changes.”“Got it.”I hung up and leaned back in the driver’s seat, eyes staring up at the dark sky above my windshield. The stars tonight were faint, barely present as though even they were avoiding this godforsaken story.When I walked through the door of the house, I found Sage in the living room, barefoot, curled on the couch with a blanket wrapped around him. A lamp glowed softly beside him, casting a warm hue over the room, but his face was hard to read. He was more Guarded, Remote, I was beginning to think of the kidnapping had traumati

SageI could see the ripples in his expression, fleeting and almost imperceptible, before they disappeared beneath the calm again.He turned fully, adjusting the strap of his satchel as he faced me. “Of course.”I frowned. “You’re not exactly a great liar.”His lips curved slightly at that—just a ghost of a smile. “I’ve been accused of many things, Sage. Being a poor liar isn’t usually one of them.”I stepped closer, lowering my voice. “Then don’t lie. I know something’s going on. You leave the house in the middle of the night without saying anything, You show up after days of silence, you teach like it’s any other day, and now you’re just… brushing it off?”His eyes narrowed slightly. Not in irritation, more like calculation. He always looked like he was trying to read every variable in a room, including the people in it.“I appreciate your concern,” he said, voice low, even. “But there are things I need to handle. Alone.”“Is this about Kaiden?” I asked, without thinking. “Is there

KaidenThe chair creaked under my weight as I shifted again. My wrists were free, but it didn’t matter. The room was too white and sanitized with insanity. I had been here for days. Maybe longer. Time stopped making sense after the third sleep. Or maybe it was the fifth. There was no window. No clock. Just this chair, a steel table, and a tray of food that tasted like paste and old paper.I had just finished eating whatever the hell they’d dumped in the bowl this time. Some slop of rice and boiled chicken, no flavor, no salt. just enough to keep me alive. I stared at the spoon as if it would offer answers.Were they worried about me?Was Sage still crying in the professor’s arms?Was the professor... trying to find me?The thought stung worse than anything they’d done to me physically. Not knowing. Wondering if I’d already been mourned. Or worse, forgotten.My fingers tightened around the edge of the table. “Damn it,” I muttered.The door creaked open.And then he walked in.Desmond.

RiverI left the hospital room quietly, the sound of Sage’s even breathing was the only thing that kept me at peace. He needed the rest, and I needed clarity. The kind I could only find when I wasn’t staring at the bruises on his skin or replaying the sound of his broken voice in my mind.Once the door clicked shut behind me, I dialed Silas.“Boss,” he answered on the first ring.“I need updates.”“I’ve got a lead. He moved locations two days ago. Seems like he’s been shifting Kaiden every few days, probably trying to avoid detection. But I’ve narrowed it down to a four-block radius.”“Good. Keep the pressure on,” I said, jaw tightening. “And Silas… tonight, we will be sending him a warning.”“Yes, sir.”I ended the call and slid the phone into my coat pocket. The night air was cold, but it wasn't the wind that made me feel chilled, it was what I was about to do.Valarie.I could still see her in my mind, her soft smile, her lies sweetened like wine, her betrayal neatly wrapped in si

RiverKaiden was weightless in my arms.Not because he was light, but because something inside me went cold the second I saw him. His skin was pale, too pale. His body was gaunt, fragile in a way that made my chest cave in. I could feel his ribs even through the thin, tattered shirt clinging to his bruised body. I carried him like he was made of glass. His head lolled against my shoulder, strands of sweat-matted hair brushing my cheek. I wanted to tell him he was safe now, that I’d come for him, but the words caught in my throat.I was so engrossed in looking at him that I didn’t feel someone sneak up on me. I flinched subtle when I realized I had let my guard down.“You go,” Raines said, his voice steady behind me. “I’ll stay here until backup arrives. There’s more to uncover in this hellhole.”I paused at the threshold, turning slightly. The room reeked of rot, sex, and stale smoke. “Burn this place down,” I said coldly.He nodded. “With pleasure.”I walked out, Kaiden still in my