All Chapters of Sweetest Revenge: Chapter 21 - Chapter 30

I didn’t plan to talk to him. Not tonight, not like this.But when I catch sight of Jace leaning against the side of the old gym after practice, head bowed, hands on his knees like he’s carrying the weight of something heavier than just exhaustion, my feet move before my brain can stop them.I should turn around. I should keep walking, keep my distance, keep my focus on the real enemy—the shadow pulling strings I still can’t see. But the note, the break-in, the open window, all of it has carved a raw hole inside me, and for some reason I think he might have the answer.“Langston,” I call, my voice sharper than I feel.His head snaps up. The look he gives me is unreadable, but not empty. It’s too full—anger, suspicion, something darker swimming just beneath the surface.“Sinclair.” His voice is low, rough. “Come to twist the knife?”I cross my arms, trying to hide the tremor in my hands. “Depends. Do you deserve it?”That gets a humorless laugh out of him. He straightens, shoving his h

The ballroom at Blackridge Academy looks like it was stolen from some old-money mansion and dropped onto campus. Crystal chandeliers, velvet drapes, polished floors that reflect every careless step—it’s the kind of place where every glance feels like judgment. Tonight’s event isn’t just a dance. It’s a showcase. A parade of power wrapped up in tuxedos and gowns.And me? I’m standing in the middle of it all, trying not to suffocate under the weight of Eva Sinclair’s mask.My dress clings in all the right places, the one I borrowed from the drama department’s costume closet and altered until it looked expensive. My hair is sleek, my makeup precise, my smile practiced. On the surface, I’m Eva—transfer student, ambitious, mysterious. But underneath the sequins and smooth edges, I can feel Ava Carter clawing her way out.Because I know tonight is dangerous.The whispers started before I even stepped through the door. Too polished for a scholarship girl, someone said. Didn’t she used to liv

 I spend the next three days becoming a ghost. Not the invisible kind, though—I still show up to classes, still sit where I’m supposed to, still laugh at the right moments so no one suspects. But inside, I’m a shadow of myself. My body moves, but my mind is somewhere else. Back in that courtyard. Back in the heat of his mouth on mine. Back in the stupid, reckless choice that left me raw and aching.And Jace notices. Of course he does.He’s everywhere suddenly. In the halls, leaning against lockers like he owns the air I breathe. In class, turning his head just slightly so I feel his gaze burning into me. At lunch, across the cafeteria, his stormy eyes locked on mine like he’s daring me to look away.I always do.The thing is, I can’t face him. I don’t trust myself to. One look and I’ll remember how it felt, how he made me forget everything I swore I’d hold onto. And if I forget again, I&rs

 The first note should have been enough to scare me off. A warning, clear and simple. But Blackridge doesn’t operate in warnings—it operates in weapons. And tonight, I’m the one with a knife at my throat.The second note comes folded and tucked neatly into my history textbook. I find it when I open the book to take notes, the paper sliding out and landing on my desk. My pulse spikes before I even unfold it, because I already know what it’ll say.Hand it over. Or everyone learns who you really are.The tape. The flash drive sitting hidden inside my desk drawer under a false bottom I built myself. Proof of Noah, proof of Jace, proof of everything. Whoever’s pulling the strings knows I have it.My throat tightens. Around me, class drones on. The teacher’s chalk squeaks across the board. Students yawn, scribble, pass notes of their own. No one sees me freeze, no one notices the world narrowing to a single sente

 The note sat in my pocket all night, burning through the fabric like fire. I didn’t sleep. I couldn’t. Every creak of the dorm pipes, every shuffle of feet in the hallway made me jolt upright, certain someone was coming for me.By morning, my head was heavy, my eyes gritty, but the fear hadn’t dulled. If anything, it had sharpened, slicing at me with every thought. Someone knew about me. About Jace. About everything.I’d survived weeks at Blackridge by convincing myself I was the one in control. That I was always one step ahead. But standing in front of my mirror, hair pulled back tight, uniform buttoned to the throat, I didn’t feel like Ava Carter or Eva Sinclair. I felt like prey.I told myself I wouldn’t involve Jace unless I had to. But the universe seemed determined to laugh in my face, because the second I stepped into the quad, he was already there. Leaning against the statue like he owned it, jacket slung