Page 61 of Deposed

Charlotte threw her hands in the air. “I didn’t say she hid in her room!” She stormed across the podium and hurried down its steps. “H-Hobson’s hated me since the day we met. She hates us all. That’s why she leaked all that information to the Saturday Correspondent!”

Gasps broke out across the room. I pressed my lips together and sucked in a breath through my flared nostrils. They hadn’t reacted to hearing that Charlotte had arranged my abduction, which was typical for the residents of Elder House. They would believe anything about me… Even if it was true this time.

“I saw bank statements with payments from the Correspondent with my very eyes.” Edward tightened his arm around me. “There were also checks payable to Carbuncle from the newspaper in his filing cabinet. Everyone, including Mr. Chaloner, was convinced of his guilt before he escaped to avoid charges.”

I stilled, and warmth trickled into my heart, making it swell. Edward had defended me, even in the face of irrefutable evidence that I had been the leak. My fingers curled around Edward’s side, and I gave him a squeeze I hoped would convey my gratitude.

Charlotte paused at the door and clenched her fists. “Carbuncle was loyal to the school!”

Blake folded his arms. “No… You’re loyal to Carbuncle.” He shook his head. “Scratch that. You’re loyal to his cunnilingus ’stache.

I fought back a wave of revulsion and the memory of the janitor’s overgrown, spittle-covered mustache. The rest of the dining room filled with laughter, and Charlotte’s face turned the color of her blazer. She picked up a broken plate, threw it at my head, and missed. Someone in the back of the room jeered, and she raced out through the tables and out of the doors. I gave Blake a grateful smile. Between him and Edward, they had averted what could have ended up in a violent mob.

After straightening and smoothing down my uniform, I walked around and off the podium.

Alice rushed over to me, her eyes wide. “Is it true?”

“Yes,” I said through clenched teeth. Hadn’t she heard me explain everything out loud?

She clapped her hands over her mouth and made a theatrical gasp. At times like this, it was hard to forget that she was a doppelgänger double-agent. “Why did they do that to your face?”

“They wanted to prove to my stepfather that they meant business. Every day he didn’t pay, they would do something worse and release the photos to the press.” Edward pressed his palm against the small of my back and steered me away from his former… co-girlfriend, frenemy-with-benefits?

Alice chased after us. “To shame him into paying?”

“Something like that.” I sat at the table.

“Do you think she’s luring me somewhere?” She rubbed her chin.

“What do you mean?”

“Charlotte’s holding a party in London in two weeks. It’s the event she’s promised will revolutionize Mercia Academy and cement her role as its ruler.”

Chapter 21

“Alice,” said Edward with a long sigh. “I owe you the deepest apologies for the way things happened between us.”

She stepped back, eyes wide. “What do you—”

“But if this is another plan to lure Emilia into an ambush, I will destroy you, utterly.”

Her bottom lip trembled. “I-it isn’t.” She turned to me, eyes brimming with tears. “Ask Coates if you think I’m lying. Most boys in Elder and Hawthorn houses have bought their tickets.”

Blake’s brows rose. “They paid?”

Edward raised his hands. “I don’t want to hear it. Alice, leave.” She turned around and stormed out of the dining room, and then Edward turned to me. “I want you to stay away from Charlotte. She’s likely still in contact with Carbuncle, who will be on the run and desperate for money.”

I lowered my gaze to a plate of scrambled eggs and smoked salmon a server had slipped in my place setting. Edward was right, but Charlotte was still up to something, and I didn’t just mean my abduction. She had gained a level of overnight popularity that eclipsed the triumvirate and had managed to convince the boys to pay to attend her party. Would it be full of swingers?

“All the reason to go after her.” Henry slammed his crystal glass on the table.

My head snapped up. “You want to capture Carbuncle?”

“Beat him bloody, but yes, I suppose I’d have to capture him first.”

Blake clapped his hand on Henry’s shoulder. “I’ll be your second.”

“This isn’t a duel,” snapped Edward. “We’re not—”