Page 281 of Depraved Boys

He rushed up to the bedside, grabbed my uninjured arm, and pressed a kiss to my hand. “Willow.” His voice was choked. “You nearly killed yourself to get a confession. You should have jumped the moment you found out.”

“Not that it’s unappreciated.” Sebastian brought in two chairs and drew the curtains around us. “As soon as Mr. Pinkerton’s contacts at the Crown Prosecution Service heard the recordings, they dropped the case against Kash. But you should have put yourself first.”

Shaking my head, I drew Prakash close for a hug. His bergamot scent, the feel of his smooth skin against mine, his very presence filled my heart until it overflowed. Cormac had falsified so much evidence against Prakash that a guilty verdict was guaranteed. I hadn’t realized that until Cormac had revealed his plan to punish Prakash.

I threaded my fingers in his silken hair, still giddy at the thought that his name was clear. When I finally raised my head, it was to find Leopold and Sebastian staring down at me. I supposed they wanted me to promise that I’d never put myself at risk for them.

“You three mean too much to me to leave anything to chance,” I said.

Sebastian leaned over Prakash and pressed a kiss on my temple. “No more putting yourself in danger. It’s our job to protect you.”

I gave him a wide smile. “Are you going to take care of me the same way you did at Christmas?”

Leopold snickered. “You’ll have three helpers, this time.”

Prakash drew back and lowered himself to the seat on my right. “I can’t thank you enough. If you hadn’t joined the academy when you did, I would be facing a long prison sentence for a crime I didn’t commit.”

“Aren’t you glad I didn’t listen to your warnings to leave?”

He gave me a wistful half-smile. “I would have missed out on meeting the woman I love.”

“Shit,” said Sebastian.

“What’s wrong?” I asked.

“I wanted to be the first to say I loved you.”

“Ha!” said Leopold. “I beat you both to it because I told Willow first.”

“You did?” I turned to my left and met Leopold’s sparkling, aquamarine eyes. “I don’t remember you saying any such thing.”

“You were sitting on my face at the time.”

The curtain flew open, and a furious-looking nurse glowered at us. “Boys, we have patients recovering from severe injuries. I’m going to have to ask at least two of you to leave.”

“My apologies.” Leopold guided the nurse out through the curtain and drew it closed.

Sebastian, Prakash, and I stared at each other in silence for several moments. This felt like Economics class, where Mr. Begg would send Leopold out of the room for an inappropriate comment.

Before I could ask Sebastian to text Leopold, he appeared through the curtain with a sly wink and a roguish grin. He’d probably charmed the nurse into letting them all stay.

Sebastian turned to me, his green eyes shining with hope. “With the worst of the bullies gone, next year will be different.”

Leopold smoothed down my hair. “We’ll stamp out bullying in Brittas Academy and recruit successors who will do the same.”

Prakash raised his head and gave me the warmest smile. “Will you help us?”

Leopold laughed. “Of course she will. She’s our queen regent. Our royal court doesn’t work without Willow.”

EPILOGUE

With its sprawling gardens, complete with a gazebo covered in pink and orange roses, Springfield Manor looked more like a spa than a secure mental hospital. But on closer inspection, it was clear that the institution was designed to keep people inside, rather than out.

From the inside, it was impossible to tell that the tall evergreens hid the eighteen-foot-tall walls reinforced with barbed wire. Or that the internal doors were reinforced with layers of security.

I walked into a small parlor room with a beautiful view of the rose garden. A lone figure sat at a table laden with cupcakes and scones already sliced and prepared with jam and clotted cream. He wore the khaki tracksuit of an inmate but had somehow managed to make it look formal.

My throat dried. Even though half a decade had passed, Cormac looked exactly the same as he did when I’d last seen him in the Aston Martin. He had spent months in Cumbria Royal Infirmary before the doctors had deemed him fit to stand trial.