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Chapter 190
~Valerie’s POV~
"Some things are better left unsaid."
I respected Gamma Ryan even more when he uttered those words. "Thank you."
"No need to thank me, Valerie. It is your business. I cannot be a male gossip and tell him. As long as it does not affect your mission. Besides, having a dating life would also draw unnecessary suspicions from you."
"Don’t encourage her, Ryan," Solstice scolded as she sat cross-legged, arms folded in front of her chest.
Ryan nodded. "Although..." his attention returned to me. "Is this a blessing in disguise or a curse for being a naughty troublemaker?"
Solstice cackled beside me, clutching her stomach as she laughed hard.
I groaned and buried my face in my hands. "You... whose side are you on, Gamma Ryan?"
Ryan laughed. "Kid, you know I love you dearly. Of course, I am on the side of comedy."
Solstice’s voice rang out once more. I shot her a glare and she nodded, lifting her hands in mock surrender.
"You two are impossible."
————
Ryan’s suite was warm, but the cold clarity in my chest had finally settled. Information always did that to me—like I could breathe again.
Even if the answers weren’t immediate, at least I had something.
He offered us some snacks from home, we ate, thanked him and left after a while.
Solstice complained about her legs cramping up in the cab and cursed Ryan under her breath for being too cryptic, but she didn’t ask to go back to school.
That was the thing about Solstice. She complained. She rolled her eyes. But when it mattered, she was there.
I texted Erik to cover for us, just in case any patrols noticed we were missing. The guy had helped me many times. Additionally, he enjoyed finding excuses to stretch his hacking skills.
By the time we slipped through PSA’s main gates, the first bell hadn’t even rung. Technically, we weren’t late. Barely.
However, the atmosphere was different. Sharper. Like the eye of the storm had just passed, and everyone was waiting for the next thunderclap.
Solstice immediately took out her phone, scrolling through God-knows-what, and then she gasped.
Titania’s scandal had hit the gossip boards like wildfire. The second one in less than a week—only this time, it wasn’t mine.
Footage, voice memos and a long, scathing thread breaking down her insults about the other Fae courts.
Someone had uploaded it all with high-def audio and snide commentary. She was roasted, grilled, and served to the wolves.
But if you thought that would humble her?
Think again.
As Solstice and I crossed the courtyard, talking, Titania stormed toward us from the opposite path, chin high, eyes rimmed with red, but her mouth twisted in fresh rage.
This time, I did not see her with any lingering minions, which got me wondering if she thought she was capable of making that fight happen.
"You just couldn’t help yourself, could you?" she snarled, planting herself in front of us, her voice louder than necessary. "Having six mates wasn’t enough? Now you’re sneaking off to hotels with strange men, too? Is that your alibi after trying to tear me down wrongly?"
Okay, she was definitely trying to toss blame my way and create a scandal for me. Too bad I wasn’t interested.
The few students around us perked up like pigeons at dropped breadcrumbs.
Solstice blinked, then scoffed. "Oh goddess, not this again."
"Ignore her," I muttered.
Solstice didn’t. "No. Actually, Valerie, no. Who do you think you are calling a slut, little royal roach?"
The courtyard stilled.
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