"Ms. Chen," Professor Morrison said suddenly. "Since you're new, perhaps you can offer a fresh perspective. In Romeo and Juliet, who is responsible for the tragedy? Romeo? Juliet? Their families? Fate?"
All eyes turned to me. I cleared my throat. "Everyone and no one. They made choices based on incomplete information. They trusted the wrong people. They acted on emotion instead of logic. And in the end, their love story became a tragedy because they couldn't see clearly."
"Excellent," Professor Morrison said. "Love requires clear sight. Blind love is dangerous love." She looked between me, Adrian, and Kai, and I swear she was smiling. "For your first assignment, I'm assigning partners. Ms. Chen, you'll work with Mr. Blake on an analysis of love versus obsession in Wuthering Heights."
My stomach dropped. Of course.
"Professor," Kai said immediately, "I'd be happy to work with Emma instead"
"Mr. Sullivan, you'll work with Ms. Montgomery," Professor Morrison said firmly. "No switching partners."
After class, Kai caught up with me in the hallway. "Emma, we need to talk."
"I know"
"Adrian Blake cannot be trusted," he said urgently. "I know what he told you last night. I know he claimed he was working with Sarah. But Emma, he's lying. The Blakes are master manipulators. It's what they do."
"And how do you know this?"
"Because I've been investigating them for a year! Because my father" He stopped, lowering his voice. "Because I know what they're capable of."
"Kai, you lied to me too," I pointed out. "About the deal you made. About why you really came here."
Pain flashed across his face. "I know. And I'm sorry. But Emma, I lied to survive. To stay here and protect you. Adrian Blake? He's lying to manipulate you. There's a difference."
"Maybe," I said. "Or maybe you're both lying and I'm the only one telling the truth."
"Emma"
"I have to get to my next class," I said, pulling away. "We'll talk later."
I felt his eyes on me as I walked away, felt the hurt radiating from him. But I couldn't deal with that right now. I had 44 hours left, and I needed answers.
My phone buzzed during my next class: "Tonight. Adrian's apartment. 8 PM. He'll show you what Sarah found. But Emma? Bring the USB drive. It's the final piece of the puzzle. Without it, you'll never understand the full picture."
Another text, this time from Adrian: "8 PM. I'll pick you up outside your dorm. Wear something comfortable. And Emma? Bring whatever Sarah left you. I think I know what it is."
How did they both know about the USB drive?
Unless…
Unless Adrian was the one sending the anonymous messages.
My head spun with possibilities. What if Adrian was guiding me, protecting me, trying to help me without revealing himself? What if the messages weren't threats but warnings from someone who actually cared?
Or what if it was all a trap?
At 7:45 PM, I stood outside my dorm, the USB drive in my pocket, my heart racing. A sleek black car pulled up not the Mercedes from yesterday, but something more subtle.
Adrian got out, and I caught my breath.
He wore dark jeans and a leather jacket, looking less like a billionaire heir and more like someone who could disappear into any crowd. Dangerous. Sexy. Exactly the kind of person Sarah would've warned me about.
"Ready?" he asked.
"No," I admitted. "But let's go anyway."
His apartment was fifteen minutes from campus, in a building that screamed money but in a quiet way. Penthouse floor. Floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the city.
Minimalist furniture that probably cost more than my car.
"Wow," I said.
"My father pays for it," Adrian said, and there was bitterness in his voice. "Part of keeping me close. Keeping me controlled. He doesn't know I use it as my base of operations against him."
He led me to a room that looked like something out of a crime show. Walls covered with photos, documents, timelines. Red string connecting different pieces of evidence. Computers, files, boxes of information.
"This is what I've been building for three years," he said. "Everything the Blake family has done. Every crime, every victim, every piece of evidence I could find."
I walked slowly around the room, taking it in. Photos of my sister were pinned to one section of the wall. Sarah smiling, Sarah at Riverside, Sarah meeting with Adrian in coffee shops.
"You really knew her," I whispered.
"She was brilliant," Adrian said softly, standing behind me. "Brave. Determined. She reminded me that not everyone with power uses it to destroy." He paused. "She talked about you all the time. Her little sister who was going to change the world. She was so proud of you."
Tears burned in my eyes. "Then why didn't she tell me? Why lie about where she was?"
"To protect you," he said. "She knew the danger. She knew what the Blakes were capable of. She wanted you far away from all of this."
"But she left me the USB drive," I said, pulling it out. "She wanted me to find it eventually."
Adrian's eyes widened. "That's it. That's the evidence she said she'd hidden. Emma, she told me she had a fail-safe. Something that would bring down my family if anything happened to her. But I never found it. I thought it was lost when she died."
"What's on it?"
"I don't know. But if Sarah thought it was important enough to hide, important enough to leave for you…" He moved to one of his computers. "Let's find out."
I handed him the drive with shaking hands. He plugged it in, and we waited as files loaded.
What appeared on screen made my blood run cold.
Videos. Dozens of them. Security camera footage, hidden camera recordings, phone videos.
Adrian clicked on the first one. The timestamp was from three years ago. The video showed a meeting between Maxwell Blake Adrian's father and several men I didn't recognize. They were discussing money laundering, drug trafficking, and something called "asset elimination."
"Asset elimination," Adrian said grimly. "That's their code for murder."
The video continued. Maxwell casually discussing having someone killed as if he were ordering dinner. Mentioning names. Dates. Locations.
"My God," I whispered. "Sarah recorded all of this?"
"She must have planted cameras in my father's office. Hacked into security systems." Adrian's voice was filled with awe. "Emma, this is incredible. This is exactly what we need. This is proof."