Chapter 4

Julian's face instantly fell, his knuckles turning white as he gripped the doorframe.

I held my breath, watching Mara roughly tear into my backpack.

She dumped everything out. Books scattered across the floor.

She found nothing.

I watched her coldly, about to speak.

Suddenly, Mara let out a sharp gasp.

"Found it!"

How was that possible?

I snapped my head up in shock.

When I saw what was in her hand, my pupils constricted.

"That's mine!"

I reached out to snatch it, but she dodged.

"It's mine! My mother's keepsake—you think I wouldn't recognize it?"

Bullshit. That was the antique sapphire pendant my mother had left me.

The chain had broken yesterday, so I had carefully tucked it into my bag. There was no way I was mistaken.

I looked up, just in time to catch the malicious glint flashing in Mara's eyes.

She was doing this on purpose. Mara pinched the pendant, twirling it casually.

My heart seized with her every movement, but I didn't dare lunge at her.

"Evelyn, think about it," a classmate said. "When we were helping her look earlier, Mara specifically said she lost a sapphire pendant."

"It's not hers! It's mine!"

I screamed until my voice cracked, my legs trembling so hard I could barely stand.

The classmate looked awkward and quietly backed away.

"Check the security cameras! Check the cameras! That is my mother's pendant!"

"The cameras have been down for two days," the class president said, spreading his hands helplessly and taking a step back.

"I have an idea," Mara said. "My mom's pendant is real sapphire. It won't break if you drop it. Want to test it?"

"No. Don't."

My heart leaped into my throat.

Mara pouted.

"Then that proves it's not yours."

"You little thief, of course I'm not giving it back to you."

Suddenly remembering something, I violently grabbed Julian's sleeve.

"I wasn't the only one in there."

"Julian was there too, wasn't he?"

I looked up at him, practically begging.

Julian pressed his lips into a thin line. He was just about to speak.

Mara cut him off instantly.

"Liar. Julian was with me at the Dean of Students' office the whole time."

A crushing wave of despair washed over me as I realized exactly what was about to happen.

Julian froze for a second at her words.

Finally, he averted his eyes, refusing to look at me.

A smug smile spread across Mara's face.

The last thread of my sanity snapped.

I stood frozen for two seconds, then launched myself at her, completely losing control.

I viciously pried her fingers apart and slapped her hard across the face, again and again.

Mara shrieked and stumbled backward.

The next second, a brutal force shoved me away.

My lower back slammed violently into a desk. The pendant slipped from Mara's hand and plummeted to the floor.

With a crisp crack, the sapphire shattered.

I felt my own heart fracture right along with it—shattered into pieces that could never be glued back together.

I looked up. Julian was shielding a terrified Mara, his brows furrowed in deep anger.

Suddenly, I hated Julian. And I hated myself.

I scrambled frantically to pick up the shards. The jagged edges sliced into my palms, and blood quickly began to drip onto the floor.

"Stop picking it up!" Julian yelled at me.

"Evelyn, I said stop picking it up!"

Then, a powerful force hauled me to my feet.

The person in front of me looked furious, but my vision was completely blurred with tears. I couldn't see anything clearly.

All I wanted was to run away.

Just then, a deep, commanding voice dropped like an anvil behind me.

"Evelyn."

Mara's expression instantly morphed into sheer terror. Julian, who had been gripping my wrist, dropped my hand like it burned him.