(Kian's POV)
At the Adams estate, silence always came with a price.
Dinner was silverware tapping against crystal. Amanda watched me like I was a draft she hadn't signed off on. Alexander said little, but his silence wasn't peaceful. It was surgical.
Tonight was worse.
"Westview," Amanda started, slicing into her steak like it had offended her, "is not the place for rebellion. You understand that, don't you?"
She was talking about my grades. Or maybe Vale. Hard to tell with her—every word had layers.
"I'm not rebelling," I said.
"You're existing too loudly," she replied coolly. "And I hear that girl—Vale Black—is involved."
I looked up. "So we're monitoring people now?"
"She's a Black. Their family's name is smoke. All charm, no spine. That girl is a loose thread, Kian. And I won't have you unraveling the fabric we've built."
Alexander said nothing. He never did when Amanda sharpened her claws.
I stood, appetite gone. "Maybe the fabric deserves to fall apart."
Her eyes narrowed like drawn daggers.
I left before she could say anything else.
---------------------------------------------------
Back in my room, I pulled up the alias again: VB_Zero.
There was more there now—something new added. A map route saved and then deleted. A trail barely visible, like she wanted to hide it but not completely. Almost like... she was testing me.
My mind went back to the tire marks. To the look in her eyes when I said she was hiding something.
And then, to something else—the way she looked like she needed to escape more than be found.
----------------------------------------------------
At school the next day, she was back in her silver earrings, honey skin glowing under the sun. She was talking to Mr. Williams when I passed, head tilted just slightly, smile guarded.
She didn't see me.
And I hated how much I noticed that.