CHAPTER 276: 276-THE BLAST IN TRUST

Clementine:

The wind blew my hair across my face, and a chill ran through my body as I pressed my hands against the ground and forced myself up.

I stared at Miss Rue and Mr. Rick, who watched me with mixed expressions. Mr. Rick looked furious, while Miss Rue seemed guilty.

I slowly got to my feet, brushed the dry leaves off my clothes, and turned toward the bushes, gritting my teeth under my breath.

Ian had crossed every line now.

Not only was he being disgusting, but he had also proven he couldn’t be trusted. He had exposed me and everything I’d been planning.

"Clementine," Miss Rue began after hesitating for a moment and stealing awkward glances at me. "What are you doing here?" she asked with an uneasy laugh.

There was no point lying anymore. We both knew exactly why we were here.

"I was taking a walk. Sorry, I didn’t realize I was interrupting your digging party," I said bitterly.

I was upset because, honestly, I had thought Miss Rue wasn’t a bad person. But I had been naive. The way she and Mr. Rick talked, it seemed she wanted to gain my trust only to extract the truth from me.

"Yeah, it’s our duty to keep an eye on the crusaders and make sure they’re not plotting against the academy," Mr. Rick replied shamelessly.

He clearly didn’t care. Breaking someone’s trust meant nothing to him.

"No, that’s not it," Miss Rue tried to explain, but she went silent when Mr. Rick shot her a harsh glare.

"Why do we even need to explain ourselves to her? And yes, we’re looking for that diary. It seems like all of you are acting foolish, and we’re worried that if Bodhi, the same boy who killed his dorm mates, wrote something ridiculous in it, you’ll all believe him and run with it without asking us anything," he continued harshly, throwing insults to cover his fear of any truth coming out.

"Now, if you’re done listening to us, you can go back to your room and let us do our job," Mr. Rick ordered.

I straightened my posture, clasped my hands behind my back, and met his glare.

"Why wasn’t Bodhi’s diary returned to his family? And if you already know we’re suspicious, then you must also know I read the diary. Isn’t it strange that he wrote that the ringleaders are always watching us?" I asked, finally confronting them.

Somewhere along the line, I had lost faith in everyone else. It felt like I had to face this on my own now.

"It’s funny you asked," Mr. Rick said. "Yes, we are watching you. Every time you do something, we’re there, keeping an eye on you. What else do you want to know?"

Of course, he didn’t flinch. Mr. Rick had skin like steel. Talking to him any longer was pointless, he was too cold, too dismissive.

"Now go back to your room," he demanded.

I finally turned and walked away.

As I headed toward the dorm and started down the passage, Miss Rue began following me. She hurried behind, calling out, "Clementine, listen!"

I didn’t stop. I kept walking. Lately, it felt like one defeat after another, and I was starting to sink under it.

My confidence was shaking, from the way my mates were behaving to how Ian had treated me, and now this. I didn’t want to give her a chance, so I kept moving forward.

"Clementine, please, just listen to me!" she called again.

She finally caught up, ran ahead, and stopped in front of me with her arms spread to block my way.

"Miss Rue, there’s nothing you can say that will change my mind about you now," I told her, refusing to meet her eyes.

It felt awkward, considering she was still my ringleader and senior.

"I understand how you feel, and I’m completely responsible for it. No apology can fix it, but I feel like I deserve a chance," she said.

I rolled my eyes. I was surprised she could still talk so freely.

"A chance so you can gain my trust again and then run back to Mr. Rick with whatever I tell you?" I asked sharply. "Miss Rue, I trusted you because I believed we were being treated unfairly, and this is what you did to me."

She rubbed her arms anxiously and looked guilty, but it didn’t matter anymore. I knew how well they could act, so she was probably acting too.

"Clementine, I was actually looking for the diary myself, but they caught me. I should have told you I was supposed to report anything you discovered about the academy. And this wasn’t even a secret. Bodhi had lost his mind and was writing nonsense. We were afraid that if you all believed what he wrote, it would affect your focus in the North. I don’t want any of you to lose your lives," she explained quickly.

Even though she didn’t owe me an explanation, I could tell why she was doing it for the same reason as before. She still wanted to earn my trust so she could fool me again next time.

"I promise you, I won’t betray you. I won’t break your trust again," she urged, her voice filled with desperation that caught me off guard.

She wasn’t loyal at all. How could she expect me to give her another chance after already hurting me once?

And now, even Mr. Rick knew we had been trying to uncover what was happening in the academy.

"It’s just one last chance," she pleaded again.

Before I could answer, a loud blast echoed through the air. Both of us stumbled, reaching for the pillars and walls to steady ourselves. We turned toward the direction of the noise, then looked at each other in shock.

The door to my dorm room burst open, and the others rushed out, trying to see what had happened.

"It seems the blast came from inside the academy grounds," Miss Rue stated.

And in that moment, I swear, it felt like my soul left my body.