Evergreen Academy - The Complete Series

by Ruby Vincent

  “I’m happy for them. I know Kai was having a hard time after leaving his ex-girlfriend back home.”

  Zane threw his other arm around me. The three of us headed up to school arm in arm. “It’s good my brother is moving on, but they both want to keep this quiet. This place is getting insane, and they want to have something that the new Knights, the Spades, and their minions can’t touch.”

  “I get that,” I replied. “Maverick and Ezra are coming back this week. I’m glad we’re all going to be together, but I have a feeling things will only get more complicated.”

  “No doubt you’re right.”

  “Hey, Thomas.”

  The three of us pulled up short. I turned around and found Jaxson on our heels.

  “I already have to fight your twin to keep him off my girl. You gonna be a problem too?”

  Zane threw his hands up in surrender. “I don’t want any trouble.”

  Jaxson cut off my laugh with his kiss. Sofia and Zane walked off throwing catcalls over their shoulders as we deepened it.

  I rested my forehead against his when we broke apart. “How are you? Is everything okay?”

  He nodded. “I’m fine, but I don’t know about Maverick.”

  “What?” I pulled back. “What do you mean?”

  “He sent me a text. He said something is going down at the dorm.”

  “At the dorm? Did he say what?”

  Jaxson held up his phone. “He just texted me. I didn’t get a chance to ask.”

  “Then let’s go.” I grabbed his hand and spun in the direction of the dorm. I could see my friends converging on the lone building steps away from the fountain. Sofia and Zane reached the door and walked in while Kai and Paisley strolled a few feet ahead of us. Worry quickened my steps until Jaxson was running to keep up with me.

  “Baby, I’m sure everything’s okay. He would have said if it wasn’t.”

  Kai glanced over his shoulder when he reached the porch and caught us on his tail. “Hey, you two. What’s—”

  I sidestepped him and ran up the steps. I threw open the door and skidded to a stop behind Sofia. My mouth fell open as I took in the sight that brought my best friend and her boyfriend to a halt.

  “Listen up!” Gus bellowed. “Boys are on the second floor and girls on the first and third. No fighting over rooms. They have been assigned. All dorm rules apply...”

  I took my eyes off him as Maverick stepped out of his room loaded down with a duffel bag. He walked over to us when he saw me.

  “What is going on?” I asked as I slipped through Zane and Sofia.

  Maverick’s reply was to hook his finger through the lining of my jeans and draw me in. “Mav—”

  He captured my lips in a searing kiss that blew away my anxiety. It suddenly hit me hard how much I had missed him.

  “Can we go outside and talk?” he whispered against my lips.

  I nodded without speaking.

  Together we walked out of the chaos and onto the porch. Maverick led me off to the side as people came in and out of the door.

  “It’s exactly what it looks like,” he began. “The guys have been telling me what’s going on and it seems everyone that stood by you has been kicked out of the dorm. They live here now.”

  I gaped at him. “Everyone? But that’s half the senior class. There aren’t enough rooms.”

  “You’re right.” Maverick folded his arms as he leaned against the wall. “That’s why most of us are going to have to double up.”

  “This is— This is insane! They can’t do this.”

  “They are doing it, and it’s not just the seniors. Gus has been shouting at us to hurry up because he has to supervise the junior, sophomore, and freshman moves.”

  “You mean the underclassmen—”

  “The school is split down the middle.”

  I twisted around at the third voice. Eric stood on the steps with a suitcase at his feet. He walked up to us, his face unreadable. “Those who will follow the Spades and those who won’t.”

  Stiffly, I faced him. “You’ve chosen to be one who won’t. Why?”

  “This is getting out of hand, Val. I don’t know what to think, but I’m not willing to be on the wrong side of this one.”

  My hands curled into fists. Maverick reached out and grasped my shoulder, most likely sensing the effect those words hand on me. “All I ever wanted was to go to school, make friends, and get my diploma. I didn’t want to get involved with the Spades. They got involved with me.”

  His expression didn’t change. “I see that now. It’s why I’m here.”

  “I did not want it to come to this.” I stepped closer until there were only inches between us. “But now that it has... I’m not backing down. Scarlett hurt innocent kids. She attacked me. She used her position as a Spade to turn the school on me. I can believe the Spades didn’t know what she was, but now they do and they have chosen to stand against me. I’m not backing down.” My eyes pierced into him. “And I don’t have time for anyone who doesn’t have my back.”

  “I get why you don’t trust me—”

  “I have no reason to trust you. You’ve abandoned me twice.”

  “That wasn’t about you.”

  My eyes popped. “Excuse me? How is it not about me?!”

  The muscles in his jaw tightened. He broke eye contact, glancing away as his gaze grew unfocused. I thought for a while that he wouldn’t answer, but slowly his reply came. “You know that Edens have been at Evergreen since the start. Since I was little, all I’ve ever heard about was my legacy. My grandmother drove home that the Edens were a part of making Evergreen what it is today, and I would be a part of its future. In my house, there’s no question of if you should obey the Knights. You do. There’s no wondering if the mark system is right. It is. There is no doubting whether you should fear the Spades. You should.”

  He shifted to look me in the eyes. “Choosing to back you meant going against my family and... you’ve met my grandmother.”

  I tried to fight it, but a niggle of understanding was working its way in. What he did was wrong. He was the worst friend imaginable, but at the end of the day, I always knew I had my family’s support no matter what I did. I guess Eric didn’t feel the same.

  He must have seen that understanding in my eyes because he changed. Eric’s expression softened until the veil pulled back far enough for me to see the internal battle raging in him.

  “I did what I thought I had to do then,” he continued, “and now I have to do this. Can that be enough?”

  We stared at each other for a long time, neither one of us moving. I was holding his gaze when I said, “No.”

  He blinked. “No? What do you mean no? No, it’s not enough?”

  “That’s right.”

  “Val.” Maverick’s voice was soft, but I heard the question in that one word.

  “It’s not enough that you walked out of that cafeteria,” I plowed on. “You walk away all the time.”

  He winced. “So you want me to leave.”

  “No, I want you to help.” His face crumpled in confusion. “I told you I’m not backing down. I’m going after Ace and I’m going to find them and expose that psycho and any other Spades hiding in the shadows. It’s not enough for you to sit by. The only way I’ll know for sure you’re on my side is if you take them down with me.”

  He threw up his hands. “What do you expect me to do?”

  “To start with... I want to go back to your house. Or you can go home and bring it back to me.”

  “Bring what?”

  “Your dad’s senior yearbook.” I peered over my shoulder at Maverick as he came over to join us. “It’s something that Evergreen and the police kept saying about Scarlett LeBlanc—something I never heard or thought of before.”

  Maverick’s eyes sharpened. “What did they say?”

  “They called her Mrs. LeBlanc.”

  “Mrs.” Eric spoke before Maverick could find a response. “She’s married?”r />
  “She must be,” I replied. “Or she used to be. I didn’t consider that someone like her could be a ‘Mrs.’ but it explains why I didn’t find her father in the yearbook. She has a different last name.”

  “So you want my dad’s yearbook so you can try to find her father? What’s the point?”

  “I didn’t get a chance to look at the entire senior class last time because I was interrupted by your grandmother. Even if I can’t be sure who it is, I can narrow it down.”

  Maverick spoke up. “How does that help us?”

  “I didn’t get to look through the yearbook but I did learn something. I asked Eric’s grandma why she was chosen to be a Knight and she said it was pretty much set in stone because of her last name.” I gestured at Eric. “When I first met you, you were pissed that you weren’t chosen. You thought your family made you a lock. Well, what if LeBlanc’s family had to do with her being chosen as a Spade? What if her dad was one too? If we could find him, maybe he would talk to us—tell us what he knows.”

  Maverick reached for my hand. “Even if he is still around and we could track him down, why would he admit to being a Spade? Why would he talk to us at all? We’re accusing his daughter of being a child molester and attempted murderer.”

  “We don’t have anything else to go on. I’ve gone over the list of Ace suspects a million times, but I’m no closer to figuring out who they are. Now that they’ve stopped talking to me, I need another angle. We need to know more about the Spades because they know everything about us.” I spun on Eric, making him jump. “Bring me the yearbook.”

  “Fine. I’ll get a pass for next weekend.”

  “Thank you. Also, I need you to tell me everything you know about Evergreen, its history, and about your dad.”

  “My dad?”

  “He was a Knight when everything went down with Nora Wheatly, Walter McMillian, and the Spades. He has to know more about what pushed the Spades to do what they did, or why your grandmother called Nora a common slut. He must have told you. What did he say?”

  “My father doesn’t tell me as much as you think.” He began backing away. “Look, I need to finish unpacking, but I’ll do what you want. I’ll get the book, talk to my dad, and tell you what I can find out.” Eric bent and gathered the straps of his bag. “There’s no going back after this. Helping you is my only option.”

  “Glad we’re on the same side for once.”

  Eric didn’t reply. He just took himself inside and shut the door softly behind him. Maverick was waiting with his arms out when I turned around and I fell into them.

  “I missed you, Beaumont. I didn’t want to call too much because I figured you needed space.”

  “Thanks for that. I missed you too, but it’s been intense. Mom and Dad haven’t had as much time to deal with it as I’ve had.”

  “Did they—”

  “Hey, can we talk about something else?” he cut in gently. “It’s been too long since I’ve held you. That’s all I want to do right now.”

  “Okay.” I burrowed into his chest, breathing in a scent that was distinctly Maverick. “That sounds good to me.”

  Chapter Six

  “You don’t have to do this.” I clamped down on his hand. It was too hard if his hiss was anything to go by. “The police and Evergreen know. That’s enough.”

  “That’s not enough. They are using our silence to paint you as a liar,” Ryder replied. He freed himself from my grasp, but touched the back of his hand to mine, keeping contact. The five of us were standing in the courtyard before the main building. That was as far as I got before I made them stop, sending everyone else ahead.

  “We have to do this, Val,” Jaxson agreed. “The hard part was telling our folks. We can handle whatever is next.”

  “But they still might not believe you,” I argued. “They could think you’re saying it because we’re together.”

  “Maybe,” Maverick said, “but it will still be harder to dismiss all five of us.”

  Gentle pressure against my back moved me forward. “Come on, Val,” Ezra said. “It’ll be okay. Trust us.”

  It was hard to argue with Ezra, let alone all five of them. I knew nothing I could say would change their mind, especially when they saw themselves as protecting me.

  I snagged Ryder’s hand again when we entered the stairwell. As the boys drifted further ahead of us, I whispered to him.

  “We didn’t get a chance to talk yesterday. Did you speak with your mom?”

  He kept his eyes straight ahead as he nodded.

  I squeezed his hand. “How is she doing? How are you doing?”

  “She is... taking it harder than I thought.”

  “Ryder, I’m sure she—”

  “Val.” He wasn’t loud or harsh, but something in his tone made the words die in my throat. “I don’t want to talk about this right now.”

  “Yeah,” I croaked after a minute. “Of course.”

  “Thanks.”

  Ryder didn’t look at me the whole time we spoke, and he kept his face forward as we left the stairs and walked onto the fourth floor. The bell was minutes away from ringing so there were no students to gawk and whisper at us. We took that for the win it was and hurriedly got our things from our lockers before meeting back up in front of Roundtree’s classroom.

  “Go in first, Val,” said Maverick. “We’ll be right behind you.”

  “But—”

  “Please.”

  I forced my feet to move. Even while I could understand that this was something they needed to do themselves, everything in me wanted to be there for them. I pushed through into the classroom and got the reaction I was expecting. The room quickly fell silent. I looked around and stopped dead in front of Roundtree.

  This I was not expecting.

  The expression “battle lines were drawn” was ringing clear in my head as I took in the two distinct groups glaring at each other across the room. Natalie and her crowd had taken up residence near the window while the group that included my friends were on the other side. There was a space between them big enough that you could drive a car through.

  It wasn’t a conscious thought that made me turn on Roundtree. The guy was tapping away at his computer. The easy smile hung on his lips and that handsome face looked everything but concerned. He didn’t notice I was standing there until I spoke.

  “Aren’t you going to do something about this?” His fingers stilled. “How can you just sit there when you know what’s going on?”

  Slowly, he raised his head. The smile hadn’t dimmed. “You should sit down, Miss Moon.”

  Rage flared up in me fierce and burning. “You should do your damn job! The whole school is being torn apart and you’re either sitting on your ass or standing out in the hall. What is the fucking point of you?”

  The silence in the room became even more absolute. It was as though no one was breathing as Roundtree and I locked eyes. Slowly, he rose to his feet.

  “You’re right, Miss Moon. So how is this for doing my job: you have detention with me every day for the rest of the semester.”

  “But you can’t—”

  “Want to go for next semester too?”

  I closed my mouth with a snap. I glared at him hot enough to burn a lesser man to cinders, but he just smiled at me.

  “Put your phone away and take your seat. Now.”

  Rigidly, I did as ordered. Sofia grasped my arm in support when I took the seat in front of her. It was everything I could do not to fling a textbook at his pretty face when he went back to his computer. What got me to take my mind off of him was the door opening and the boys entering the room. Just like that, I didn’t give a flip about Roundtree.

  The four of them spread themselves out before the class and looked out over everyone with their heads held high. My breaths came shorter until they stopped altogether, bound in a clenched throat.

  “Listen up,” Ezra began. “We’ve got something to say.”

  A scoff to my left made m
e stiffen. “Sit down,” Natalie spat. “You’re not Knights anymore. We don’t have to—”

  Ryder pierced her with a look as cold as the silver in his eyes. “Shut the fuck up, Bard.”

  She turned bright red, but wisely didn’t continue.

  “Like I was saying,” Ezra went on, “the whole school is spinning out because of Valentina coming forward and sharing the truth about Scarlett LeBlanc and why she was marked.”

  Penelope lurched to her feet. “She can’t prove—”

  “We’re the proof.” Maverick cut her off at the knees. “It happened while we attended the prep school with LeBlanc as our after-school art club teacher.”

  “She molested us,” Ezra finished. “All four of us.”

  I thought I knew silence after telling off Roundtree. It was nothing compared to the hush that followed their speech.

  Then Natalie shot up. “How do we know you’re not just saying that to back up your girlfriend’s story?!”

  The spell broke and everyone was on their feet—shouting, yelling, threatening, and fighting. Through the havoc, I looked across at the guys. I gave them a smile that, one by one, they returned.

  CLASSES WERE A STEP below unbearable that day. Arguments broke out wherever the boys and I went until professors demanded we work in total and complete silence for the rest of the lessons. They were so fried that Patchett kicked Juliet out of class when she made the mistake of asking the boy in front of her for an eraser.

  It was almost a relief when I stepped into Roundtree’s class. There was no one else in the room but the two of us. I could get the peace and quiet I had been sorely missing.

  “Afternoon, Moon.”

  I don’t know when we dropped the formal titles and went with last names, but I decided to follow suit. “Roundtree.”

  He patted a chair I hadn’t noticed was sitting next to him. “Sit here. You’ll be helping me grade assignments.”

  “Am I allowed to do that?”

  “There isn’t a rule against it. Semester grades are posted for the whole school to see after all.”

  That was a solid point so I walked around the desk and took my seat. Roundtree separated the stack of papers and placed half in front of me. “This is the answer sheet.” He put another piece of paper dripping with red ink on top of my stack. “Get to work.”