Chapter 38: Against Morales Brown 2

"Hey, wait up, Emma. Where are you heading dressed like that?"

Emma stopped when she heard the familiar voice behind her. Christopher Goodman approached with his usual unpleasant expression. His eyes briefly moved over her outfit before he let out a dry chuckle.

"I can see your milky thighs, and even a little shade of your black panties. Aren’t you worried someone might see more?"

Emma felt a surge of disgust. For a split second, she genuinely wanted to spit right into his stupid, chubby face. "I don’t know. Why do you care?"

Christopher’s smug smile vanished. "Watch your damn tone before I cut your head off."

Emma grimaced, fighting back her anger. "What do you want?"

"I want you to post a picture of Morales’s dormitory door anonymously for the world to see."

She stared at him, bewildered. "Why?"

"Someone wants it. Just do it and don’t ask questions."

"And why the hell should I listen to you?" She crossed her arm grimacing at him.

Christopher didn’t answer with words. Instead, he pulled out his phone, tapped the screen, and held it up for her to see. Emma’s expression instantly drained of color.

"Don’t tell me you’ve forgotten about this," Christopher said softly, his voice dripping with malice. "I still have the video."

She bit her lower lip so hard she tasted copper, her fingers tightening around her own device until her knuckles turned white. "I’ll do it. Just... please delete it."

Christopher laughed, a harsh, mocking sound. "If I delete it, how am I supposed to keep manipulating you?" And he chuckled maliciously.

Her eyes widened in horror. "You promised—"

"I promised nothing." He slipped his phone back into his tailored pocket and walked past her, brushing his shoulder against hers. "Do it or don’t. You already know every action has a consequence."

Emma remained frozen in the corridor, staring at his retreating back. She hated him. She hated the fact that he held that video over her head to control every aspect of her life, and she hated herself even more for ever letting him get that kind of power.

Yet, as her breathing slowed down, her thoughts inevitably drifted back to Morales. She had been heading to his suite tonight with every intention of seducing him. That part was entirely true.

She had been drawn to him ever since he walked into Aurelius Academy, long before she knew anything about his background or his supposed poverty.

Yes, the rumors said he was poor, but he certainly didn’t look or act like it. His parents were gone, and he lived with an aunt who struggled financially, yet there was an undeniable, heavy aura of authority about him that always commanded her attention.

She had tried desperately to squash those feelings when she found out his social standing, even convincing herself that dating Alexander Thorne would be enough of a distraction.

It wasn’t.

She saw Morales almost every day, yet he barely acknowledged her existence. Even when she dropped obvious hints, he treated her like background noise.

And now, Christopher’s malicious demand had inadvertently handed her another reason to approach him.

Her mind was made up.

If she went to Morales, and he showed even a fraction of genuine interest in her, she wouldn’t post the picture at all.

Instead, she would confess everything about Christopher’s blackmail and let Morales deal with that bastard himself. She had witnessed firsthand what Morales could do, she remembered how he handled the guys who covered Chloe. He wasn’t a man who could be easily crushed.

But if he rejected her outright or chased her out of his room like a nuisance... then she would post the picture.

At least that way, she could turn Christopher’s trap to her own advantage and get a measure of payback.

———-

Present

Meanwhile, Jayden Vance had already set his real plan into motion.

He had instructed Anderson the bulky guy, to hoist the unconscious Amelie over his shoulder like a sack of grain as they marched through the dimly lit service corridors toward Morales’s residential block.

Jayden glanced at the limp girl dangling over Anderson’s back before staring coldly at the reinforced oak door ahead of them.

"Let’s get this over with."

He raised his fist and hammered hard against the wood.

Inside the room, Morales stirred.

He had been drifting toward sleep, his laptop finally abandoned after hours of intense decryption attempts, until Emma came to blow sleep in his eyes. The aggressive rapping at his door grated sharply against his nerves.

’Who the fuck is disturbing me at this hour?’

He pushed himself up from the bed, his head still heavy from the long day, his vision slightly blurred from the glowing screen. He dragged his feet across the floor and pulled the door open.

"Morales Brown," Jayden greeted with a sick, toxic grin.

Morales’s eyes widened slightly in recognition. "What the—"

CRACK!

A heavy, lightning-fast fist slammed violently into the side of his head.

Morales staggered backward, catching himself against the edge of his desk before he hit the deck.

The sudden, brutal impact instantly blew away the remnants of his sleepiness, replacing it with a cold, blinding fury.

Jayden stepped across the threshold, walking right into the room. "Miss me?"

Morales clenched his jaw, planting his feet to retaliate, but Jayden was already moving.

WHAM!

Another heavy blow connected with his temple. "Stay down!"

Morales stumbled sideways, his hand instinctively flying to his bleeding temple.

Behind Jayden, Anderson stumbled into the room, carrying Amelie’s limp body.

The abrupt motion caused Amelie to regain consciousness. Her eyelids fluttered open, and the moment she realized where she was and who was holding her, she began thrashing wildly.

"N-No! Let me go!"

Anderson hissed in pain as Amelie’s teeth clamped down mercilessly on the back of his hand. "Fucking bitch!" Anderson roared, dropping her slightly.

That brief hesitation gave Amelie an opening. She wrenched herself free and lunged toward Jayden, trying to scratch his face, but Jayden spun around with casual cruelty and delivered a vicious backhand strike across her cheek.

SNAP!

Her eyes rolled back instantly, her body going completely limp as she collapsed to the carpet.

"Too much noise," Jayden muttered, shaking his hand.

He turned his attention back to Morales, who was fighting to force his legs to hold his weight.

"You... bastard..." Morales rasped, blood trickling down his cheek.

Jayden laughed, closing the distance between them. "You really thought you could play in our league?"

The next strike landed squarely in Morales’s stomach, doubling him over. Then another blow crashed into his jaw.

By the fourth consecutive hit, Morales’s vision blurred completely. His knees finally buckled under him, and he crashed hard onto the floor.

Jayden stood over him, breathing heavily, a wide, utterly satisfied smile spreading across his face. He looked down at the fallen prodigy with absolute disdain.

"That’s what happens when you keep sticking your nose where it doesn’t belong." Jayden turned to his muscle. "Let’s go, Anderson."