Chapter 8 The wolf
Chapter 8: The Wolf and the Hound (Liam’s POV)
The auxiliary gym was a hollow, echoing box of shadows and the smell of old rubber. I stood in the doorway, my hockey stick still in my hand, watching the scene unfold. Jax had Elena cornered against the bleachers. He was leaning in close, his shadow swallowing her whole.
"I’m just saying, Elena," Jax’s voice was a low, greasy drawl that filled the empty room. "Thirty thousand dollars is a lot of money for a girl who wears the same three sweaters every week. Liam doesn't give out cash for free. So, what did you have to do to get him to open his wallet? Did you beg? Did you get down on your knees?"
I saw Elena’s knuckles whiten as she gripped the strap of her bag. Her face was pale, but her eyes were like burning coals. "It’s a loan, Jax. Not that a Neanderthal like you would understand the concept of a financial agreement."
Jax laughed, a harsh, jagged sound. "A loan? With what collateral? You have nothing. Which means Liam owns you now. You’re basically his property."
I stepped out from the shadows then. Elena’s eyes snapped to mine, and for a split second, I saw a flicker of hope in them. She thought I was going to stop him. She thought I was going to be the hero from the storybooks.
She was wrong.
"Property is a strong word, Jax," I said, my voice cold and loud. I walked over, my skates clacking rhythmically against the gym floor as I leaned my stick against the wall. "I prefer the term 'investment.' After all, you don't let a horse starve if you expect it to win the race for you."
The hope in Elena’s eyes died instantly. It was replaced by a look of such pure, raw disgust that it actually made my chest tighten for a second. But I didn't flinch. I couldn't let Jax see me go soft. In this school, if you weren't the predator, you were the prey.
"See?" Jax smirked, looking back at her. "The King has spoken. You’re just a horse in his stable now, Scholarship. Maybe we should get you a saddle."
"Is that why you came here, Liam?" Elena’s voice was trembling, but not with fear. It was pure, unadulterated rage. "To help your dog bark? You gave me that money in secret because you were too afraid of your father to do it publicly. And now you're letting Jax use it to humiliate me?"
"I didn't give you the money because I like you, Elena," I said, stepping closer until I was looming over her. I could smell the rain still clinging to her hair. "I gave it to you so you wouldn't be a distraction. But it looks like you’re becoming one anyway. Jax is right—thirty thousand buys a lot of silence, and yet, here you are, making a scene in the gym."
"I'm making a scene?" she laughed bitterly. "He cornered me! He threatened to tell the whole school!"
"Then maybe you should have been more grateful when I handed you the check," I countered. I looked at Jax and gave him a sharp, tight nod. "If she wants to act like she’s too good for us, Jax, maybe we should remind her who paid for the roof over her head tonight."
Jax’s grin widened. He reached out and snatched Elena’s bag off her shoulder.
"Hey! Give that back!" she shouted, reaching for it, but Jax held it high above his head.
"Let’s see what a thirty-thousand-dollar tutor carries in her bag," Jax mocked. He turned the bag upside down, and everything spilled out onto the gym floor. Her pens, her notebooks, her cheap calculator, and that ruined Calculus book hit the floor with a series of dull thuds.
Jax kicked her notebook across the floor. "Look at this junk. Liam, you’re overpaying for this one."
I stood there, my arms crossed, watching the pages of her notes flutter like wounded birds. I felt a sick twist in my stomach—the kind I got right before a big hit on the ice—but I forced a laugh.
"You're right," I said, my voice sounding hollow even to my own ears. "Maybe I should ask for a refund."
Elena didn't try to gather her things. She just stood there, looking at the mess on the floor, and then she looked at me. She didn't look like she was going to cry. She looked like she was memorizing my face so she could hate me forever.
"You really are a coward, Liam Vance," she said softly. The gym was so quiet I could hear her breathing. "You think that because you have a checkbook, you can treat people like garbage. You think being a 'King' means you don't have to be a human being. But you’re the one who’s poor. You’re so poor, all you have is money."
"Watch your mouth," Jax snapped, stepping toward her, but I put a hand on his chest.
"Let her go, Jax," I said. My voice was low. "She’s not worth the effort."
"Oh, I'm going," Elena said, stepping over her scattered pens. She didn't look back at her bag. She didn't look back at us. She walked toward the exit, her footsteps echoing in the empty gym. "But don't expect me at 6 AM tomorrow, Liam. Find someone else to save your grades. I’d rather live in a tent than stay one more night on your estate."
She slammed the gym door shut, the sound booming like a cannon.
Jax let out a whistle. "Man, she’s got a temper. You really think she’s going to quit?"
"She has nowhere to go," I muttered, looking down at the ruined Calculus book at my feet. "She’ll be there. She has to be."
But as I looked at the red ink on the pages—the notes she had taken to help me pass my quiz—I didn't feel like a winner. I felt like I had just set fire to the only thing that was actually going to save me.
I checked my phone. A notification from the "Northview Confessions" page popped up.
[CONFESSION #402]: Spotted: The King and his favorite Hound cornering the Scholarship Ghost in the gym. Is there trouble in paradise, or is Liam just checking on his investment? #VanceMoney #GhostStories
The secret wasn't just out; it was being dissected by the entire school. Chloe was going to lose her mind. My father was going to find out. And the girl who held my future in her hands had just walked out into the rain with nothing but the clothes on her back.
"Come on," Jax said, slapping my shoulder. "Let's go to the diner. Chloe is waiting, and she’s already heard about the 'loan.' You have some explaining to do, Captain."
I followed Jax out, but I didn't go to the diner. I waited until his car left the parking lot, then I went back into the auxiliary gym.
It was empty and cold. I knelt down and started picking up her pens. One by one. I picked up her notebook, the pages bent and dirty. I picked up the ruined Calculus book.
I hated her. I hated that she made me feel like this. I hated that I had to act like a monster just to keep my friends. But as I tucked her things back into her bag, I realized the "Hate" between us was no longer a game. It was a war. And in this war, I was starting to realize that I was on the wrong side of the lines.
I walked out to my car, the bag heavy in my hand. I had to find her. Not because I wanted to be a hero, but because if she really left, I was dead. And deep down, I knew that the "Ghost" was the only person in this entire school who actually saw me for who I was.
I pulled out of the parking lot and saw her. She wasn't at the bus stop. She was walking along the highway, the rain drenching her, heading toward the city. But she wasn't alone. A black SUV with tinted windows was crawling along behind her—the same car I’d seen at the diner. Chloe wasn't waiting for me at the diner. She was hunting.
