Chapter 826: I Need To Confirm Something
Chapter 826: I Need To Confirm Something
Liam went still for as the name echoed in his hand.The thought did not feel far-fetched once it formed. In fact, it settled too easily, as if his instincts had been circling the shape for days and only now allowed his mind to name it.
Isolde was the student president. She had experience, access, and status. She had been mentoring Sheila under the perfectly reasonable explanation that Sheila would likely take over the role after graduation. She knew enough about student leadership to understand how a full-year cooperation assessment could shape or break command. She might have known about the Bastion Assessment, either because the third-years had undergone something similar or because her position gave her more administrative proximity than ordinary students.
She was also close to Sheila now.
Close enough to observe. Close enough to learn. Close enough to pass information.
The reason remained unclear.
That was the part Liam did not like.
He did not know why Isolde would help Chris. He did not know if she had any connection to him, any resentment toward Sheila, any lingering issue tied to Percy, or some purpose that had not yet shown itself. But he remembered their conversation in the third-year wing. The way she spoke of Percy. The way she asked about Sheila. The way she smiled as if everything casual was harmless while placing questions exactly where they mattered.
He had not trusted her from the start.
The only mistake was that he had allowed reason to dress his suspicion in politeness. Isolde helping Sheila with student president duties made sense, so he had let the obvious explanation stand beside his distrust instead of pressing harder. That was negligence.
Liam sat on the edge of his bed and chuckled faintly.
There was no humor in the sound.
"If it really is you," he muttered under his breath, "I would love to strangle you, Isolde."
The words came out calm, almost tired, but the irritation behind them was real. Not because Isolde mattered to him personally, but because of the sheer amount of inconvenience she might represent if his assumption was correct. Since the week began, this situation had grown from Sheila worrying about Chris, to Lucian confirming Chris was moving again, to an unknown source near Sheila, to possible confidential assessment information, and now to Isolde standing at the center of both possibilities like a quietly smiling problem Liam had already disliked.