ALEX’s POV

I squinted at the sudden burst of sunlight in my room. As I tried to pry my eyes open, I saw that Henry was already standing there, waiting for me.

“Good morning,” came his annoying voice.

I groaned and flipped to my side, turning away from him.

I’ve never slept in a room this big and a bed this comfy so naturally, the moment I was done with dinner and was already bathed, I slept in an instant. It was one of the most peaceful sleeps I had and I don’t intend to part with it.

“You need to wake up. I’m introducing you to a lot some people today.”

I felt a tug and then in an instant, the thick comforter I had wrapped myself into vanished. I groaned again, my voice hoarse.

“Wake up, Young Lady.” Henry circled the bed and shook me awake.

I didn’t budge.

“I need to introduce you to your new bodyguard.”

I pried one eye open. “What’s wrong with Hale?”

“Nothing is wrong with me,” it was Thomas Hale who answered this time. He entered the room, a young man following closely behind him.

I sat up, aware that my hair was still a tangled mess, but didn’t bother with it.

“This is Dimitri Dulatov. He is your new bodyguard.”

I eyed Dimitri, my eyes still rather blurry from the twelve hour long sleep. I don’t know if it’s just me but he doesn’t look like a bodyguard. If anything, he looked like he’s still in high school. College, at best.

“Are you sure he’s a bodyguard?”

Hale gave me a stern look. “Not all bodyguards look like me, Miss Carter.”

I looked at him. He’s right. Thomas Hale was built like he could take on ten men with just a few moves. Dimitri on the other hand looked like he would snap in two if you just looked at him wrong. Sure, he’s good-looking. But that’s not going to help my case if ever the Harrington family gets their hands on me.

“Stop looking at me like that,” Dimitri said and I snapped out of my thoughts.

“Looking at you like what?”

“Like I’m your weakest option.”

“Are you not?”

Thomas Hale took a step forward, his face calm but with an air of confidence. “I assure you, Miss Carter, Dimitri here will be able to protect you. He’s the best of his class and he’s skilled in both combat and weapons training.”

“He looks like he’s still in high school.”

“We made sure to choose a candidate that would fit that description.”

I raised an eyebrow. “And why?”

“Because he will be accompanying you within the walls of Montfort Academy.”

· · ─ ·𖥸· ─ · ·

We’ve circled fifth avenue more than five hours already. If my toes could speak, they’d be screaming because for some odd reason, Henry made me tag along to buy stuff for school. Which was weird because normally, people this rich don’t even bother showing up in stores. The store shows up to them.

I plopped down on one of the heavily upholstered chairs in Bottega Veneta. Henry, along with his army of fashion consultants and stylists, were busy working their way into building me a closet.

“Remind me, why am I here again?” I asked him once he came close enough to me.

Henry places a sweater on me, squinted and then turned to the consultants behind him. “I think it will do nicely with the black coat.”

All of them nodded, muttering praises at Henry’s good taste.

“Why am I even here?” I asked again, my limbs hanging lifelessly beside me.

He glanced at me. “Because we need to actually see you to be able to dress you. We don’t know your style yet.”

“That’s because you never asked me what it is.”

He smiled at me, the kind of smile that makes you think that the reason he never asked you what your style was is because your style is sh*t.

Well, I say, you can’t really blame me. If you grew up with only the donation bins at your local mall as your solitary source of clothes, you’d have a mismatched style, too.

“Here.” Dimitri handed me a glass bottle. At first glance, I thought it was wine. But it was clear enough that you’d think it was water.

I took it and looked at the label. Svalbarði. I scoffed out loud. “What the hell is this?”

“It’s water.”

“It looks like wine.”

Dimitri tried his best not to raise an eyebrow at me. “It’s water. Read it. It says there Polar Iceberg Water.”

My eyes narrowed at the label. “What? Normal water is too cheap for you, now?”

He sighed and snatched the bottle from me. I snatched it back.

“I didn’t say I’m not going to drink it,” I hissed at him. He grabbed the bottle again, opening it, and then handed it back to me with a straw. I rolled my eyes but still drank it anyway.

He kept staring. I kept drinking.

I don’t want to give out any sign in my expression that says I actually enjoyed the water. Who knew water could taste this good? It feels like eating snow or cotton candy just maybe minus the aftertaste.

After I finished the entire bottle, I handed it back to him.

He accepted it with a slight head tilt. “What do you think of it?”

“Meh.”

I caught a small smile tugging at the corner of his lips and I looked away. I guess my delight was way too easy to read on my face.

After buying clothes, we finally got back into the car. But just when I thought that it was over, we stopped in front of yet another store. This time, it was Kinokuniya.

My face crumpled into a frown. “We aren’t done?”

Henry escorted me out of the car. “We’re still going to pick up some of your school supplies. Don’t worry, we’ll be quick.”

“You said that, too, about the clothes shopping.”

“And I was truthful, wasn’t I?”

I shot him a glare but he had already left me at the foyer. He was too busy talking with other sales associates that I couldn’t even get a single word out to him. When Dimitri noticed this, he grabbed a small basket for me.

“You can pick out some things you want in the store. No one will be mad at you.”

I looked up at him. “Henry will be. I tried getting a shirt and he threw it away.”

“To be fair, that shirt was ugly.”

I snatched the basket from him in a huff and circled the store on my own, rolling my eyes. I got books, stationery, and anything cute that I could find and dumped it into the basket. By the time I filled up two, Henry was already waiting by the counter.

“I see you’ve enjoyed yourself,” he said as he watched Dimitri place the baskets on the counter.

I smiled. “I think I did. Can we make a stop at Barnes & Noble? I want to pick out some more books.”

· · ─ ·𖥸· ─ · ·

Monday was already fast approaching and I still had a dozen questions left to ask Henry. He’s quite elusive, you see. By the time I’m awake, he’s already left. And by the time I’m asleep, that’s when he decides to come home.

For the last three days, there’s only been me and Dimitri. And whatever questions I have, he doesn’t have the right answer to them anyway.

I shoved a spoonful of ice cream into my mouth, sighing. “Are you sure you have no idea who he was?”

Dimitri looked up at me, closing the book he’s buried his face into for the last few hours. “I’ve already told you all I know about your grandfather. He’s a rich billionaire, he’s a no-nonsense businessman, and he’s a genius.”

“But I already know that!” I placed the tub of ice cream back on the table and scanned the bookshelves again. I don’t know what exactly it was that I’m looking for, but I need some answers. “You really have no idea who your employer was?”

“Listen, just like you, I came here after the billionaire was dead. I’ve never even met him. So, technically, you’re my employer.”

I grabbed a book. It was another one of the Harringtons’ autobiographies. “So, what do we know, then?”

“That your grandfather came from a long line of bankers. By the third generation, they’ve expanded to oil, built an entire town somewhere up north and started mining, and then… that’s it. That’s where the billions came from.”

“What about my mother?”

“I only know what you know. That she’s a genius herself. Your grandfather was fond of her. She was just like him.”

At this point, I don’t know if the reason why my fingers were shaking uncontrollably was because I ate too much ice cream or because I’m about to cry.

I flipped through the old, yellowed pages of the book and clenched my teeth so hard I thought it was going to crack. “If that was true, he wouldn’t have let her die alone in a trailer park.”

“But she wasn’t alone.”

“Yeah. Like that’s any better. Shooting yourself in front of a four year old kid.” I shoved the book back on the shelf and turned to him. “She was staring blankly at me when she pulled the trigger, you know?”

Dimitri straightened up from his seat. He looked mildly uncomfortable but he still gave me a small smile. “If it’ll help you feel any better, my brother went crazy and tried to kill me when I was eight. I visited him just a year ago. He doesn’t even recognize me with the amount of pills they’ve put him in.”

I blinked. He did, too.

“Wow,” was all I could manage to say. “We’re both f*cked up, then?”

He chuckled, turning back to his book. “I guess that’s it. That’s why they put us together.”

I stared at him for a minute before I turned my attention on the painting hanging on the wall, just a little above the Harrington crest. It was Reginald Harrington, his face pulled into a serious expression, looking down on us.

Sometimes, I can’t tell if he was being genuine about all this. If he really wanted to help me, make up for all those years that I had no one by my side. Or if I was just a part of his one big power move. A last ‘f*ck you’ to the world.

Well, guess what. F*ck you, too.

ALEX’s POV

“Are you sure about this?” Henry asked me for the tenth time, and I nodded.

“Absolutely.”

He sighed sharply and dialed a number, his eyes fixed on me. If he’s waiting for any sign that I might give up, he’s going to be waiting for a long time because I’ve already made up my mind.

“Hello, is this the St. Jude’s Orphanage in Chicago?” he said when someone picked up the phone and the woman who answered confirmed it. Henry gritted his teeth. “Do you happen to have the address of one of your former… er, residents?”

“Residents?”

“Shh!”

I rolled my eyes and sat back down on my stool. He kept talking to the woman on the phone. Once he hung up, he dialed another number.

My face lit up. “Is that her?”

He turned away from me, no doubt annoyed about all the questions. “Hello, is this Miss Gabriella Russo?”

//“Yes. Who’s this?”//

“I’m Henry Caldwell, Chairman of the Harrington Group. I’m calling on behalf of Miss Ivy Alexandria Carter.”

//“Iv— you mean, Alex?”//

“Er, yes. Alex.”

I practically squealed in my seat and tried to snatch the phone from him but he wouldn’t let me. He continued talking to her, inviting her down into the estate because he wants to talk to her about something.

When he finally put the phone down, I cornered him.

“So?” I said, all giddy. “How did it go?”

Henry, with his lips pursed, walked right past me and continued drinking his earl gray tea. “She has agreed. We will be sending someone to pick her up today.”

· · ─ ·𖥸· ─ · ·

Gabriella Russo was barely a month old when she was dropped on the doorsteps of the orphanage on a cold Sunday evening. She was wrapped in a thick blanket, her face exposed out to the cold. By the time the nuns found her, her cheeks were already a bright shade of red.

Everyone told me that before I came to the orphanage, she was the pride and joy of the nuns there. She was the perfect little girl. She was always sweet to everyone she meets and was always adored by everyone who comes to adopt.

But for some reason, she was always sent back.

The first time was because she became allergic to a plant that the family had for years. They couldn’t part with the plant but they could apparently give up a kid. The next was when their biological kid got jealous of her for taking all the attention. Of course, that wasn’t her fault, but the kid apparently made them choose. The third and the last time was a tragedy. She just got adopted. A week later, cops came knocking at their door. Turns out, they were part of a huge cult that takes girls and sacrifices them to their god.

When I first heard her story, my very first thought was, “Ouch.” Because that’s seriously got to hurt.

I mean, I’ve been adopted twice before, too. I was always returned. But at least with mine, I know I’m the problem. With hers? I think the problem is with the rest of the world.

“So, you’re a thief?” came Dimitri’s little drawl.

I snapped my gaze to him. “And you’re a nuisance. Guess we’re even.”

“Call me what you like. You’re still going to be stuck with me.”

“Try anything and I’ll fire you.”

“But that’s what’s brilliant. You can’t. You’re not the one making that decision.”

I frowned, directing my gaze to Henry who was standing by the window, staring out into the driveway. He didn’t even look at me. He just shrugged.

My frown deepened. “Don’t get smug. I might just retire you… permanently.”

“Is that a threat?”

“Are you threatened?”

He cackled. “All I asked was if you were a thief. No need to get all snappy.”

“Where did you even hear that?”

“From me.”

I whirled around to see Percival walking into the drawing room, his brown Schiaparelli coat flapping behind him as he sauntered in.

He stopped a few inches from me, removed his coat, and held it out. For half a second, I thought he was expecting for me to take it like one of his loyal slaves. But someone else grabbed his coat for him and placed it neatly in the coat rack by the door.

I frowned but didn’t say anything.

“Pleased to see me?” he sneered and sat on the space beside me.

I tried my best to hide my glare. “Was I that obvious?”

He just scoffed at my response and gestured for one of the maids to make him a cup of coffee. “You must think that just because we didn’t show up here for a couple days that we’d leave you alone with all of my grandpa’s riches.” He chuckled condescendingly. “Don’t be naive.”

“I wasn’t being one. In fact, I fully expected all of you to wrap your every waking moment thinking about me.”

His smug look faltered. “And why would we do that?”

“Because I managed to get what you all wanted. I didn’t even have to try.”

This time, he fully transformed into what I expected his expression would be the next time we came face to face. He was furious. If we had been left alone in this room, I would’ve been scared. I mean, I can fight. But right now, he looks like he can kill.

“She’s here.”

But there are more pressing matters than him right now. Like for example, Gabby.

I left him in the drawing room and ran straight outside to greet her. She had just barely managed to go up the huge staircase when I sprinted the last steps toward her, wrapping her in a tight hug.

She nearly fell back, chuckling loudly as she caught me. “I missed you, too, Alex.”

I laughed at her response and beamed at her as I let go. I took a good look at her face. It has been three months since I last saw her. It was her eighteenth birthday. Back then, she looked like an angel. Now, she’s still pretty… but you can tell that she’s a little exhausted.

“I’m guessing, life hasn’t treated you right?” I asked her, studying the hollowed circles around her eyes and the fine lines on her face.

She smiled at me, looking down. “I’m just a little tired. That’s all.”

I chuckled. “Well, you don’t have to worry about anything anymore. Because now, I’m loaded.”

She laughed. “You are now, aren’t you?”

“Yeah. And we can now continue going to school just like what we planned.”

“Oh, yeah?” She was smiling, but I saw it fading a little. “What about your family? I mean… are they fine with me being—”

“I’m still an orphan, in case you were wondering,” I cut her off. “Reginald Harrington was my mom’s father. He’s dead, too.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be. That bastard was filthy rich but let me rot in an orphanage filled with evil nuns anyway.”

Gabriella laughed at the mention of the evil nuns. They weren’t exactly evil, you know? They were just… angry. I mean, it’s valid though. Anyone who had to be subjected to taking care of me would be angry, too.

“Anyway, do you wanna see my room?”

“Yes!” She giggled.

I tried leading her inside but was stopped halfway when Percival stood by the doorway. His sleeves were rolled up to his elbows, his expression smug. “Where do you think you’re going with that—” He looked at Gabby and some kind of disgust crossed his face, “—peasant.”

My eyebrows furrowed, taking a step forward. “Who are you calling peasant?”

“Her, obviously,” he deadpanned and took a step closer, too. “But then again, that word also applies to you. After all, you were literally nothing before we found you.”

“Be careful there, rich boy,” I deadpanned. “You seem to be forgetting something.”

“And what is that?”

“That your own grandfather hates you enough to leave you with literally nothing?” I gave him a taunting smile. “I may be nothing before, but I think it’s safe to say that I’m at least worth more than you now.”

I then grabbed Gabby’s hand and passed by him, making sure to bump his shoulder as I did. I heard him scoff as we left but I didn’t bother looking back. Talking to people like him is never worth it. And besides, they shouldn’t be putting the blame on me. I didn’t make the rules.

“You think you’re untouchable, Carter?!” he shouted from the foyer, his voice echoing through the domed ceiling. “My mom and aunt has already hired the best lawyers in the world. One of these days, they’ll find out the truth.”

I turned to him, my expression bored. “Which is?”

“That you’re just some scummy criminal? And that you’re probably not even Ivy.”

“Oh, but she is,” Henry spoke and buttoned the suit that he was wearing, his glasses catching the light from the windows. “We have already confirmed her identity long before we even brought her here. A total of three tests were administered. You can see the medical results for yourself.”

“That means nothing,” he snapped back. “You could’ve faked the medical results.”

“The board was there. Everyone was present. Ask them.”

My eyebrows furrowed. “Wait. How did you—”

“Through the orphanage.” Henry smiled at me. “We paid them a hefty sum just so we can collect your DNA.”

“Like my hair and my toothbrush?”

“Like your blood.”

I was confused at first. And then I remembered. A week ago, there was some kind of blood donation drive for the older kids. We were given gifts in exchange for donating. So, naturally, I agreed. I sold the teddy bear and the shirt they gave me and got ten dollars off of it.

Worth it, if I were to be honest.

Percival’s lips twitched. “It doesn’t matter who she is. She will be out of here soon enough anyway.”

“Yeah? And how do you suppose you’d do that?” Henry sounded like he was taunting him. Percival was pissed.

“You’re forgetting your place, Caldwell, getting all caught up with this girl. Remember, you’re nothing but a puppet of my grandfather’s making.”

“And I could say the same thing about you.”

ALEX’s POV

Gabriella popped another popcorn into her mouth. “So… what’s his deal?” she started and I looked back at her, my hands halfway through folding my shirt.

“Who?”

“That blond guy from earlier.”

“Oh.” I stuffed the last of my old clothes into the luggage and sat back on the floor, taking one last look at it. “That was Percival Harrington Davenport. He’s supposed to be my cousin.”

Gabriella looked at me with disgust and I forced back a smile, rolling my eyes, too. “If the stick stuck up his ass were any bigger, he’d be a tree.”

“Careful. You might insult the trees.”

When Henry figured out that I was finished packing, he told someone else to unpack it and led us to the car that will take us to the boarding school. I was just about to complain about his orders when a call interrupted me. He just held a finger to my face and disappeared, leaving me with Gabby and Dimitri.

“Come on. We’ll be late.” Dimitri led us outside where an Aurus Senat Limousine awaits us, flanked by three black SUVs.

My mouth fell. The car itself was in a sunset gold shade, its interior a mixture of Caspian blue and oatmeal. As we sat inside, we felt like we were two presidents out on a foreign excursion.

“Wow.” Gabriella ran her hand through the leather seats of the car. “Isn’t this like one of those Russian president’s cars?”

Dimitri sat on the passenger’s seat of the car and closed it. “It is. But I believe he had one in a different color.”

“Right.” I turned to Gabby. “He knows a lot about Putin because he’s Russian.”

I saw Dimitri roll his eyes from the rearview mirror and I quietly snickered.

Once we were out of the Harrington Estate, both Gabby and I had our faces glued to the windows, watching the streets of New York. All our lives, or at least the part that we can remember, we’ve never left the city of Chicago. Ever. But now, we’re both going to places we’ve never been to.

Scary? Yes. Especially since I was just thrusted into a life so extravagant it’s making me feel lightheaded. But then again, it’s not like either of us have anything to lose with this anyway.

“Where’s this Montfort Academy everyone keeps talking about? I’ve never heard of it before,” Gabby whispered to me as we passed Hamilton Grange.

I shrugged. “I’ve never heard of it before, too. My guess is that we’re in a totally different tax bracket to even be bothered with that information.”

She chuckled. “But now you are.”

I turned to her, a smirk tugging on my lips. “We both are. Just hope those guys back at that elite school aren’t too snobby. I might have to shove them into lockers.”

The small screen in front of me crackled into life and I was startled to see Henry’s face. He appears to be in one of the black SUVs following us close.

“You can’t shove people into lockers, Ivy.”

My face contorted at the name. “Don’t call me that. It’s Alex.”

“That is your given name.” He shuffled a few papers he was holding around and looked straight at me from the screen. “I am serious, though. You cannot shove people inside lockers.”

“Okay, okay. I was just kidding.”

“The students in Montfort Academy aren’t ones you can mess with. They are sons and daughters of rich tycoons like yourself. Some of them even royalties and children of politicians.”

I raised both my eyebrows so high I was afraid it might disappear through my hair. “So, you’re saying…”

“You might be the heir of Reginald Harrington, but you’re not the only one in that school born with money and power. Some of them have even deeper roots than you.” His stare hardened as he studied my expression.

I blinked, my eyes darting from Gabriella to Henry. “Well, I’m not a shoving-people-into-lockers type of person. But if they mess with me—”

“No exceptions, Alex. You are there so you can become the perfect heir. Make connections, make allies. But do not make enemies. Are we clear?”

I pursed my lips, frowning.

He moved closer to the camera. “Are. We. Clear?”

“Crystal.”

The call ended. I rolled my eyes at the screen and tried mimicking Henry’s serious expression. Gabby laughed at my impression but I received a sharp look from Dimitri.

“You do know that he can still see you, right? There’s a live feed on his screen.”

It wasn’t long before our car pulled into the same private airstrip from a few days ago. As I stepped out, this time toward a different jet gleaming on the tarmac, I turned to Henry who was walking closely behind.

“Why are we getting on a plane?”

He stared blankly at me. “We’re heading to Montfort.”

“No, I know that. But is it that far away that we’re using a plane?”

Henry only furrowed his brows at me, shaking his head. He then walked right past me as if my question was not at all valid.

“You didn’t know?” Dimitri was the one who spoke. “It’s in England.”

“In England?!” Gabby and I said in a chorus.

We exchanged looks.

“No! No, no, no. Dude, I don’t even have a passport.”

“Oh, sit down,” Henry commanded and sat on one of the leather seats.

I shook my head feverishly. “You didn’t tell me the school was in England!” I pointed at him accusingly. “Why are you sending me there, huh? Is this some kind of… of… of a plan to get rid of me or something?”

“Will you just relax?”

“No, I will not relax! Tell me.”

Henry sighed heavily, his features all of a sudden looking heavily aged by a decade. “Montfort Academy is the best school for you. It was where your mother and her sisters graduated from. Your cousins all go there, too.”

I blinked. “But—”

“No buts—”

“Yes buts!” I cut him off this time, pointing a finger at him again. “I won’t go to England. You didn’t tell me the stupid school was in England.”

“I have provided all of the necessary gadgets you could ever want. A quick google search would’ve informed you of that.”

“Don’t be sassy with me.”

“We still have a long flight, Miss Carter. If you don’t sit down right now,” He stood up, “I will make you.”

· · ─ ·𖥸· ─ · ·

It was already night by the time we landed in London. Or maybe it was just the time difference. Either way, the sky looked pretty bleak and the breeze that greeted us once we were out of the plane was chilly.

I wasted no time in getting into the car and wrapping myself up in a blanket. But the trip wasn’t long. We were dropped off in front of a helicopter, its blades already in motion.

“We’re riding in that?” Gabby grabbed my hand, his face all of a sudden looking very pale.

“We can’t ride that,” I immediately appealed to Henry but he simply frowned at me.

“That’s the fastest way to go, Miss Carter. In case you haven’t noticed, we’re running a little late to the banquet. I still have to go and talk to your headmistress.” He didn’t spare me any more glances and gestured for us to follow suit.

I pursed my lips and turned to Gabby. “Just close your eyes while we’re in there, alright? Just imagine we’re in a car.”

Gabby still looked scared but she nodded, her grip of my arm getting tighter.

As we sat inside the helicopter, she was just holding onto me, eyes shut tight. Meanwhile, I was enjoying the view. I had to tell her everything that I saw because she still refused to open her eyes.

“Ooh, there! I think that’s the school!”

Through the glass, the forest below broke open into a wide clearing, and there it was, the prestigious Montfort Academy.

The 16th-century Gothic castle rose above the treetops, its towers lit by lanterns and strings of lights that were all hung for the students’ arrival. A long drive snaked from the wrought-iron gates up to the main entrance, where town cars and black limousines were already lined up, headlights cutting through the mist.

Behind the castle, a huge lawn was dedicated for all the helicopters that were landing. I looked closely and to my surprise, it seems that there’s a bit of a landing queue.

“This is my first time seeing a helicopter stuck in traffic.”

Gabby’s eyes flew open. “What?” And then she caught sight of the view below and promptly passed out.

My eyes widened. “Hey, Gabby!” I tapped her repeatedly on the cheek and she twitched, groaning.

“Just let her be. Wake her up once we’ve landed,” Henry instructed and I looked down at the lawn. There were about nine helicopters in total including ours. Seriously? How is this even normal?

I swear, I keep seeing the weirdest things ever since I’ve been thrusted into this kind of life. Next thing I know, a full funeral would be held in honor of a dead fish. Back at the orphanage, we just threw them in the toilet and flushed.

“Are we there yet?”

“Almost. This red helicopter totally stole our spot.” I can’t believe I’ve said that sentence out loud. But nonetheless, I still glared at the dark-haired guy that was dressed in a crisp black suit. It was his helicopter that cut us off.

Once we finally landed, one of the school’s attendants opened our door for us and greeted. He then led us away from the lawns and into the rear courtyard.

“Ah, Mr. Caldwell.” A woman who looked just a little over 40s greeted us and shook Henry’s hand, her accent thick. She then turned to me and smiled brightly. “It’s always a pleasure to have another one of the Harringtons here. Welcome to Montfort, my dear. I am your headmistress, Agnes Norwood.”

She offered a hand to me and I shook it. She didn’t let go immediately though, she stared at me for a brief moment with her creepy smile and her sharp eyes. The expression on her face tells me she might keep a close eye on me.

What did I even do?