“What body? Whose body?” Grey stared at Ela.
Ela’s gaze darted around the room. Piper, Mia and Patty’s faces went blank. Grey didn’t understand why no one was speaking.
“You don’t think it’s the—” Piper started but Mia swatted her shoulder. “What?” Piper frowned.
They glanced at Grey, then anywhere else but at her.
“What? Spill, what’s going on?” Grey asked.
No one was coughing up any explanations.
“I saw it on the local news.” Ela said.
“Since when do you watch the news?” Patty asked in a small voice.
Grey stood and picked up the remote laying on the coffee table. Mia looked like she wanted to stop Grey, but when Mia didn’t open her mouth Grey turned the screen on. There were only five channels on it.
“See, it’s the same place.” Ela said.
“Ela…” Patty hissed.
“What? Why don’t you just say what’s going on?” Grey asked.
“The remains of an infant were found today in the woods close to Coral Lake. The area’s known for belonging to some of society’s wealthiest people. Information on the infant’s identity hasn’t been released. Authorities are searching for more bodies…” Mia stood up and turned the screen off.
“It’s nothing.” Mia said.
The girls shared concerned glances.
“I don’t think it’s nothing.” Ela whispered.
“Neither do I.” Grey said.
“Can we just go to bed? We don’t even know whose baby that is.”
Patty and Piper nodded, “Yeah, it could be anyone’s.” Piper said.
“Great, so can we drop it?” Mia smiled wearily.
No one spoke about the night club again instead the girls tried to break the nerves by talking about assignments and the school day, but ultimately they all had one thing on their minds. One thing they couldn’t speak about. They said nervy goodnights. Grey lay in her bed trying to guess the mystery behind the body. She didn’t want to think the baby belonged to one of her friends, but what other conclusion could there be?

***
The infant topic was off-limits Ela was shut down instantly when she tried to bring it up at breakfast. Grey thought Ela would crack easily if she pressed enough. Today she had no choice, but to get that job she’d been avoiding. With her friends believing her luggage was missing she could afford to wear her clothes as many times as she wanted.
The castle was an actual seventieth century castle bought and refurbish over sixty years ago. The rich and famous have been roaming the halls since. Most of the people on the walls went on to be richer and esteemed. Only one other person from her home town came to this school, but Grey didn’t even know who it was. It was just a fact her mom dug up.
It was after her third lesson of the day that Grey found a moment to find out which lecture would be her boss for the semester. Grey should have knocked, but the door was already partially open.
Brandon leaned against the lectures table with his head back and his fist clenched in a familiar blonde’s head. Grey cringed, but tried not to make a sound. Mia’s head bobbed up and down Brandon’s cock, taking in his entire length. Grey swallowed. She wanted to back out, but the door would make a sound. The sound of Mia’s slurping would probably mask it, but it was too late.
Brandon leaned his head forward and his eyes met Grey’s. Their eyes both went wide. Grey panicked and backed out of the room. How did she explain that she wasn’t spying and it was an innocent mistake? Brandon pulled Mia off him instantly, but Grey scurried away from the scene before anything was said.
She pulled out her phone and checked the room number again.
“Damn it, how could I have gotten it so wrong?” Her cheeks burned hot pink. She touched them and they were flaming. Lewis passed her on her way to the right class and winked. Gosh, what was he thinking?
She got to the door and made sure to knock as hard as she could. She didn’t want to witness another scene. Especially if it was one of her friends.
Grey walked into the empty classroom and sighed. Where the heck was he? The one day she was serious about the job the guy wasn’t here. His deck was piled up with work. Grey bit her bottom lip. That better not all be for her.
A door slammed shut somewhere. Grey tightened her grip on her bag and turned.
“You?” Grey frowned.
West shoved his hands in his jacket pockets. “Greyson.”
“I know you’re not a lecturer.”
“Oh aren’t you smart.”
Grey scrawled, “Where is he? I have to talk to him about a job.”
West looked at the piled up table then back at Grey.
“Took you long enough to appear. I’d get started if I were you.”
“What? I haven’t even spoken to the lecturer.”
West sighed; he leaned against the table on the first row. He folded his arms and eyed Grey. She wanted to look away, but that would make West happy.
“You’re not supposed to. You’re my assistant.”
“Yours?” Grey gasped.
“I’m a teaching assistant smart ass.”
“Then why do you need an assistant? You’re supposed to do all the work.”
West shrugged, “Because I’ve got more important things to do. Since you decided to show up nearly eight weeks late I had more stuff on my desk than I bargained for.”
“Well, I’m glad I could be of good use.”
West narrowed his eyes at her, “You clearly don’t want this job Greyson.”
Grey bit her lip and stared at the window with thick burglar bars. No, she needed the job. She didn’t know how much it paid, but it would go a long way with things at home. The scholarship made sure she had all her necessities. Mom needed the money more and the rest she could save.
“No, I actually need the money.” She bit her tongue the second the word left her mouth.
“Why? Daddy cut you off? I had a feeling you were a trouble maker.”
If only he knew. He clearly hadn’t made sense of her conversation with her mother yesterday.
“It doesn’t matter. You’ve got to do some of that work. I’m not going to start flunking classes because you won’t do any of the work.”
“I do a lot of work around here. The least you can do is pick up the rest.”
“I’ll do forty percent of what’s on that desk and whatever comes.”
“We’re not negotiating. Screw this, I can find another assistant.”
Shoot Grey, why didn’t you just take the deal? She asked herself, but that work had been sitting there longer than a couple days it could only mean one thing.
“Fine ago ahead, but she’ll have to be from somewhere else because you know no one from here will do it.” Grey planted her hand on her hip.
“I’ll find someone.” West said, but it didn’t sound like he believed himself.
“I bet you will because the royalty of the golden universe will be begging at the opportunity to become an assistant’s assistant.”
“You need to get better at this.”
“At what?”
“At creating puns. Really? Golden universe? Again?”
Grey rolled her eyes, “You know it’s true.”
“I don’t think you’re any different from them.”
The comment fazed her but it shouldn’t have. She knew who she was and where she was going in life.
Grey cleared her throat, “Forty-five percent. My final offer.”
“We’re not doing this.”
“You’re wasting time. You know you won’t find another assistant.”
“You’re so sure of yourself.”
“Fifty-fifty. I’m not going any higher and the pay better be good.”
“Of course it has to be good, heavens knows what you’ve been accustomed to.”
Her blood boiled. He didn’t know a thing about her, but his assumptions were her fault.
“What do you say West?”
West groaned, “Fine. We go half, but there are—”
“Great! I’ll start tomorrow.”
West’s eyes went wide, “What? You just got here.”
“Yeah, this was just the interview phase now I have to prepare myself for a monster load of work.”
“You better believe it’ll be a monster load of work.”
“See you tomorrow boss.”
“Grey…” West grumbled, but she was already out the door.
West was lucky she didn’t say next week. She walked out of the room with a smile on her face. Working with West was going to be interesting. As Grey turned to toward the library a pair of hands grabbed her arms and pushed her into a tiny storage room.
“What the hell?!” Grey yelled.
The lights went on and a pair of pale blue eyes glared at her.
“Brandon? What do you want?”
“Your nosy ass to stay out of my business.”
Grey’s cheeks turned red, “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Of course you do. I know you saw us. Were you spying on us?”
Grey smacked her forehead. “For someone so smart you do some stupid things. For one not locking the door! Second why didn’t you take it as I don’t know anything and move on? Why do you have to push things?”
“To make sure you don’t run your dirty little mouth.”
Grey lifted her chin, “Mia’s my friend, I’m not going to hurt her.”
At least not again.
“Good. I’ll know it’s you if word gets out.”
“No, it could be anyone considering how you like to take risks.”
Brandon scrawled. He opened the door and stormed out. Grey stumbled back and hit the wall. She placed her hand on her chest. Things got a little bit more complicated.