It was strange seeing Alexander's face on a wanted notice. This - this couldn't be a coincidence could it? There was definitely someone behind this. But, could it be . . . him?
"Rin," Sonia said, shaking her head. "Do you know anything about this?"
Speechless, I looked up at her. "N-no," I stammered out. "I have no idea what's going on. This is the first I've seen this. Have the police said anything?"
"No," she replied. "I don't know how the media got a hold of this. No one has made a public announcement. Do you think he's been arrested yet?"
My stomach did a flip. I hoped not. Even if he couldn't or wouldn't prove his innocence, Alexander wasn't responsible for any of this. Someone - someone was trying to frame him. But how were they doing it?
If for some reason . . . he . . . had something to do with this, I - I had to tell Alexander. There was no way around it. I couldn't let an innocent person go to jail for something he didn't do.
"Has Carlos said anything?" I asked her.
Sonia didn't speak for a long time. "No," she said sharply. "I haven't talked him recently."
"Oh, okay."
Before I realized it, a group of freshmen had surrounded the table. A few of them were crying.
"Tell us this is a joke," one of them wailed. "The Prince can't get arrested. He just can't."
"I - I have no idea what's going on," I told them. "I don't know why you think I would know something."
"You're his girlfriend, aren't you?" one of them asked.
I opened my mouth and closed. "Um, no? Wh-who said that?"
"The Prince. He said you two were dating. Why would you lie about it?"
"Is it because he's a wanted person? Is that why you won't admit it?"
I cautiously got up from my seat. This wasn't going the way I planned. Why would Alexander tell them we were dating? We weren't. He shouldn't have spread rumors about us.
"Listen," I began weakly. I looked at Sonia for help but she crossed her arms and didn't say anything.
"So much for your love."
I sighed. Regardless of what I said, this wasn't going to end well. "He told me to deny everything," I blurted out. "He said it be safer, but I can't lie to you guys. You're his fans. You know how he is. Deep down he's caring. He doesn't want anything bad to happen to . . . er. . . us."
For a moment, I held my breath. It was the only thing I could think of on the spot. Would they believe it? I hadn't necessarily lied and I hadn't necessarily confessed that we were dating. Technically, I just told them that I couldn't admit to anything.
They all shared glances. If anything, I placed some ideas in their heads. I cleared my throat.
"I have to go," I told them. "If I find anything out, I'll let you know."
Before they could stop me, I grabbed my backpack and hauled my butt out of there. Sonia was right behind me.
At her strange look, I said, "I had to tell them something."
She just nodded but didn't say anything. Right now, her approval was not my concern. I had to talk to find Alexander. If - if for whatever reason, this was my fault, I had to fix this.
#
"Hi, is Mr. Kemler available?"
"I'm sorry, he's in an appointment," the receptionist replied. "I can take a message if you like."
"I already left him a message and several voicemails," I told her. "Do you have any idea when he'll be available?"
"I'm sorry ma'am, I don't. However, once he is available, he'll give you a call back at his earliest convenience."
"Alright," I said and ended the call.
Since arriving from school, the only thing I'd focused on was trying to reach Alexander. I tried his lawyers but they didn't answer. Why couldn't Alexander left me his cell phone number or something? How else was I supposed to reach him in an emergency?
What if he had already been arrested? My stomach tightened. No, I couldn't think like that. I had to believe that he hadn't turned himself in. Alexander wouldn't do something like that. He wouldn't go into hiding either. He was too proud for that. Knowing him, he was probably roaming around somewhere in public.
Maybe, maybe the mafia would know something. They seemed powerful enough to have Alexander follow orders. What if they were keeping him somewhere? That was a possibility. But I didn't think this was going to blow over anytime soon. It was too serious. How was the Royal family going to hide a warrant for Alexander's arrest? They couldn't.
Was there anything I could do at this point? Frustrated, I sat on my bed. Think. There had to be something.
"Rin?" my mom called from the hallway. "Do you mind if I come in?"
Rubbing my eyes, I said, "come in."
My mom walked in with some brownies. "Hey, sweetheart," she said. She placed the plate of brownies on my desk. "Everything alright? Dad and I are worried. You didn't eat much at dinner."
"I'm not hungry," I told her.
"Does this have something to do with the vampire Prince?"
"Kind of," I admitted. "I just can't believe he's a wanted criminal."
"Didn't you want that?" she asked. "You always talked about how he got away with everything."
"Yeah, but it's different," I told her. "He didn't attack those people. He's being framed and that's why I'm so angry. He's a wanted criminal for things he didn't do."
Mom rubbed my back. "Rin, do you like him?" she asked.
My mind went blank. "N-no," I stammered out. "I don't like him. Why would I like him? I never said anything about liking him."
"Well, it sounds like you know him," she explained. "You wouldn't talk like this if you didn't genuinely care about him. The school told me that he still went to school even after what happened with the contract." She shrugged. "Maybe something changed? Either way, I don't want to see you go hungry about something you can't control."
I attempted to smile. "Alright," I told her. "But I'm really not hungry at all."
She sighed and stood. "I baked some brownies. Don't let them go to waste."
"Okay."
She kissed my forehead and left. Feeling guilty, I went over to the brownies and grabbed one. Nibbling on it, I paced around my room. Maybe Mr. Kemler was available now. I could give him a call and see if he knew how to contact Alexander.
"So, you don't like me after all," came a voice from the window.
I inhaled sharply and a brownie crumb went down the wrong pipe. It seemed like a lifetime before I finally manage to take a breath.
"Are you dying?" Alexander asked.
"Shut up," I croaked out.
"Do you need a glass of water?"
I gave him a glare and kept trying to take deep breath. Death by brownie. I guess it wouldn't be a bad way to go.
When I finally got my voice back, I asked, "where have you been? I've been trying to reach you since this afternoon. I thought - it doesn't matter. Where were you?"
Alexander grinned. "Were you worried?"
"No but your fans were and they bothered me."
He titled his head. "You left Raymond ten voicemails and five messages," he said.
I cleared my throat. "Is that Mr. Kemler's name?" I asked.
If I didn't admit anything to his fans, I wasn't going to admit anything to him.
Shaking his head, Alexander sat on my bed. "You said you had to talk to me."
My heart lurched. "Y-yeah," I told him.
I shoved the rest of my brownie in my mouth and chewed. Now that he was here, I didn't know where to start. Just thinking about it, made pressure built behind my eyes. I swallowed thickly.
"I - I think I know who is framing you," I whispered.
To my surprise, Alexander didn't say anything. I cleared my throat.
"His name . . . his name is . . . Micah."
I turned my back towards him. "We went to middle school together," I continued. "We were, we were best friends, actually."
My vision blurred. "We were inseparable. We had sleep over parties and everything." I sniffed. "But, he, uh, changed. I should have noticed. I should have -" I rubbed my neck. "He fed from me. He forced - "
I trailed off. I closed my eyes, breathing heavily. I couldn't stop the tears. "He con - controlled me," I forced out. "At first, I didn't know what was happening until I broke out of it."
Alexander's arms were suddenly around me. "It's fine," he said. "You don't have to say anything else."
I shook my head. "My parents found out," I continued. "We left. I changed schools. That note you read, he sent it. He sent another one too. It said he would take matters into his own hands."
Even as I stopped talking, Alexander didn't let go. He held onto me and no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't stop the tears. I pressed my face into his shoulder trying to stop.
"It's my fault," I sobbed. "I could have -"
"I'm not going to let you blame yourself," Alexander growled out. "This is not your fault. Don't you dare say that. Not to me."
"But - "
"Rin, don't." His arms tightened around me. "If he thinks this is going to get him anything then he's wrong. I assure you, he will pay for this."
"Alexander," I began.
"He will pay for hurting you, I can assure you that. Micah can do whatever he likes to me but to you, no. He crossed a line."
Alexander cupped my face with both hands. His eyes glowed red but his anger was not direct at me. "He won't hurt," he promised. "I won't let him touch you."
My lips trembled. I lifted myself up on my tip-toes and pressed my lips against his. It was the only thing that I could think of. I had no words to express what I was feeling.
"Do you realize how long I waited for you to do that?" he mumbled.
My stomach did a flip. I moved back but I found that I couldn't. My body grew hot and I couldn't bring myself to look at him.
His lips found mine again. "Let's stay like this for a while," he whispered. "Just for right now, let me hold you."
"Okay."