The Right Kind Of Wrong

by L. B. Reyes

  “Evie!”

  I groaned, stopping when I heard his voice once again.

  “What?”

  “Good luck on your presentation today.”

  I smiled to myself and kept walking without saying another word to him.

  ***

  Thankful that I wasn't late to class despite breaking into a car and running into my ex, I took a seat in my usual spot. We had presentations that day and though I hated speaking in public I much preferred to do that rather than taking an exam. I greeted Mike with a small nod. He smiled, going back to his conversation with Josh.

  How could no one see what a dick Josh was?

  Professor Lanthorn jumped right into the presentations and lucky for us, we were the last pair to have to speak. As the other groups presented, I went through my flashcards in order to not make a complete fool of myself. When it was time for our presentation, I stood in front of the crowd next to Mike, anxious and ready to get the last bit of the semester over with.

  “Don't be nervous,” Mike smiled, squeezing my shoulder. “We got this.”

  “Okay, I'll start,” I said.

  Mike went over to the computer to plug in the USB with the PowerPoint and I began speaking. I introduced both myself and Mike, as well as the subject we'd be presenting

  “So this is our presentation about—”

  Murmurs echoed throughout the classroom, and for that moment the world ceased to exist.

  “Holy shit,” I said.

  CHAPTER 39

  Nathan

  When I heard my damned alarm go off, I couldn't help but smile like a fucking idiot. I knew it was Evelyn. Of course it was her. She was so pissed she couldn't ask for help. I chuckled to myself as I saw her walk away, knowing that I would be able to explain myself in just a few hours. I didn't think she'd forgive me easily for what I said, but Evie was a smart woman, wise beyond her years so I knew she'd be able to understand that what I did was to keep her safe.

  “Evie!” I called after her and she stopped. The groan that left her lips was audible but I knew it was nothing more than a show she put on, she was still the same woman I loved. The woman that I'd spend the rest of my life trying to make happy after the mistakes I'd made.

  “What?” she asked.

  “Good luck on your presentation today.”

  I didn't have to see her face to picture her smile. Her shoulders relaxed and her back straightened as if my wishing her luck made all the difference.

  I closed the car again, locking it before I headed the opposite direction.

  ***

  Finals week was troubling for everyone, from professors to students. In the end, there was only one goal in mind, which is to get out of there for the summer. I set down my briefcase on the desk and turned on the computer as the students walked into the classroom.

  “Get out your laptops and log in to your school email. There's a link there for course evaluation. Ten extra credit points to your overall grade once you do it,” I said. Most students did as I said immediately while I set up my computer, preparing for the review to the final in the next two days.

  I took my phone out and sent David a quick message, letting him know that I was going to be talking to Evelyn. His reply came almost immediately and he said exactly what I thought he'd say:

  David: It's risky. Are you sure?

  I sighed. That was going to be a problem, I knew it but Evie had the right to know.

  Me: She needs to know, David. I can't keep this from her anymore. Meet us at Tessa's?

  David: Sure, I'll be there. Noon?

  Me: Sounds good.

  The class started to murmur again, their voices invading the room. I didn't mind the chatter, as long as when I asked they quiet down, they did and that was typically the case.

  I opened up my email and skimmed through it, just making sure that there was nothing important before I began reviewing. There was an email that caught my attention. It wasn't from another professor. In fact, the email address didn't look familiar at all.

  “Maxwell,” a student approached me with a frown on her face.

  “Hm?” I opened the email, not paying attention to what the student said. In it was an attachment. I debated what to do but ended up seeing what it was.

  “Maxwell, something's happening,” she stated, while another student walked up behind her.

  “I'm seeing it now.” My eyes widened at the image in front of me. It took a moment for me to realize what was going on, but when I did, I was sure the color drained from my face.

  A soft moan filled my ears, the sound so feminine and genuine and familiar. A man thrust into a woman eagerly as she was on all fours, her face buried in the sheets under her. She moaned again, louder this time and raised her face for the whole world to see.

  Fucking hell.

  It was me and Evelyn, in her room…having sex. Except my face was blurred out while hers was still visible.

  Anger coursed through my veins as the video changed to another one from a different night, and then to another one.

  Hannah.

  Fucking Hannah.

  With a roar, I shoved the desk over, startling all the students. Their eyes were wide, unable to comprehend what was going on.

  “What the fuck is this?” I snarled. All of them looked at me with a shocked expression. “Did everyone get this?”

  They all gave me a slow nod. I ran a hand over my face, groaning. I didn't give a fuck if they recognized me but Evelyn…Evelyn didn't deserve that.

  “Class is dismissed,” I said, already halfway out of the room. I had to find Evelyn before she found out, explain everything to her.

  This was precisely what I had been trying to protect her from. The cruelty from her family truly held no limits.

  When Hannah showed up one day while I gave the lecture, I knew I couldn’t expect any good news. She’d planned everything. Hannah had no fear in telling me exactly how she’d carried everything out.

  The fact she had even thought about carrying out a plan like that was sick.

  But we’d gotten on her bad side.

  She was angry at the way she was humiliated at the bar when she found us together. She was furious she didn’t get her way and decided she would install a camera in Evelyn’s bedroom.

  And then she bribed me.

  I ended my relationship with Evie to avoid that video getting out.

  Hannah had fucking given her word that she had gotten rid of the video, she'd erased the copy in front of me. She'd written a confidentiality agreement that said no one was to speak about this ever, including herself.

  She'd lied.

  I ran across campus towards the wing where Evelyn was. If the whole fucking university received that video…

  No, fuck no.

  Hannah was evil. Doing something like that to her own sister, her own blood was cruel. She could hurt me with something like that, but seeing her follow through, purposely cause her sister so much pain, betraying her that way was just heartless.

  I made it to Lanthorn's classroom, rushing inside and searching frantically for Evelyn amongst his students.

  “Where is she?” I asked, panicking when I didn't see her anywhere. He pushed me out of the lecture room, closing the door behind him.

  “She ran out. She was about to present an assignment and somehow the fucking video was on her partner’s USB drive.”

  “Who the fuck is it? I'll kill the motherfu—”

  “Dean's office, Nathan. I've already spoken to the Dean through the phone, he's on it. But it seems a lot of students got it if not all.”

  “Fucking hell,” I hissed. “Did she say anything? Did she say where she was going?”

  “She left all her stuff,” Lanthorn shook his head. “She was very upset, Nathan.”

  “Fuck,” I muttered, running a hand over my face. “I have to find her.”

  As the words left my lips, I was already walking away. I couldn't leave Evelyn alone, not in a situation like this.

/>   In seconds, I was inside my car, rushing out of the damn garage and searching for Evie. If she'd taken a cab, there was no way I'd know where she was, but if she'd walked perhaps she was still on campus.

  I doubted that.

  There was no way she'd remain there after this. I gripped the steering wheel so hard my knuckles turned white and sped through traffic, trying to get to her grandmother's house. She had to be there.

  It seemed as if the fucking car wasn't moving fast enough, but when I finally arrived at her Nana's house, there was no one there. The house was unoccupied, there was no sign anyone had been there in the past few days. I called her cell phone but it sent me straight to voicemail.

  If she was so distraught, I had no clue what she'd be capable of doing. Evelyn didn't deserve that. She didn't deserve the cards she'd been dealt.

  She deserved better than this.

  I dialed David and he picked up almost immediately.

  “It's all fucked up,” I hissed, not waiting for his greeting.

  “What's going on?”

  “The video, David. The fucking video is out. The whole damned university saw it and I can't find Evie, she's disappeared.”

  “Wait, what?” David asked, the shock evident in his tone. He'd tried everything, everything for that video not to be exposed. He cared for Evelyn, for Anne and he knew that she'd do anything to for her granddaughter to not go through something like that.

  “I don't know, but it's fucking out, David. I need you to find Hannah now while I search for Evie. Let me know what you find out.”

  “Already heading out,” he said. Sure enough, I heard a car turning on in the background.

  I went to the cemetery where her Nana was buried, hoping I'd find her there, but had no luck at all. Running out of ideas, I dialed Tessa and Carter and neither had heard from Evie. Finally, I pulled over in a random shopping center. If I kept driving that way, I was going to cause an accident and that was one less thing Evie needed.

  My phone rang and I looked down, wishing that it was Evie but had no luck.

  “Hey,” I said as I exhaled.

  “Nathan, what the fuck is going on?” Jenna asked. “Who sent that video, what—”

  “Jen, I don't know, but have you seen Evelyn?”

  “No,” she whispered. “I've searched all campus and I can't find her, Nathan. She won't pick up, I don't know where she is.

  I ran a hand over my face, leaning my head against the headrest and closing my eyes. Jenna didn't say anything for a while and we both remained in silence on the line. There really was nothing to say. Not with this.

  “Take a breather,” Jenna finally said. “We need to be level headed to think straight so we can find her.”

  I shook my head. “I can't, Jenna. I don't know where she is. I don't know if she's okay or if she's going to do something stupid and fuck if she does something—”

  “No, don't say that. Evelyn wouldn't do that…would she?”

  I sighed. “Let me know if you hear from her, please.”

  “I will,” she replied. “Take care of yourself, Nate.”

  As I hung up, my phone buzzed with a message.

  David: Hannah is at your house.

  I stared at my phone like an idiot for a few seconds. As much as I wanted to keep looking for Evelyn I also needed to get things settled with Hannah.

  Rushing to the house like a maniac, I made it in record time. David's car was parked as was Hannah's. The anger I thought I had controlled bubbled up once again when I pushed the door open.

  And when I saw her, I snapped.

  I took hold of her arm, Hannah's eyes widening in fear as if she hadn't expected that.

  “What the fuck did you do, you selfish bitch?” I snarled, holding her a bit too tight.

  “I didn't do anything, I swear.” Her voice trembled and her eyes were swollen as if she'd been crying.

  I didn't give a fuck.

  “Nathan, calm down,” David said, trying to pull me away from her. I was too far gone.

  “No, not until she fucking tells me what she did. I did everything, everything you told me and you still pulled this shit,” I hissed, furious.

  “I didn't do it, Nathan! I promise I didn't do it.”

  “If it wasn't you, who the fuck did it?” I saw her throat move, her eyes searching out David for help. Whatever she was looking for she didn't find because soon she was looking at me with the same desperate expression.

  “Speak, dammit!”

  “It was Josh Nicholson!”

  CHAPTER 40

  Nathan

  Josh Nicholson

  My eyes searched Hannah's face for any hint of deceit. She pleaded with me but all I heard was the echo of Nicholson's name. I swallowed, shaking my head slightly.

  “Nathan, I swear it was Josh Nicholson! I may be a lot of things, but I wouldn't have risked the family name like that, I promise. And I wouldn't have done that to Evelyn. It was just a way to bribe you, but I would have never exposed her.”

  David grabbed my shoulder when Hannah whimpered in pain. I let her go, shoving her away with force. She stumbled on her feet and continued crying. If she wanted me to show her some compassion, or if she wanted me to fucking care about her feelings, she wouldn't find anything. My only concern was Evelyn.

  “The whole fucking university got it,” I hissed, running a hand over my face.

  “So did some investors from the company,” Hannah said brokenly.

  I scoffed in disbelief. “Why the fuck does Nicholson have this video? Why the fuck did he send it out?”

  Hannah's looked down, ashamed. I gripped her chin harshly. “Tell me what the hell is going on,” I demanded.

  “Nathan, I'm so sorry, I—”

  “I don't give a damn about your apologies,” I said, desperation seeping through my words. “Evelyn is missing. She’s gone and I don't know what state she's in. I need to find her.”

  Hannah's eyes softened. “You never worried about me like that, you never—”

  “Because I never loved you,” I replied. “I love Evelyn, Hannah. Don't you see that it's taking everything in me not to lose my shit right now?”

  For the first time in my life, I saw remorse on her face. It was meaningless though, not after what she'd put Evelyn through. She swallowed, wiping away the tears that were still falling.

  “How did that video get out?” I asked once again, studying her face. “You got rid of it in front of me, so how did this happen? How did it get in Josh's hands?”

  “I was angry, Nathan, please understand that. When I saw Evelyn and you together in that trashy bar, I wanted something to use against you to—”

  “To bribe me, yeah, I got that much. That's not what I'm asking, Hannah.”

  “I got Josh to install a camera in your bedroom and Evelyn's.”

  “You're fucking kidding me,” I said in disbelief. “After what he did to Evelyn you got him, of all people, to do this? Are you an idiot?”

  “I didn't think he'd do something like this!” she exclaimed, sobbing once again. “I didn't think he'd keep a copy of it.”

  I scoffed. “You're a businesswoman. Don’t you think ahead? Don't you think of the consequences of your actions?”

  She sat at the dinner table, placing her face in her hands. Hannah truly looked like she was struggling with the decisions she'd made. Whether it was sincere or not it didn't matter, not anymore. The time for apologies was long gone.

  “I thought he got rid of all copies, Nathan. You know I wouldn't risk the family name to be dragged down like this. But now the board members want a meeting to remove Evelyn because they saw her with you.”

  “What the fuck are you talking about? My face was blurred out.”

  Hannah frowned, looking at me with confusion. “Not in the video sent to the board members of the company. They know that you had an affair, and they're ready to kick Evelyn out.”

  “You must be ecstatic,” I spat.

  “I'm not,” Han
nah replied. “It's the family reputation, it's—”

  “It's Evelyn's reputation, her career, her future, you don't—”

  “Okay,” David snapped, slamming his hands on the table. “I'm done listening to both of you arguing like cats and dogs. You…” he pointed to Hannah, eyes full of hate. “You will find out right now where the hell that Josh bastard is. And you, Nathan, you're going to pull yourself together so that we can find Evelyn.”

  David was right.

  “I don't know where else to look for her.” I sighed.

  We quieted down as Hannah dialed Josh. When he didn't pick up she tried his mother. She was lucky then, but the already pale Hannah turned white as the wall behind her. She looked at me, eyes worried while she nodded, then hung up.

  “What is it?”

  “He never made it back to this house after the university,” Hannah said. “She doesn't know where he is.”

  ***

  “Still no word on Evelyn?” Carter asked, pacing in his living room.

  I shook my head. It was already dark. Evelyn hadn't turned on her cell phone and no one had heard anything from her. We decided to wait for her there, thinking that she would more than likely turn up.

  With every hour that passed the worry only increased. I'd searched through the city, went back to campus but no one had seen her. Her parents were too pissed about what that video had done to their image and instead of being worried, they were basically disowning her.

  Though I didn't trust anything that came out of Hannah's mouth, she seemed sincere in her regret. Sadly, I knew it wasn't necessarily because of the pain all of this caused Evelyn, but rather because of what this would do to her reputation.

  “I've searched everywhere.” I closed my eyes, running my hand over my face. I was too fucking tired, yet not knowing anything about her was perhaps what was draining me the most. “I've been to Anne's house three times. Twice to the cemetery. But she's nowhere to be found, Carter. I don't know what state of mind she's in. I don't know what she's thinking.”