Revealed (Unbound, Book 5)

Chapter Forty-Three

"Not physically, no." He shook his head, his eyes wide. "I wasn't causing you pain. She wanted me to hurt your feelings. Make you sad."

I snorted. "And a dead mother wasn't painful enough? Leaving my friends? Being alone? How could you?"

"I was just supposed to pretend to be the guy you liked and then reject you. So you hurt enough to come home."

"I wasn't there willingly, Trevor, and Astrid knew that. If she hurt me, it just added to my pain, and I couldn't leave."

"I didn't do what she wanted, though," he said and flashed a grin, as though that made anything better. "I didn't want to hurt you, so I don't know. I thought if you felt something, I'd reveal who I was, and you'd come home."

"I felt nothing." Any attraction I'd had for him all but vanished. I blamed any remnant of that for why I wasn't as angry as I should be. I even pitied him for being so book smart and plain stupid in what actually mattered.

"I know. Everything felt wrong."

"How did Astrid help you pretend to be someone else?" I asked, squinting. "She's not strong enough to hold a glamor, especially from so far away, and I know you can't. It was so precise. Even the voice."

"She didn't. Not really. Astrid gave me something that was spelled or something. I don't know." Trevor shrugged. "I met with someone when I got to Wickenton. They took what she gave me to strengthen it. I don't know. I just used it when they gave it back."

"What was it?"

"A ring."

"Where is it? Can I see it?"

"I gave it back." He shrugged. "It was just a plain silver ring."

"Who did you meet?"

"I don't know their name."

"What did they look like?"

"Average!"

"Seriously?" I scoffed and sat back. "Was this person a she-mystery or a he-mystery?"

"I met with a guy." Trevor shrugged again. "I honestly know nothing about him. Barely saw his face," he said, and I rolled my eyes. "I'm really sorry. Like I said, it felt wrong."

"You still did it! Why didn't you just tell me?"

"That guy showed up. I feared sticking around. I drove here right after I dropped the ring off and gave Astrid the car back."

"I thought she gave you money."

"And a car so I could get there, but it felt wrong, and I gave it back. She gave me the rest of the money and I didn't give that back. I'm sorry." He sighed. "When I saw you last night, after what Julian said his mom did—"

"Tried to do."

"Yeah." Trevor nodded. "I guess my tuition was nothing if it helped her get your mother's land. Julian told me about all that."

"Well, she didn't get it, so now she's just out that money," I said, finding the only positive in a crappy situation. "When Julian told you, did you tell him?"

Trevor shook his head. "No, I'm... It's terrible. I feel so stupid."

I rolled my eyes, moving from pity to being concerned for Trevor's mental health. "That's what bugs you?"

"I know better now," he whispered. "I had to tell you and to say... Nora, I'm really sorry. I didn't know what was happening."

"Just... Stay away from me and my friends. If I catch you doing Astrid favors in lieu of anything, I'll make you sorry for participating."