At St. Augustine’s Academy, privilege and power run through every marble hallway. For some, this final year means freedom. For others, it’s the stepping stone to even greater influence. But for a few, it will become a life-altering secret they can never escape.

Isabella Marquez has her future mapped out; graduate top of her class, enter the most prestigious university, and one day take control of her father’s empire. Nothing and no one will stop her.

Especially not Alexander Hawthorne with his smirk and blue eyes, the Duke’s reckless second son. To Isabella, he’s nothing more than a chain-smoking, party-throwing menace who will likely end up in jail before graduation.

But when a classmate turns up dead in Isabella’s dorm room, Alexander becomes the only person who can help her prove her innocence. Forced into an uneasy alliance, Isabella discovers that behind his arrogant smirk and scandalous reputation lies someone far more complicated than she ever imagined.

And in a world where secrets are currency and friends can become enemies and enemies can become something dangerously more, Isabella may find herself risking more than just her future, she may risk her heart.



Dive in to explore Isabella's life as it either takes a turn for the best or the worse.


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For a while, neither of us spoke. The silence between Alex and me stretched out — not empty, but full of things neither of us could say out loud. The room felt smaller somehow, like the air was holding its breath along with us.


Then Alex broke the quiet, his voice softer than I'd ever heard it. "You really need to stop blaming yourself, Isa."


He stood a few feet away, leaning against the wall like he always did — casual, confident — but his tone wasn't teasing. It was steady, anchored. "None of this is your fault. Not Rose, not the letters, not the whispers. The person to blame is the one trying to turn you into a suspect. Not you."


I tried to smile, but my lips trembled instead. "You make it sound simple."


"It is simple." His gaze met mine, and the corner of his mouth curved into a faint, reassuring grin. "You have me. And as long as that's true, whoever's behind this doesn't stand a chance."


Chapter 69 - The Headmaster’s Secret