Her gaze kept darting around, trying to find that familiar figure in the crowd.
But she wasn't there.
She was surrounded, almost entirely by Bervenia University students. Some were her fans, others were just gawkers.
The crowd was impenetrable; there was no way to see Holly Wyatt.
And it was still growing.
A sense of irritation welled up inside Lynn Fletcher.
Her assistant had told her Holly was in the cafeteria. She'd come to see her, even taking care to disguise her appearance, but she'd been recognized anyway. Now she was stuck at the cafeteria entrance, unable to get in.
"Break it up! Break it up! Everyone, disperse!" Teachers and security guards arrived to maintain order.
The congestion at the center of the crowd gradually thinned.
Her assistant, Cindy Wells, finally pushed her way in and escorted Lynn Fletcher away.
Lynn Fletcher glanced over at the cafeteria.
Even after the crowd had dispersed, she still couldn't see Holly Wyatt.
*
Gina Gable pulled Holly Wyatt away from the cafeteria, let go of her wrist, and circled around to face her. Their eyes met.
Gina said, "You didn't know she was transferring to Bervenia University this semester?"
Holly Wyatt pursed her lips, shook her head gently, and held up her phone. "After I was taken away by that man, my biological family never contacted me. That includes my sister."
Gina knew about her past and what she had been through.
Though only the general outline, not the full details.
For example, she knew Holly had been abducted as a child, that she'd only found her biological parents two years ago, and that… those parents had wanted to marry her off to a stranger. She also knew a man had taken her away and brought her to Bervenia to attend university.
Gina's lovely brow furrowed. After a moment of thought, she said, "Then why on earth would she transfer to Bervenia University? She's an actress. Why not stay at her film academy instead of coming to our comprehensive university?"
Holly Wyatt blinked and shook her head gently.
Gina glanced at her phone. "Have your biological parents contacted you?"
Holly Wyatt shook her head again.
"Then don't worry about it," Gina said. "Your parents favor Lynn Fletcher so much, yet they suddenly remembered you when it was time for an arranged marriage. Your sister is clearly more valuable on the marriage market, but they still tried to force you into it. Weren't they just trying to sell you off?"
Holly Wyatt nodded to show she understood.
She wasn't one for devious thoughts, but that didn't mean she was a fool.
Over the past two years, she'd come to realize that her biological parents hadn't been acting in her best interest, wanting her to have a comfortable life.
They wanted *themselves* to have a comfortable life.
It wasn't about saving the company and her, as they'd claimed.
The marriage was never a win-win situation; it was always about their own gain.
After all, no matter how poor her adoptive parents were, even with a younger brother at home, they had never thought of marrying her off for a bride price.
The difference between love and no love was obvious.
"Now that Lynn Fletcher has transferred to Bervenia University, they'll probably expect you to take care of her." Gina bent down slightly and pinched Holly's round little face. "Don't be so naive. You can't let them use you and then help them count the money."
Holly Wyatt blinked hard and took out her phone to type, "I know. I won't. I'll stay far away from them."
Gina nodded in satisfaction, a smile touching her lips. "Come on, you didn't get to finish eating, did you? Let's go buy some snacks."
Holly Wyatt stopped, shook her head gently, and pointed to her backpack in Gina's hand.
"You brought snacks?" Gina raised an eyebrow in surprise. "You were willing to spend money on snacks?"
It was no wonder she was surprised.
For the past two years, to save money, Holly Wyatt had barely bought any snacks aside from her three necessary daily meals. Gina was usually the one who had to force snacks on her.
Besides, Holly would always eat on campus if she could, never off-campus, because the school cafeteria was subsidized for students and much cheaper.
Holly Wyatt walked over, took the backpack from her, and unzipped it.
It was stuffed full of all sorts of snacks.
'No wonder it was so heavy!'
Gina stared at the big-name brand logos on the various packages, speechless. She pulled out a bar of chocolate with foreign writing all over it, her voice cracking. "This is a foreign brand! It's super expensive! You were willing to buy this?!"
Holly Wyatt shook her head quickly, clutching her bag while typing with one hand.
Gina took the bag from her and stood aside to wait.
A smile lit up Holly's face as she held the phone up for Gina. "I didn't buy them. That man's driver gave them to me."
Gina's gaze fixed on the word "man." Her brow tightened, and a frosty look came over her beautiful, cold face. "The man who took you from your biological parents' home?"
Holly Wyatt put her phone away and nodded repeatedly.
Gina asked, "That old man is back?"
Holly Wyatt's eyes faltered for a moment before she gave a hesitant nod.
Annoyance colored Gina's cool, beautiful features. "Didn't that old man already skip town?"
Holly Wyatt froze for a second. She bit her lower lip, and the image of Silas Thornton's stern face came to mind. She quickly lowered her head and started typing.
Gina held the backpack and watched Holly's busy little head, reaching out to ruffle her hair.
Her resentment for that old man deepened.
'Since that man took Holly away, he should have taken responsibility. Disappearing for two years without a word—how is that any different from her biological parents?'
Over the past two years, she had often seen Holly Wyatt at various places off-campus. Gina went to those places to rack up volunteer hours, but Holly was there purely for the small stipend, trying to save up for living expenses.
The cost of living in Bervenia was high. That man had brought Holly here, only to abandon her and let a deaf and mute girl work part-time jobs everywhere just to get by. What kind of man did that?
Holly Wyatt held up her phone, putting the screen in front of Gina. "He didn't skip town. He came back a few days ago and took me home."
Gina stared at the line of text on the screen, her mind blanking for a moment. She blurted out, "Didn't he buy you a house? Haven't you been living there for the past two years? What do you mean, 'took you home'? Is he going to sell you?!"
Holly Wyatt's brow furrowed slightly. Her chubby-cheeked face puffed up like a squishy, air-filled mochi ball. "No, he's not going to sell me."
Gina was wary. "Did he tell you why he was gone for two years without any contact?"
Holly Wyatt nodded, her eyes lowered as she typed. "He…"
Holly had just typed a single word before quickly deleting it.
'Silas Thornton is a wolf. He left for these two years to handle pack affairs.'
'But I can't tell anyone about this, not even Gina.'
She paused, then started typing again. "He said he had some personal matters to attend to."
Gina looked at her with exasperation. "He didn't even tell you what he was doing, did he? He's just fobbing you off! You silly girl, you believe everything anyone tells you. Aren't you afraid of being sold off?"
"A man you don't even know just plucks you from your biological parents' house for no reason, spends a ton of money on you, brings you to Bervenia, and then disappears. Who knows if he was running from debts? And before he left, he gave you a house and money, which you foolishly accepted. What if his debts were transferred to you along with his assets?! I told you to move out and live with me, but you wouldn't listen!"
Gina had a terrible impression of the man. An old man, ten years older than Holly, taking away such a pretty, adorable girl… Who knew what kind of filthy thoughts he had in his head?