Badass in Disguise (Shadow) novel Chapter 97

Chapter 97

“Son, Frank began hesitantly, “maybe we should all calm down and-”

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‘No, Dad. You don’t get it.” Max shook his head in disgust. “Emily stole Jade’s identity. She’s pretending to be her at Princeton. She’s committed actual crimes.”

Frank’s eyes widened as the implications sank in.

Linda sank to her knees outside Max’s bedroom door, where he had retreated after their argument. “Max, please!

Your mother is begging you. I’m on my knees! Isn’t that enough?”

Frank stood awkwardly beside her, looking down at the floor. “Son, listen to your mother. Family has to stick

together.”

From inside the room, Max’s voice was muffled but determined. “This kind of thing never stays hidden. You know

that, right?”

Linda pressed her forehead against the door. “Just promise you won’t tell her! Emily’s on the phone–she wants to talk to you.”

Inside his room, Max stared at his laptop screen, his fingers hovering over the keyboard. His mother had taken his phone, but she’d forgotten about his computer.

“This kind of secret will come out eventually,” he called through the door, even as he logged into his social media

account. “It always does.”

He clicked on Jade’s profile and began typing a message.

The next morning, Linda called Max’s school to report him sick with the flu. She hovered anxiously as he ate his breakfast, barely touching her own food.

“So I’m a prisoner now?” Max asked, pushing away his half–eaten toast. “You know that’s illegal, right? Keeping me from school?”

‘I’m protecting my children,” Linda snapped. “That’s what mothers do.”

“By committing felonies?” Max shook his head in disbelief. “Great parenting, Mom.”

Frank stood by the counter, coffee mug in hand, eyes fixed firmly on the floor tiles. He hadn’t spoken a word all morning.

“Dad,” Max appealed to his father. “Are you really okay with this?”

Frank took a long sip of coffee but remained silent.

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12:23 Mon, Sep 22

Chapter 97

:

At Princeton University, Emily Morgan sat through her morning class in a daze, her mind racing with fear and anxiety. The professor’s words barely registered as she checked her phone every few minutes, dreading what might

happen next.

When class finally ended, she gathered her books with shaking hands and headed for the exit. Just outside the

classroom door, she froze.

Jade stood there, arms crossed, a slight smile playing on her lips.

“Max tells me you have a physics problem you need help with?” Jade said casually.

Emily nearly jumped out of her skin, her textbooks tumbling from her arms. “J–Jade! What are you doing here?”

Students streamed past them, some glancing curiously at the two women who looked nothing alike yet seemed locked in some intense standoff.

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“I heard my little sister needs help,” Jade continued, her voice eerily calm. “Something about quantum mechanics? Must be for a very important… scholarship.”

Emily’s face drained of color. She glanced around frantically, as if looking for an escape route. “Did… did Max tell you?”

“About what?” Jade asked, stepping closer. “About the problem? Or about something else?”

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