From Ashes of Scandal to His Embrace (Laurinda) novel Chapter 199

Aileen glanced at the crowd of students gathered around her, a smug grin lighting up her face. Getting rid of Laurinda now felt as easy as squashing a bug.

“Have you all seen what’s blowing up online? The Austin family is bankrupt. They're out of the picture at Apex. And Laurinda? She was thrown out of her family even before it all went down, with nothing but the clothes on her back. Don’t let her current act fool you. She’s not some fancy heiress anymore. She’s just a broke orphan.”

Aileen could hardly contain her excitement as she kept going, her words tumbling over each other. “She grew up surrounded by rich people. She knows all the tricks, especially after hanging around families like ours, the Gates family. She knows better than anyone how to make quick cash. You all get what I’m saying, right?”

Someone in the crowd jumped in. “Oh, I get it. The other day I saw this luxury car parked at school. An old guy got out, and he was all nice to Laurinda, like he was trying to impress her. They looked pretty close. Who knows what’s going on between them?”

“Wait, are you serious?” another girl gasped. “It’s bad enough she was all over Fabian and flirting with the school doctor, but now she’s got some old guy wrapped around her finger? That’s just gross.”

“Well, she is pretty,” someone else said. “Old guys go crazy for girls like her. Young and beautiful, you know?”

“Seriously, she acts all innocent, but she’s just disgusting. I don’t get how she still walks around like she’s better than everyone.”

A girl near the front turned toward their teacher. “Mr. Owen, we don’t want someone like her at our school. Even if she donated a cafeteria and a library, it’s not enough to make up for the stuff she’s done. We want her gone.”

“Get Laurinda out of here!”

“She’s trash—kick her out!”

“Expel Laurinda!”

VERIFYCAPTCHA_LABELVerify