32. Chapter 31 #2
Ivy moved closer to the stall until she was right outside the lightly dented blue-metal door. “I’m Ivy. First-year student, so we probably haven’t met before. But I’m a good listener if you need to talk.”
The woman wailed even louder. The door was ajar, and through the crack was a sun-kissed blonde woman in a tiered, sparkling blue dress sitting on the floor with a tiara and an empty glass next to her. Her hands covered her face as she cried.
“Is it okay if I open the door?” Ivy tried one more time. “I swear I won’t bite.”
“No,” she wept. “Please leave me alone. Like everybody else does.”
“Okay,” Ivy sighed. “If you change your mind, I’ll be in here for a few minutes.” She stepped away from the stall, going to the first empty one to relieve herself.
The woman’s sobs echoed through the small bathroom, and she wished she could help, or provide an encouraging word. But if the woman didn’t want it, there was nothing else to be done. She went to the sink, pumped some soap into her hand, and turned on the faucet.
Over the sound of the rushing water, the woman cried louder. Ivy snapped her head back to the stall, her heart racing. What if there was something seriously wrong? She finished washing her hands, drying them quickly with a small spell before making her way to the back of the room.
“No, no, no,” the woman yelled. “Leave me alone, you beast! You’re evil. Stay back!”
Was there someone else in the bathroom with them? Her pace quickened, and she threw open the stall door with a light gust of magic. The lock clattered to the tile floor, and the woman locked eyes with Ivy, a blood-curdling scream leaving her mouth.
“Stay back!” She tried pushing herself up from the floor, but her heels got stuck in the tulle of her skirt.
Ivy took a step closer, holding out her hands. “I won’t hurt you, I swear!”
The woman scrambled to her feet and bolted out of the stall, her shoulder crashing into Ivy on her way out. She flung the bathroom door open and ran, leaving only a ringing in Ivy’s ears and her things on the floor.
Ivy bent over and grabbed the crystal tiara.
It was lighter than she expected. Must be an illusion.
She grabbed the empty glass next to it and moved to place them in them next to the sink so whoever cleaned after the party would find them.
A sparkle at the bottom of the glass caught her eye.
She swished the small bit of red liquid in the light, watching it shimmer pink, and a waft of rose extract hit her nose.
She put the glass back down, shrugging it off.
Must be some of the sweet enfantium Abbott had given for the party.
Maybe the woman had had too much to drink.
But it seemed more horrific than being drunk.
She left the bathroom to return to the ballroom, and noticed a heeled shoe on the ground ahead at the turn toward a stairwell.
Then a distant scream rang out.
“Oh no,” she muttered, running toward the shoe.
She bolted down the hall, turning toward the stairs, and rushed down them.
There were only two flights to the main floor.
Whoever the woman was, she couldn’t have gone far.
When she reached the bottom, another heel was in the center of the landing.
To her left was a simple wooden door with a silver ‘STAFF ONLY’ placard.
The door to her right was marked as an emergency exit that led outside.
She tried the staff door, but it was locked tight. Chances of a freaked-out-of-her-mind drunk student unlocking it instead of going through the emergency exit were slim.
Ivy pushed through the door to her right, the cold October air immediately washing over her as the illusion magic slipped away. She stared out into the night.
She recognized this spot. It was the same area where Callum had disappeared.
She sprinted down the steps and into the dewy grass.
Her outfit changed back to her normal clothes, thankfully.
If she had to chase someone, she could hardly do it in heels and a minidress.
Her short skirt wasn’t much better, but at least she had boots.
Ivy searched the ground for any clues where the woman could’ve gone.
There was nothing—no trinkets, not even a drop of blood. There was no screaming or crying. Only the pulse of the music and the distant chatter and laughter of other students existed.
“Fuck,” she cursed under her breath. She should’ve followed as soon as the woman left. Ivy didn’t want to assume the worst, but everything pointed to that happening. If she’d just went after the woman, maybe she could’ve prevented it. Or at least seen who took her.
She needed to tell the others. As Ivy turned to go back inside, a twig snapped and the soft rustle of leaves came from the woods.
In her periphery, there was movement between the trees.
She turned in time to find someone dressed in all black slink into the darkness of the forest. Her jaw tightened.
Maybe it was her stalker, the messenger of the letters.
Perhaps it was someone behind the disappearances.
Whoever they were, they weren’t getting away this time.
She tiptoed to the edge of the forest, staying in the shadows Belarune Hall cast in the moonlight.
She watched as the person ventured deeper into the forest and blended in with their surroundings.
It was now or never. Ivy reached for her magic, calling it out toward the roots and plants ahead.
The tree branches jostled, and the mystery person slowed to a stop.
Ivy stepped to the edge of the forest, and as the person in black peered over their shoulder, a root snapped to life.
The wiry branch wrapped around their leg and yanked them to the ground.
They clawed at the ground to gain purchase as she marched through the woods, breaking free at the last minute.
She hurried after them, calling to her magic again. Roots burst from the ground, grabbing her target by both legs to drag them to the forest floor. Plants extended their stems into vines, curling around the person’s arms to keep them from resisting.
Ivy shuffled toward them and smirked at the small grunts as they struggled against the trap.
They wore a light black mask which covered their entire head beneath the hood of their sweatshirt.
Huh. They weren’t wearing a white mask, like she had noticed the other times. But she could think more on that later.
“Let’s find out who you are, shall we?”
She grabbed the edge of the mask. Her heart raced in her chest as she lifted it slowly. As more of their face was revealed, the further her stomach dropped. Black hair poked out of the mask, followed by a familiar mouth and nose, until she finally pulled the disguise off.
“Rhea?”
Her friend stared back at her with tear-filled eyes. “Ivy, if you don’t let me go—”
“Let you go?” she asked, her voice wavering. “So you can pretend to be Briar? Is this all a game to you?”
“No, you don’t underst—”
“Is Briar alive? Or did you kill her last year and you’re … you’re torturing me for whatever reason?”
“No, God, no!” Rhea said quickly. “I didn’t kill anyone.”
“Then tell me the truth,” Ivy said through gritted teeth. “Now.”
“I’ve been helping her,” Rhea whispered. “That’s all I can tell you here.”
Her heart stopped beating for a moment. If Rhea was helping…it meant the one thing she’d been hoping for was real. “She’s alive?”
Rhea nodded once.
A sob fell from her lips, and a tear slid down her cheek. She squeezed her eyes shut, trying to compose herself. She couldn’t take Rhea’s word for it. Not yet. “Take me to her.”
“Quiet,” Rhea hissed before shaking her head. “If I do that, you will risk everything.”
“Forgive me if I don’t believe you,” Ivy choked out. “I’ve been searching for her for almost a year. I need to see her.”
“Fine,” Rhea muttered after a moment’s pause, her jaw tight. “Stay close so I can cover our tracks.”
Ivy glared at her, hunting for any trace of a lie. She wasn’t sure if she could trust the truth from her, regardless. But she released the spell on the roots and the plants, allowing Rhea to stand. “If you run, I’ll catch you again.”
Rhea rolled her eyes as she brushed the dirt off her clothes. “Noted. Follow me and stay quiet.” A moment later, a sheer film covered both of them. The same spell from the night they broke into the dean’s office when she hid the three of them from view.
They ventured deeper into the woods, crossing small streams and weaving through dense thickets of brush and trees.
Ivy couldn’t see any signs of the school behind them, despite most of campus was lit like a carnival.
After an hour of walking, a small, weathered shack appeared ahead with a sliver of the patched roof revealed by the moonlight through the canopy above.
There were no lights on inside; it sat in total darkness.
Before approaching the door, Rhea checked every direction silently. Even the sound of her breathing was almost nonexistent. Satisfied, she turned back to the shack ahead and led them toward the door. The spell keeping them hidden dissolved, and Rhea rapped on the door in a pattern of knocks.
A faint light flickered to life behind the door, and Rhea twisted the knob.
The door opened too quietly for something so decrepit.
Rhea stepped in first. When Ivy followed, a woman dressed in all black stood with her back facing them next to a makeshift bed.
Her blonde curls, once like shining strands of gold, were like dull boughs of hay that lay in tangles down her back.
But when she turned around, her face was exactly as Ivy remembered.
“Briar?”