Chapter 5
Chapter Five
Thirty minutes ago, my only concern was ruining a first date.
Now, my biggest worry is what to do about yet another dead body.
Oh, how I yearn to turn back the clock. A foolish, fleeting moment led me to believe I could date, and of course, I can’t.
Not right now. Maybe not ever. If my imprinted memories aren’t what ruins it, getting wrapped up in these ridiculous investigations will be.
And I’m fully, thoroughly wrapped up in this one.
Jun isn’t handling it particularly well, either.
“This is a shitty ass plan,” he mutters as we duck into the building.
It’s not the first time he’s shared the sentiment on our short walk.
“Do you have any better ideas?” I walk up the twisting stone staircase without looking back.
The Strode dormitories are as lavish as the rest of the school—little castles scattered about the campus. Plush red seats are placed around the lounge, giving everyone a spot to relax, and the crackling fire is enough to warm even someone undead—someone like me.
“Yes. Anything is better than this. We can find a teacher—Professor Stark is right in the lobby.”
Perhaps leaving him behind is the better idea.
“Look, I would have agreed with you in the past, but I’ve been through this before. I know what’s best.”
He snorts. “Doubt it.”
Before Tobey came to Strode, my father would have been my first call. He would have contacted the investigators for me, and from there, it wouldn’t have been my problem anymore. What a relief that would have been, but no.
I no longer trust the useless investigators after how they fumbled Poppy’s case, and I’m not sure I trust my father with this case either.
The only people I can trust are Tobey and, regretfully, Caldwell.
I may come to rue the decision to let Jun tag along, but leaving him behind at the crime scene doesn’t feel right.
Being with him doesn’t feel right either, especially not when we burst into the room and earn a confused look from Tobey.
But he and I have something in common now, whether I like it or not.
Tobey and I share a simple room. There’s an elaborately patterned red rug in the middle, a single brown desk, and two beds with matching black bedspreads.
Both bought by me, of course. My small collection of oddities—cursed porcelain dolls, rusted keys, and stuffed crows—is lined on a shelf above my bed.
The little trinkets bring me comfort at a time like this.
Tobey appears to be at a loss for words, exchanging a look with Caldwell.
“Jun,” Tobey says slowly. “It’s… great to see you?”
Caldwell and Tobey are lounging on her bed, with her legs draped over his lap. They both hold a book. Together. It would be a cozy and cute sight if not for the terror Jun and I are carrying.
“Are you okay?” Caldwell asks.
He pushes Tobey’s legs off his lap, stands, and Tobey follows suit.
“What a kind way of asking what the hell we’re doing together.” I laugh, taking off my jacket and stepping into the room.
Jun remains glued to the doorway.
“Margaux…” My name comes shaking from Jun’s lips. “Please. Let’s get this over with.”
I cross my arms, locking eyes with Tobey. “We found a body on the way here.”
“What?” Tobey’s eyes widen, and they stumble around the room, searching for something. “Can you repeat that for the camera?”
Again with the damn camera. I suppose this is a good time to film, but I’m not in the mood.
“The alarms didn’t even go off,” Caldwell mutters.
The alarms are a recent addition to Strode, but they only go off after someone reports the body. That’s how they intend to keep students inside. It does little to help, especially not with nosy people like us.
Tobey finds what they’re looking for: their camera, which is promptly on me.
“We found a body,” I say again, nudging their camera out of my face. “And it wasn’t a student, as far as I know. There were no signs and no visible cause of death.” I tilt my head in Jun’s direction. “He was there. Jun-seong saw it before I did.”
Tobey turns their attention to Jun.
“I didn’t see it at first,” Jun says. “I felt it. Death has an energy, and it fucking reeks.”
I shudder.
“We need to tell someone,” Jun says. “A professional, not… whatever the hell is going on here.”
“And we will,” Caldwell says calmly, “in a moment. Were there no other clues at the scene?”
Jun shakes his head.
“Well… we didn’t exactly look,” I say. “I didn’t think to stop. It was a bit tense.”
Considering Jun’s panic, roaming the scene was the last of my worries. It doesn’t look good to be found snooping around a dead body, anyway.
Not that it’s ever stopped Tobey and Caldwell. Tobey has always been the type to barge in without thinking, and it’s my job to hold them back—though I’m becoming worse at doing so.
“Let’s go.” Tobey is up in a moment, slipping on their shoes. “We’ll scan the scene, and then tell security.” They look at Jun. “Does that work for you?”
“You want to go back to the body?” Jun asks. “What is wrong with you?”
“Excuse me?” Tobey slips on their winter coat.
“He’s in shock,” I say. “Anyone would be. It’s his first body.”
“I’m not in shock. You’re just all… all doing too much. I’m going to tell someone—just fucking stay inside, all right? We don’t need another death tonight.”
“That’s not happening,” Caldwell says. “We have to get out there. You don’t understand.”
Jun’s eyes lock with mine. “If I find any of you dead next, you’re fucking double dead.”
He leaves before I can respond to his threat. The three of us gape at each other, and I process his final words.
“Come on,” Tobey says. “We need to check it out before he can report it.”
I shake my head. “You’re serious?”
But, of course, they are. Their plans, however thoughtless, worked in the past. Sort of.
And I’m the stealthiest of the three, thanks to vampiric agility. We sneak down together, and they hide in the shadows while I sweep the area, looking for anything.
Finally, I stumble upon the body, and my heart falls. This poor, poor woman.
“You don’t deserve this,” I whisper. “No one does.”
Something shines under the antique street lamps, something on… on her chest. A small pin with a sigil on it. Magic tingles under my fingertips, and I squint at the object, willing it to tell me its secrets.
There’s no time.
The lights turn bright, and a siren wails—the alarms, at last. I knew they would do more harm than good.
“Damn it,” I mutter, shoving the pin into my jacket pocket.
Just like that, I’m stealing evidence. In the past, I would have turned in what I found, but it’s our only lead, and I won’t give it up so easily. It has to mean something.
“Margaux.” Tobey’s voice is a whisper, just loud enough that I can hear it with my enhanced senses. “Run.”
I zip past them, back toward our dormitory. When the alarms go off, everyone is supposed to go inside. We may have saved the day last time, but I doubt we’ll be spared if we break the rules now.
Tobey has never been afraid of Strode University and the demons that possess it, but she should be.
The dormitory lobby is crowded with students by the time I arrive, making it all too easy to slip past them and into my room.
Tobey and Caldwell aren’t here.
I’m pacing the room by the time they appear, rapidly enough to burn a hole in the overpriced, ornate rug.
“Guess he reported the body after all,” Caldwell says, huffing and puffing as they enter together.
I dig into my pockets and hold up the pin. “Maybe, but our efforts weren’t fruitless. I found this on the body.”
“Well”—Tobey plops back down on their bed—“at least we found something.”
I’m silent as I sit across from them, kicking off my shoes.
“May I see that?” Caldwell asks tenderly.
I give it to him and watch as he silently looks the object over, his strong brow furrowing.
“What is it?” I ask him. “I mean, I know what a sigil is, but… it’s a symbol of what, exactly?”
“Hard to say,” he mutters. “There are many magical sigils, and this isn’t one I recognize.”
Tobey sits cross-legged on the bed. “Catch me up.”
“A magical symbol that can be charged and used. I don’t sense any magic in this one yet. Whatever it is… it was never charged.”
“And you don’t get anything else from it?” I ask.
He shakes his head and sets it down on the desk. “It may be protective. Could be something else. We’ll have to do some research.”
He’s right, but with the alarms and thousands of nosy students, it will be harder than ever to continue our investigation. By this time tomorrow, there will probably be a statement to sweep all this under the rug. Our work is just beginning.
Jun-seong had better not get in our way.