Page 31 of Endless Anger (Monsters Within #1)

ASHER

Beating off in a communal shower isn’t exactly ideal, but beggars can’t be choosers.

After being on the road for the last few years, it’s not even the most inconvenient place I’ve fucked my fist. It’s a better alternative to sitting outside the tour bus, waiting for Foxe and whatever groupie or two he met up with to finish.

At least I’m alone. Classes have started for the week, so the dorm’s been empty all morning.

Bright blue eyes assault my vision, teary and terrified as they blink up at me.

Pleasure snakes up my spine, slithering along synapses left dormant around everyone else I’ve ever met.

Except her.

My balls grow heavy at the mere thought of her—that coconut scent, the soft planes of her body against mine, her clinging to me in terror. I hadn’t realized until then just how much I was missing.

I come hard, thinking about her smooth, pale skin and the smattering of freckles on her face. The way she rasped that fucking nickname from when we were kids, even as she told me to fuck off .

Unfortunately, I’ve never been very good at following the rules.

When I wrench off the water, wrapping a towel around my waist as I step out into the larger portion of the bathroom, I’m only mildly surprised to find my oldest sister standing by the sinks, hands behind her back as she leans against the wall.

Her dark brown eyes, bracketed by bangs that sweep the ends of her brows and a pair of black feline-framed glasses, remain expressionless as I approach, stuffing a razor into my caddy.

“How long have you been in here?”

“Don’t worry. I gave you plenty of time to yourself. Not interested in catching Asher’s self-pleasure show again. Once as a teenager was enough.”

Snorting, I shoot her a look. “I’ve never known you to venture into a public bathroom.”

She cocks an eyebrow, turning her head to watch me. “What do you think I did when I went here?”

“I assumed you probably bathed in Lake Lerna under the luminescence of a full moon, like all she-wolves. Probably why it’s blocked off these days for swimming, right? To keep the packs out?”

Quincy almost cracks a smile. “I think you’re getting your were lore confused with Fury Hill superstitions.”

Dropping my head, I grip the sink with both hands and sigh. “Yeah. I’ve only been here a few days, and it feels like the town air is warping my brain already.”

“Well, don’t drink the water. Or bathe in it, for that matter.”

I glance over at her without lifting my neck. “You just come from the dean’s office?”

“Yep. Lucy’s alibi is secured.” She looks away, down at the pointed toes of her red heels. “Thanks for making me an accomplice, by the way. I really enjoyed lying to my boss and Lucy’s parents.”

“Still in love with her mom?”

Quincy’s pink cheeks blush a deep ruby color. “I was never in love with her. Just had a little crush. ”

“Oh, that’s right, you always had a thing for that Eden girl?—”

Her arm whips out, smacking me across the shoulder. “Shut up . I’d like to focus on the fact that you asked me to lie about what Lucy was doing Friday night and how you haven’t told me anything else.”

“You didn’t ask.”

“Because you said it was urgent. I didn’t know there was a…possible murder involved.” She crosses her arms, watching as I push a drop of toothpaste onto my toothbrush and then wet the bristles. “What happened?”

“Nothing you need to worry about, Q.”

The door to the bathroom swings open, and a blond student in a dark blue bathrobe pauses as he starts to walk in. There’s a poppy embroidered on the breast pocket, capturing my attention.

My veins constrict, and I think back to Friday night before I met up with Lucy.

I’d been out there to stash my box and wound up running into someone with a score to settle. Someone who wanted to harm me.

Their shirt displayed the same symbol, and their blood got everywhere.

On me .

I’d been drenched by the time I found Lucy.

The student’s eyes widen, and he holds up his hands. When he speaks, it grates on my nerves immediately, bringing back all those memories. “Uh, am I interrupt?—”

“Get the fuck out,” I snap, stalking over. I shove him out the door and slam it in his face, flipping the lock before he can try to come back inside.

Quincy groans, spinning to look at herself in the mirror. She reaches up, adjusting the bun her black hair is tied into. “As pleasant and charming as always. I can see why Dean Bauer made you an RA.”

“Like he’d ever deny an Anderson anything. He has a fucking perpetual hard-on for our family. Isn’t that why he hired you?”

“Don’t let your guard down just because Bauer is easily swayed. Avernia still sees us as antagonists.” She drops her chin, staring at the sink. “And they aren’t fans of the Wolfes, either.”

Blowing out a breath, I lean against the porcelain bowl next to her, nodding. “What’s that about, by the way? Everyone I’ve spoken to on campus so far is pretty much acting like Lucy doesn’t even exist. Or they hate her.”

“How should I know? This is my first semester teaching, and they definitely didn’t tell me shit when I was a student. I spent most of my time trying not to cause trouble and getting Dad to donate lots of money so I’d be invaluable.”

“Well, did the dean seem off at all when you told him Lucy’d been with you?”

“I told him she was working as a Daughters of Persephone initiate and that I had her doing grunt work all night after she left the party. He doesn’t usually ask questions when I mention the group because organized women scare him.”

My expression flattens. The student organizations on this campus are so goddamn weird. This whole place is weird. “Your ego’s really inflated since you got this professor gig.”

“Mom always said I was destined for great things.” She tosses me a grin, pushing up on her tiptoes to ruffle my hair.

“She says that about all of us,” I say, spitting out the toothpaste. “Speaking of—have you heard from Noelle?”

Quincy shakes her head. “Not a peep.”

“That’s concerning.”

“You know how she likes to make her grand entrances. Enrolling in school would be no different.”

My mind wanders back to the last time I saw her, during a quick pit stop between Foxe’s West Coast shows, and how strangely subdued she’d seemed. Still her upbeat self, but like there was something dark hidden beneath the surface of her skin quietly trying to claw its way out.

The memory of her after our trip to Avernia nearly a decade ago floats to the forefront of my brain, and I think about how cryptic she’s been. In the seven years she’s been trying to make it in Hollywood, no one’s been allowed to even visit her.

Something’s off, but she’s not the kind of person you can ask. If she isn’t willing to tell you outright, she’ll clam up and never speak to you again.

I’m sure our parents have it handled either way, and that when she finally joins us here, she’ll spill the details.

But I don’t like the silence.

“And don’t try to change the subject, asshole.

I want to know what went down Friday night.

Avernia’s faculty is in a fucking frenzy, and I want to believe your timely reappearance is a mere coincidence, but…

I know better. Did you have anything to do with the girl who’s missing?

I know we’ve talked about the disappearances from before you got here, but… ”

“Don’t read into it, Q.”

She lifts her chin. “Kinda sounds like a threat.”

“Maybe it is.” I snatch my stuff, cradling the shower caddy under my arm. “As long as you’re helping me keep Lucy safe, you have nothing else to worry about.”

I can tell she wants to keep pressing. As the oldest sister, she’s always taken on the role of protector and investigator for me and Noelle, and it’s likely killing her that I won’t let her in enough to do either of those things.

Especially since she’s here, and she knows what kind of shit happens at this school. She’s seen it firsthand.

But the less she knows about this —Celeste’s demise and the latest attack on my life in the forest before that—the less trouble it’ll cause for her too.

At least that’s my hope.

“You know, you promised me an adventure.”

I toss Foxe a dirty look over my sketchbook. “No, I did not. I didn’t even tell you to fucking come to New Hampshire with me. You just insisted because you’re a goddamn parasite.”

“Yeesh,” he grumbles, squeezing Keats’s face between his hands. “Can I assume by your heinous attitude that you’ve yet to fuck Lulu?”

“I’m not trying to fuck her, you troglodyte.”

Which is true, on the surface. Fucking her isn’t my main goal, but I wouldn’t say no to a little tension relief in the form of her pretty, spiteful tongue either.

But after screwing up more than once over the last few years, I doubt I’ll get that chance.

Maybe I should’ve just leaned into things when she kissed me in the sunflower field. If I were anyone else, I never would’ve let that opportunity pass me up.

I’d have had her flipped onto her back, my face between her trembling thighs, before she could’ve comprehended the words I’d stupidly uttered out loud.

Then maybe we wouldn’t be here at all.

Foxe frowns. “I miss when your insults were less than two syllables.”

“Okay, dick.”

“See? Isn’t that better? It’s crisp. Rolls off the tongue nicely.”

“Why are you even here?” I snap, slamming the book shut. “Don’t you have groupies you could be harassing or parents you should be checking in with?”

“I already video chatted with my mom this morning, thank you.” Keats jumps off his chest, landing on the floor before scurrying under the bed.

Foxe props his arms behind his head, staring at the ceiling.

“As for groupies, I think Lulu was right about the students at this school. No one seems to notice they have a god in their midst.”

Snorting humorlessly, I turn back to my desk. “Or maybe they have more than two brain cells to rub together.”

“I’ll forgive you because I know you’re projecting.”

Putting the sketchbook down, I swipe my phone from the desk, pulling up my school-sanctioned email.

Already, the inbox is overflowing with welcome bullshit from the student government and different organizations trying to lure me in with promises of parties, networking opportunities, and course credits.

As if I need any of that. My degree is practically finished, having spent my time on tour with Foxe taking online classes, and if I never go to another party again, it’ll be too soon.

And I definitely don’t need to network, especially here .

Opening the oldest email thread in the inbox, I scroll up to the forwarded message, clicking on the attachment.

Scans of Fury Hill city plans, several centuries old, and the original Avernia College blueprints. Sections were broken off to allow housing for each founding family member, six structures evenly dispersed at the edge of the bulldozed property, just inside the forest.

There was no lake at that time, just eroding mountains and dense foliage. Two of the houses were demolished in favor of adding Lake Lerna, cutting off some of the access to the cave systems that supposedly run beneath campus.

Of the remaining four houses, one was condemned due to poor engineering and spatial issues, and two were converted into administration buildings.

The last remaining residence was engulfed in flames. An attempt by the others to rid themselves of the man they saw as a problem due to his ambitious nature and strange homeopathic practices.

Cronus Anderson.

The reason we’re a target now.

During my first visit here, I’d gathered as much through the encyclopedia in the Obeliskos, but it hadn’t gone into as much depth, nor had I fully believed it.

Even now I’m skeptical, but after being assaulted in the woods again, I’m understanding a little more.

If the curse isn’t real, these people certainly think it is. This email, explaining Cronus’s role and how even those who associate with his bloodline could be cause for concern, felt too pointed to ignore .

After throwing her to the wolves in the name of safety, I couldn’t very well leave Lucy to fend for herself this time.

A high-pitched siren sounds down the hall, causing both Foxe and me to nearly jump out of our skin. He clamps his hands over his ears, sitting up on the bed.

“What the hell is that?” he shouts. “Fire alarm?”

The one in the corner of my room isn’t flashing or blaring, so that doesn’t seem possible. Unless maintenance cuts corners on those sorts of things, which wouldn’t be surprising.

Several loud thuds and crashing noises echo outside. I glance at Foxe; he hops up, throwing on a T-shirt as he bolts across the room.

I get to my feet slowly once he’s at the door, grabbing a baseball bat from the corner. Slipping on my boots, I nod for him to open, and we both lean out into the dark hall, squinting at the window at the far end.

We don’t see anything at first, though it takes a moment for my eyes to adjust. Once they do, I note that the hallway is bathed in shadows, and there’s a solitary figure standing just a few doors down, staring at the wall.

No, not the wall—someone’s closed dorm room.

I step outside, gripping the bat tight.

It takes approximately three seconds for me to realize who it is.

Lucy’s completely still, the ends of her hair tucked into her cardigan, as if she’d put it on in a hurry.

Foxe walks ahead of me, his stride lazy and confident as he approaches her. “Goddamn, Lulu, if you wanted some attention, all you had to do was?—”

He cuts off abruptly when he reaches her side, his face twisting in horror.

My eyebrows draw inward, and I close the distance between us, wondering what the hell their problem is.

I don’t get the chance to ask though, because just inside the room are two faceless corpses, hanging by their feet behind the doorframe.

And even though they’re mostly unidentifiable, their eyes mere holes in their skulls and their skin mutilated, I recognize the three-headed beast carved into their stomachs and note the waterlogged bloating. Probably from being tossed in Lake Lerna.

One is Lucy’s roommate.

The other is the Curator I killed.