Page 31 of Love Immortal
Thirty
I spend the wee hours of the morning back in my dorm room, hugging my knees in my bed and trying to stop shaking uncontrollably. I struggle to distract myself from what Dacian told me, but I fail miserably. The fear that he’ll leave, that I’ll never see him again, zaps my body like tiny electric shocks.
I can’t let that happen. I must do something to change his mind. But what? My words don’t seem to be enough to convince him. No matter what angle I approach it from, Dacian’s journal is key. It’s the only reason he’s still in Camden. If I want him to stay, I need to get my hands on it before he does.
I hide my face in my pillow. Wetness spreads under my cheek. This is so wrong. He trusted me enough to ask for my help finding it. How can I go behind his back? And what will I even do if I find it? Can I keep it from him just to make him stay longer? He’ll be furious if he learns the truth. He’ll think I betrayed him. The anger and contempt I saw in his eyes that first week of the semester will pale in comparison with what he’ll feel for me then.
My mind spins and spins in circles as sobs wrack my body. Eventually, the pain dulls, and some clarity returns to me.
I don’t need to decide what to do with the journal yet. I already promised Dacian I’d help him search for it, so I will. That’s the deal we struck, so technically, I won’t be lying to him. But I need a plan. Between Dacian doing everything he can to find it and those who have his journal moving on to the final stage of their ritual, my time is running out. I have to concentrate.
I don’t have any leads. But if Eric wasn’t alone when he performed the ritual, the most likely suspects are his buddies, Mads Jr. and Grady. But can they really have killed Jeremy and Anita?
I remember Callahan flinging me across the room at the Welcome Week party—could that have been his vampire abilities manifesting? And his eyes—I thought I saw them glowing red. Was that real or a trick of the light? Just because I despise him and Mads doesn’t mean it’s okay to accuse them of murder. Drugging girls at parties is reprehensible, but it’s a whole new level of atrocity to bleed someone dry and dump their mutilated body in the woods. And how are they feeding themselves in the meantime? Dacian said it doesn’t take a lot of blood to sustain a vampire, but we’re talking about at least two of them. Could their parties and drugs have anything to do with how they’re getting their supply? Is Alessandra involved, too?
Dacian doesn’t seem to suspect them, or at least he hasn’t brought them up to me. But that makes sense, considering he’s new here. There are two thousand students at Camden. He doesn’t know everyone, and by killing Eric, he lost the opportunity to follow him to his murder buddies. That is where I have an advantage over Dacian. I know more about Eric and the legacies than he does. But how long will this advantage last? What if he asks me about my progress looking for his journal? Can I lie to him when he can hear my every heartbeat?
I’m going to have to be crafty. If I stick mostly to the truth, he might not notice I’m making other plans.
At least I can gauge where Dacian is in his search, but I can’t say the same about Mads and Grady, if they are indeed the vampires we’re looking for. How close are they to completing the ritual? How much time do I have left? Dacian never said what the final step was, just that it required preparation. Surely they intend to do it soon, though. With Eric suddenly gone, they might suspect someone is on to them. Unless they think he got scared and ran away. If only I could get close enough to investigate. The problem is that we don’t run in the same circles. Heck, I actively try to stay as far away from them as possible, fully convinced that anyone who schmoozes with them is a low-level leech. It looks like I will have to hold my nose and sneak into one of their parties. But how am I going to stroll into their mansion? I am not a welcome guest. Every time they see me, they either try to run me over or punch me.
I puzzle over this conundrum for a few days but come up short until an opportunity strikes a week later.
“Have you heard?” Becky announces conspiratorially during one of our study sessions at the library. “After fall break, Alessandra Lucente moved in with Mads Jr. in that mountain mansion. It’s just her and the three guys. How scandalous!”
Fiona wrinkles her nose in distaste. “I’m sure that place is nicer than our dorms, but who’d wanna share it with a bunch of dudes? It’s probably like living in a frat house. Can you imagine the smell?”
“Ew, grody.” Becky makes a gagging face. “But I heard she’s helping them throw the biggest, baddest Halloween party ever.”
I’ve been trying to finish my accounting assignment, only half paying attention to Becky’s chatter, but my brain latches on to that last bit. I lift my eyes off my workbook. “The legacies are hosting a Halloween party?”
Becky nods. “Apparently, they already bought up all the alcohol in Camden. I’m going to the party at South Hall, but everyone there is complaining that they might have no booze because of the legacies.”
Fiona rolls her eyes. “Wow, such tragedy…” They both laugh.
The gears in my brain begin to spin. I can’t just walk into their house as myself, but Halloween means everyone will be in costume. This could be my chance to sneak in. If Eric had Dacian’s journal, it might still be stashed in his room, ready for me to snatch it.
I hesitate. Is it safe to go snooping inside the potential vampire lair? Probably not, but the party should minimize the danger; I can’t imagine them trying to kill me with so many witnesses around. As long as I keep out of their way, I should be able to search the place and get out before they could do anything to me. I’ll need some help, though.
“Hey, can you do me a huge favor?” I quietly ask Fiona next time we’re alone. “Can you come to the Halloween party at the mansion with me?” We’re walking to the dining hall across the big green space, which is green in name only. A nor’easter knocked most of the leaves off the trees, and we’re now approaching what is locally known as the stick season.
Fiona halts mid-step and looks at me as though I fell and hit my head. “Are you kidding?” she asks.
“Not really,” I mumble awkwardly.
She narrows her eyes at me. “What’s going on, Jonathan? Usually, I have to drag you by the ears when it comes to being social. Why on earth would you wanna go to the legacies’ party?”
“Shh!” I make a gesture for Fiona to keep her voice down and nudge her to keep walking. I glance over my shoulder before I explain. I don’t think anyone is eavesdropping on us, but it pays to be cautious. It’s been a challenge to keep my plans secret from Dacian. Every time I’ve been alone with him since our night drive, I’ve gone straight to kissing him. It’s easier to keep my thoughts blank and my mouth from blurting something when it’s occupied. But I’m scared he might find out anyway. “Remember the stolen book we talked about?” I ask. “Don’t tell anyone, but I think it was Eric Stockton who took it. I want to go to their house and search for it.”
Fiona’s jaw drops. “Are you being serious right now?”
“Well, you said it was an inside job yourself,” I say defensively. “He was working at the library when it went missing.”
“Yeah, but accusing Stockton of being in a satanic cult? That’s lunacy!”
“All the more reason for you to come with me,” I argue. “To prove me wrong.”
“That doesn’t make any sense!” Fiona says, flabbergasted.
“Please? For me? I’ll be super quick, I promise.” I do my best attempt at puppy eyes, which Fiona doesn’t find cute at all. But after a little more pestering, she finally agrees.
“You’re so gonna owe me for this one,” she says.
And I will. In more ways than I could ever imagine.