Page 121 of The Deceptions

"Have you told anyone else?" I ask, cocking my head.

Please say the police or someone else besides just looking for him. If he's been gone for that long, it's already been over sixteen hours. He could be anywhere by now, especially with the history of this place and missing people. My heart rate bounces high when her lip quivers, giving me the answer.

"I thought he'd come home," she whispers. "Or I thought… I thought he'd be with you guys. I..."

"Tell the police," I say quickly, grabbing her forearm softly. "You need to tell someone." I don't want to scare her more than she already is, but something needs to be done. He couldn’t have disappeared off the face of the earth for no reason. Fuck. My gut lurches at the possibilities. I don't want to scream at his girlfriend that he could lose his life for whatever reason.

But something about this stinks. Majorly.

"Oli's right, Gem. You need to go and tell campus police or make a report. At least they'll have it on file. I'm sure he's fine, but just to be sure," Simon softly says with reassurance.

He can offer her all the reassurance, but I don’t think Dane is going to be okay. I’ve got a funny, sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach that something bad has happened. My agent senses tingle and the hairs on my neck stand on end. I’ll have to keep my eyes peeled and include this in my daily notes.

Something evil is making its presence known.

"Yeah," she sniffles, gently pulling away from us. "I'll go talk to them now. I just... If something happened to him. I wouldn'tbe able to live with myself. I sent him out." Tears track down her cheeks, but she swipes them away. "He was only supposed to be gone for five minutes."

Gemma charges away from us and marches through the entrance of the graveyard, losing herself in the darkness of the night. My shoulders stiffen at her words. Dane is out there somewhere. Possibly hurt. Or maybe he walked away. He is a grown man. The police would most likely tell her they were not concerned. Adults leave town without telling a soul all the time. But this? It's too fucking suspicious for me.

"He didn't come back, did he?" Simon asks, twisting his expression. Worry mars his face, and he heaves a breath.

I shake my head. "No. I would have known if he had. You think Wade has seen him?"

"He could have." Simon pulls out his phone and types out a message. "I'll ask him. I don't think he's here tonight. He had something to do at the shelter downtown."

"Volunteering, right?"

Simon nods in response, putting his phone away. "Yeah. He's a good guy like that. Always helping out with the animals or volunteering for the homeless shelter downtown." He sips his drink again.

"Hopefully, she finds Dane." I'm not too optimistic, though. I saw him at the store, but he never came home. When I exited the store, the parking lot was dark and devoid of life. Who has the power to do that? There's something so weird happening here; I just can't put my finger on it. It's something I need to talk to Jonathan about tonight. I'll find a secluded spot, call him, and debrief about everything happening. He'll know what to do.

"I fucking hope so. I've known him since freshman year," he says, shaking his head. "We may not run in the same crowds, but the three of us have always bunked together. Cool guys." He plucks his phone out of his pocket and frowns. "Wade sayshe hasn't seen him either but will be here later tonight. He says he hasn't seen him since last night when he ran into him at the store. He says you were there, too." His eyes dart to me, but there's no suspicion in them.

"Tampons," I grumble, taking a large drink as my cheeks heat.

"Oh, OH!" Simon said in surprise, tucking his phone away. "So, you saw him last night?"

"He was getting the same thing for his girlfriend and some ice cream. But I saw him walk out of the store before I…” I trail off, remembering I stepped into the bathroom before walking out of the store. Anything could have happened between then and when I left. Giving whoever plenty of time to kidnap Dane and…do what with him? I’m not sure. “And that's the last I saw of him."

"So weird," Simon mumbles, crinkling his nose. "Let's keep our eyes out for him." He nods with determination. "But in the meantime, we've got a party to try and enjoy." He rubs at his chest like it's an impossible feat for him, but he plasters on his smile, and we mingle throughout the party, where he introduces me to more people as Oliver.

"This is Victoria and Blane," Simon says, gesturing to two people resting beneath a tree with drinks in their hands.

"Hi," I say, offering a small wave. "Nice to meet you."

Victoria grins in response. "You're new here, aren't you? Simon's roommate, the one he won't shut up about," she chuckles into her glass bottle.

"Shut it," Simon quips, slightly pushing her shoulder. "This is my sister," Simon says, gesturing to her.

"His twin, to be more exact. But I'm older and wiser," Victoria smiles. "This is my husband, Blane."

"Husband?" I ask, furrowing my brows without meaning to.

She laughs at my stunned expression. "I know. My parents begged me to wait, but I wouldn't let them set me up with someone. So, I married the first guy I could get my grubby hands on."

Blane rolls his eyes. A smirk playing on his lips. "Grubby is right, but I chased you for at least two years." He softly kisses her head, and Simon playfully gags.

"You're going to ruin the party with that." He gestures to their PDA.