Perfect Pet

Ch. 30: Dead Men Walking

Throughout the day, it was obvious that Claire was expecting me to comment on her note. Chew her out or tell her how stupid the whole thing was. I wanted to but what would be the point if it only went in one ear and out the other? At this point, it was more likely I would try to strangle her to get my point across. I was tired of putting my sanity on the line for someone that just didn't care. Instead, I acted like I didn't see her covert glances and avoided her attempts at conversation by pretending to be busy.

I might not have lectured her but I was still extremely pissed.

I wasn't a hundred percent sure but a gut instinct told me that the meeting Sydney had told me about was happening that night. It had probably been planned for over the weekend but got pushed back after everything that happened since Caleb was in charge of investigating. That meant whatever dismal odds she'd had were slashed to smithereens. Madame Moreau's office was on the top floor, the rooms they used for meetings right below it. So to even reach it, she would have to sneak past a whole floor of vampires.

The thought alone had my throat closing in panic.

I didn't even know what they would do to her if she got caught. It wouldn't be as simple as just sending her home. No, they would want to question her and her motives and maybe find out where that bracelet of hers came from. I doubted there were too many floating around. After that? It was anyone's guess. They could lock her up or just as easily use her to track down the group she belonged to. Maybe they would wipe her memories for good measure. I had no idea if that was even a thing but it wouldn't surprise me.

I tried not to dwell on it too much as classes finished and I sat down in the dining hall to eat dinner. She was a grown adult fully capable of making her own decisions. She knew she was playing with fire. The rolling unease in my stomach wouldn't go away though so I gave up after only a few bites. Better than it all coming back up. Knowing I would be hungry later, I wrapped up a muffin instead and grabbed a bottle of tea to take with me back to my room, debating whether or not to stop by the library first to grab a few books for my paper.

It would be a good distraction and maybe I would see Kali while I was over there.

The campus was creepy in the twilight as I took a shortcut through the courtyard to a side entrance. There was always some form of life going on, girls moving from class to class or vampires playing out on the lawn. Laughter and chatter bouncing off the walls. With curfew only an hour away though, it was still. A ghost town. No one wanted to risk being out at night. The forest edging the property by the gates was a dark and sinister shadow, the branches so tangled together that they created a sort of natural canopy that even the brightest sunlight couldn't pierce.

I didn't want to look but my eyes kept wandering that way anyways. Somewhere in those depths, Sophie's body had been discarded. Thrown out like yesterday's garbage. My stomach rolled and I had to lean against the cool stone of the outer wall for a moment until nausea went away. They hadn't said anything about what her body had looked like. Only that it had been found. Probably for the best since I didn't want to know how messed up those people were. What was strange was where it had been found. Malik had told me that the vampire students got up a few hours earlier than us for an athletics class. Something about working off excess energy to keep them calm and in control. They didn't need as much sleep in the first place so it wasn't a big deal.

They ran across campus twice a week as a type of warm-up, including the forest, and around the lake. The girls didn't go anywhere near them. First, because it was a bit of a walk and second was because it oozed danger. Whoever had dumped her had known that and left her in a place to be intentionally found. So not only had they known the campus' location but class schedules as well. Whoever had done it had either spent time hidden on campus mapping out how everything ran or they were already involved with Rigryce. Neither option was comforting and goosebumps broke out across my arms at the thought of being secretly watched.