He shakes his head, the disappointment in his gesture more annoying than upsetting. I don’t give a shit what this loser thinks, but I do care about the fact that my season has been derailed without an explanation.
The surrounding onlookers make a path for me as I head toward the dean’s office. What the fuck is she talking about? For once, putting any blame on a single entity is tragic and uncalled for.
Did she tell him directly?
What else more is there to this story?
When I come to her door, I knock. After I take in a few breaths, I tap my knuckles against the door once more.
It’s not usual for her to be elsewhere, and her door usually isn’t shut either while she’s in office. Wanting to see if she’s hiding, or better yet, gone, I open the door. If she’s gone, I can definitely snoop what made her come to the conclusion she did.
The lights are off, and I’m overjoyed with my luck. Closing the door behind me, I lock it, maneuvering in the dark for the switch. Finding it, I flick it up and immediately wish I hadn’t.
Behind me, where her designated bathroom is, she’s sitting.
But she’s not breathing.
How could you possibly know that, Lux?
Blood.
A fucking lot of it.
She’s in her desk chair, halfway through the bathroom door. Her throat is slashed, and there’s no way it’ll look good for me if I’m caught in here.
Without thinking twice, I whip out my phone and call Jordan. It rings several times before he answers. I should run out the door, but several people saw me come in, either way, I’m fucked. He’ll know what to do.
“Lux, I was about to call.”
“Jordan.” It’s one word, a raspy, broken, and sullen tone. “Rimbaur is dead in her office, and I just walked in on her bloody body.”
“Fuck,” he hisses. “You need to leave, Lux. Right now. It won’t look good for you.”
“Why does it sound like you’re about to fuck up my whole life, Walker?”
“Because I went to get Colt, and fuck...” He pauses.
My mind conjures up the worst possibly scenario. “Spit it out,” I hiss between my clamped jaw.
“She’s missing. Her shit is all gone, Lux. Everything is absolutely gone.”
“What the fuck do you mean?”
“Her room has been cleaned. Like spotless. And when I asked the next-door dorm, they said everything was taken out of her dorm yesterday.”
Grabbing my head, I feel like the world is spinning. This entire month has been a big clusterfuck, and now she’s missing, and I’ve stumbled upon a dead fucking dean.
“Lux, are you listening?” Jordan shouts in my ear, and I finally realize I’d zoned out.
“What?” I gasp. The panic is somehow taking over.
“There’s a ton of cops headed your way. You need to fucking move.”
Adrenaline races through me. “Where?”
“Out the window, she has that one in—”
“Her bathroom,” I finish for him, seeing her body there.
Hanging up on him, I trying to tiptoe around her blood tracks and the mess. I head for the bathroom and wedge the window open. Outside the window, I spot Jordan, and I book it for him.
He points to the forest toward where the cabin is. Knowing that might be my only safe bet for the time being, we run and don’t stop until we’re at the cabin.
“What the fuck?” I wheeze, my heart racing, skin prickling with unease, and a sense of dread weighing me down.
“They’re already going to suspect you, Lux.”
Guess I’ll no longer be the saint of Arcadia.
“What? Why?” Placing my hands above my knees, I bend, trying to calm my racing heart. Jordan comes toward me, running a hand through his hair. “She made an announcement this morning that you fucked up somehow and made the school cancel the season.”
That’s why Gilbert came for me.
“Then literally the entire school saw you head toward her office. It’s what they were talking about when the cops were racing to her office.”
“How could they know she was dead?” I hiss, not understanding.
“Because, Lux, someone wanted you arrested, and whoever it was made sure you’d look really fucking guilty.”
“I need to get out of here.”
He nods, and we head toward the road outside of campus. We pass tons of trees and make sure to stay close to the tree line. Before we get there, branches snap. We’re not alone. But what stops us in our tracks is the one sentence he shouts.
“Follow me, or you’re both dead.”
To be continued in Here Loves a Sociopath.
Acknowledgements
This was single handedly my most rushed book. Not in the sense of writing but because my rut from the last release hit me hard. I finished writing this book less than two weeks before release. Right now, as I’m writing these acknowledgements, I’m literally less than twelve hours from my deadline before Amazon cancels my pre-order.
So, this is to my readers.
I love y’all.
To everyone involved behind the scenes, I love you too. Couldn’t have finished without my hubs, my team, or my readers.
Until our socio!
Other works by C.L. Matthews
Here Lives a Corpse (Here Lies #1)
Inhale, Exhale.
Breathe
Firsts (Cape Hill #1)
Lasts (Cape Hill #2)
Always (Cape Hill #3)
The Dating Games: Author Edition
Welcome to Cape Hill (Cape Hill Vipers #1)
Coming Soon
Here Loves a Sociopath (Here Lies #3)
Here Prays a Sinner (Here Lies #4)
Here Saves a Killer (Here Lies #5)
Dernier Souffle
Forevers (Cape Hill #4)
Stagger (Driven World Novel)
Turbulent (Salvation Society Novel)
And as always, if you want to follow me, I welcome y’all with open arms!
Website: clmatthewsbooks.com
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About the Author
C.L. Matthews lives in lala-landia with her husband and invisible friends. She wants to riot the lack thereof authentic Mexican food in her state, but she’s an introvert at heart. She enjoys tacos, Red Bull, and warm water, because she’s crazy. She’s an oddball, and realizes it’s been mentioned before, just go with it. Her joys in life consist of writing unconventional romances, making book covers, causing havoc to her reader’s hearts, and genre hopping when she needs a change of scenery. She’s a special kind of weird and enjoys every moment of it.
Here Lies a Saint: A Dark Bully Academy Romance Page 25