I cocked my head back and turned up my nose. “For your information, I was practicing blade combat just the other day.” He didn’t need to know it was virtual and my actions were controller-based. I definitely wasn’t going to tell him about my sweet dance moves. He hadn’t earned it.
“That’s good to hear. You’ll have to show me during our training sessions.”
Training sessions?
“Sure, no problem.” I flashed him a confident smile. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have to change into something more suited for lawbreaking. Wait out in the hall.”
He opened his mouth to speak, but I silenced him with a pointed finger.
“Don’t even think about making a pathetic witch joke about my dressing up as a cat burglar, or you’re out on your ass. You can sleep with the rats.”
His mouth snapped shut. “Never crossed my mind.”
“Sure it didn’t. Move!” I pushed him toward the door then turned my attention to my closet.
All right, what says I’m out for an innocent stroll, but also works well while committing a felony?
Oh, and it needed to conceal a mystical blade.
Obviously, spandex was out.
***
“I can’t believe you brought the dog,” Caden whispered as we walked briskly through the quad.
“Why not? He makes the perfect lookout. No one will see him unless he uses his haunting abilities to make himself known, and he can warn us if he hears anything. Besides, he’s part of the team.”
Caden mumbled something under his breath that sounded a lot like the sarcastic version of, “Some team.” I hoped he was including himself in his scorn.
The night air was crisp and smelled of damp leaves from the earlier rain. Puddles on the stone walkway reflected the light from the campus’s exterior lampposts. Loki bounded after us, oblivious, stopping briefly to sniff a passing student before keeping pace.
I was pretty satisfied with my outfit selection. I’d gone with a dark gray fleece pullover and black skinny jeans tucked into leather boots. My demon blade was strapped to my ankle, courtesy of the sheath I’d purchased with overnight shipping the same day I returned from the manor.
And Caden thought I was unprepared. I had the foresight to shop, didn’t I?
We approached the history department’s office building. Three floors of stone and Gothic arches towered above our heads. A single-story walkway connected the lecture halls, the parking lot for both buildings nearly empty. Floodlights lit the main entrance, and I noted a security camera in one arch. The side entrances were almost certain to be locked this late in the evening.
“Can you do something about the camera?” I asked, angling my head toward the stone arch. “It’s probably not a great idea for two people who were there the night Professor Roberts died to be seen entering her office building right before closing.”
Caden agreed and focused his magic, sending a little zap of energy through the air. The wires connected to the camera sparked and sizzled, disconnecting the feed.
“That should do it. They’ll assume it was an electrical problem.”
I hurried up the steps, keeping my head low. There weren’t any shadows to hide in, so speed was my main factor. Reaching for the large brass handle, I slipped inside, holding the door slightly open for Caden.
Once in the massive entryway, we moved along the wall, our steps quiet on the marble tile. I breathed in the faint scent of chemicals. The floors had been recently mopped, and the overhead lights were off, leaving most of the area dim. Somewhere ahead, a cleaning cart rolled down the hall, its wheels squeaking.
Caden held out a hand, halting my progress until the cart and cleaning crew wheeled past.
“What floor is her office?” I asked.
“Third. We’ll take the stairs, but go slow in case there’s another crew up there.”
“I have a better idea.” Kneeling, I brought my face close to Loki’s. “Good boy,” I murmured. “Go up those stairs and let us know if you see anyone.”
The dog nuzzled his nose through my hand and skipped up the steps. He wandered around on the landing, a small glow visible between the railings. A few minutes later, he reappeared, tail wagging.
“I think that’s the all-clear signal,” I said.
“Really? You speak dog now?” Caden looked skeptical.
“Loki and I are connected. He’s my familiar. He won’t lead me into danger. Unlike someone else I know.” I made a face and muttered the last part under my breath.
“What was that?”
“Nothing. Let’s go.”
The third floor was darker than the first. Trash had been emptied and the floors cleaned. We had the place to ourselves. All the offices were dark and locked tight.
Professor Roberts’ office was the second from last. A narrow metal plate with her name on it had been affixed next to the door.
I peered through the square window into her office. Faint moonlight spilled across a tidy desk. A pair of pens lined up perfectly parallel to a small stack of books. Potted succulents were arranged in a tight row. Beneath a clear blotter, she’d stored a series of sticky notes and small cards. There was no computer. Professor Roberts must have carried around a laptop. She’d been meticulous, organized. Looking through the window was like seeing the part of her she’d left behind.
Caden used the key in the door, and we entered. Loki remained outside in the hallway, a silent lookout.
“Start with her file cabinets. I’ll go through her desk.” Caden opened the top drawer and riffled through more pens, sticky notes, and various trinkets.
I moved to the first cabinet, tracking my gaze along a wall of books. The shelving was floor-to-ceiling, and there wasn’t an empty space to be seen. Historical journals, collector’s items, even some pulp fiction. It was all there.
Opening a drawer in the cabinet, I scanned the file tabs. They were typed and labeled alphabetically. I found her class schedule and student rosters and pulled them from the drawer.
Using my phone, I snapped a photo of each page to review and cross-reference later. The names of the other professors in the department I planned to pull from the student coursebook. We could start a suspect list with the names that matched the guests at the party.
Caden finished with the desk and took a picture of the contents of each drawer. He moved on to the wall of books, sliding a few out from the shelves to look for hidden papers.
We were methodical, searching every spot we could and documenting everything with photos. A puzzle piece might not fit now but could be the key later.
“I wonder where she keeps her computer. It’s not here,” Caden said as he went to examine the shelves by the windows.
“She always carried around a laptop as far as I remember. Maybe she left it at home.” I continued to go through the file folders, stopping on one labeled with this month’s date. Inside were a few pages of handwritten notes, and I quickly took photos. On the last page, I froze, thinking I’d heard something out in the hall.
Loki made a noise in this throat, the growl signaling someone was coming. The beam of a flashlight appeared, and the footsteps grew louder.
“We need to hide,” I whispered, carefully sliding the cabinet door closed so it wouldn’t make any noise.
Our gazes darted around the office, fully aware there were no places to hide. Not enough room under the desk for the both of us. No closets. Not even thick drapes hanging at the window to duck behind. We were completely vulnerable and about to get caught.
Caden tried the windows. Jerking one of them open, he leaned his head out. “You’re not going to like it, but we can go out this way. There’s a ledge we can stand on. I’ll go first and make sure it’s sturdy.”
“I am not going out the window!” My eyes widened at his intention. Was he joking?
Loki whimpered as the footsteps slowed, drawing closer to the office.
Caden dropped one leg out the side and used his arms to pull himself out the rest
of the way. A panicked flutter expanded in my chest. The ledge didn’t collapse. Standing flat against the side of the building, he reached back and held out his hand.
“Let’s go, Graves.”
Nope. No way. I did not sign on for narrow window ledges. I glanced over my shoulder as a flashlight beam bounced through the glass in the door. Crap. I was out of time.
“Loki, hide under the desk.” I pointed beneath the wooden frame and snapped my fingers.
The dog leaped into motion, obeying my order. Then, lunging for Caden’s hand, I scrambled through the window casing. The ledge was only a few inches wide, and my throat closed as the edge crumbled. Tiny pieces of concrete rained three stories down to the stone walkway below.
Pressed tightly against his side, we held our breaths, backs firmly against the wall as someone entered the office. My knees shook as I looked out over the campus.
“Afraid of heights, Graves?” he murmured in my ear.
I nodded and squeezed my eyes shut.
His grip tightened around my hand, fingers interlocking with mine. The wind sailed over us, drowning out any noise from inside the office.
On the wind, I smelled the hint of iron. It was faint, an essence of dark magic wafting out the window. My stomach lurched. Whoever was inside wasn’t just a cleaner come to empty the wastebasket; they had magic, and the senses went two ways.
A hysterical laugh bubbled inside my throat. How was I supposed to defend myself now? None of my in-game simulations had taught me how to remove a demon blade from my boot while standing on a four-inch ledge, forty feet in the air—and even if it had, it wasn’t as if I would have practiced it.
“Don’t move, Graves,” Caden breathed. A pulse of magic flowed between our hands. He was cloaking our power to disguise our presence. I just hoped it was enough.
Blowing air out between my teeth, I locked my knees and waited. A few more concrete crumbles fell to the ground below.
If I didn’t die, I was definitely going to throw up.
We waited for what felt like half an hour but was probably only fifteen minutes. The rain started up again, droplets pelting the stone and drenching my clothes. My hair stuck to the sides of my face as water sluiced down my neck.
“They’re gone,” Caden said, squeezing some life back into my hand. “I can’t sense them anymore.”
“We can go back inside now?”
“Yes, but slowly!”
I turned my head, hoping he could see the incredulous look on my features. “Slowly, huh? And here I thought it was a race. First one inside wins a prize! Tell him what he wins, Johnny,” I mocked in my best TV host accent.
Caden frowned, but the edges wobbled a bit. “You’re a funny one, Graves.” His grip tightened when I started to move. “I mean it. Go slow.”
Centimeter by centimeter, I shuffled closer to the window, afraid to pick up my feet on the slippery concrete. When I’d reached the casing, I wrapped my hands around the top of the window and slowly eased myself back inside.
My feet landed on solid ground, and I bent over in relief. Caden came in behind me as Loki floated out from beneath the desk. He tried to nuzzle my hand while I caught my breath.
“What do you think they were searching for?” I asked, straightening to look around the office. Everything looked exactly the same. Nothing was tossed or disturbed.
“I don’t know.”
My gaze landed on the surface of Professor Roberts’ desk. The pens were still lined up neatly next to the books. Each scrap of paper was in the perfect position, but something was out of place.
“Caden, look at the blotter. There’s a card missing. She had everything organized in strict lines with no spaces. Pull up the photos from before.”
Caden swiped through the photos on his phone, stopping on the one he’d taken of her desk. Zooming in, he focused on the notes underneath the blotter.
“There—that’s what’s missing. It looks like a business card.”
“Whoever was in here must have taken it.”
“There’s an address at the bottom. Looks like we have our first promising lead.” He pocketed his phone and studied me. There was a strange look on his face, almost as if he was impressed by my quick deduction.
I was just standing on the ledge of a building, and that’s what he’s proud of?
The air around us felt charged, and I couldn’t blame it all on lingering adrenaline. Reaching out his hand, he pulled a wet strand of hair away from my cheek. His thumb grazed my jawline, setting off a warm feeling inside my chest.
“Nice job, Graves,” he said, his voice a low rumble. “Let’s get back to the dorm and dry off. Enough cat burgling for tonight.”
Chapter 9
I tossed Caden a fluffy blue towel. He caught it in one hand and used it to dry his hair. His leather jacket was spotted with rain, white T-shirt damp against his chest. We were both soaked after walking back to the dorms in the downpour. Even the fleece pullover I’d been happy with earlier stuck to my skin like a wet blanket.
After emptying my pocket of my phone, I used another towel to ring the water from my hair. I was still reeling from our break-in and subsequent high-wire act on the ledge of the building. If you would have asked me last week if I’d be forty feet in the air hiding from a demon, I would have laughed in your face.
“I can’t believe we just did that,” I said, kicking off my boots and removing the blade strapped to my ankle. Shoving my feet into my fuzzy cat slippers, I tossed the blade onto my nightstand. The purple stone glittered beneath the bedside lamp. “We could have died before I even got to use that damn thing.”
Caden frowned at my observation and took off his jacket. He hung it on the back of my desk chair and removed the cell phone charger we’d purchased at the store, placing it next to Professor Roberts’ cell phone.
“Be glad you didn’t have to. You’ve been a demon-hunter for a total of three days, most of which you’ve spent holed up in this dorm room eating cups of noodles and binge-watching Netflix.”
I slung my arms over my chest. “Hey, that’s not fair. You guys sprung a monumental life change on me. I was reflecting. Noodles are comfort food, and TV relaxes me. It’s called self-care—look it up. Besides, how many demons have you killed?”
“Plenty.”
“Sure, plenty. Convenient how I can’t check your file to confirm that. I guess I’ll just have to take your word for it.”
His frown deepened into a full-on scowl. I’d struck a nerve. Maybe I hadn’t killed a demon, but I’d killed his mood. So where’s my hunter’s trophy?
It was probably for the best. We were sharing a tiny room. He had the nerve to look hot soaking wet, and I still had the smoldering look in his eyes burned into my mind from earlier. Talk about a slippery ledge I had no business standing on. Throw in a mysterious past and fleeting instances of overprotectiveness and I was starring in my own YA fantasy novel.
He grabbed his duffel bag and strode toward the door. A sliver of my ego panicked, but I kept pushing.
“Leaving already? Decide to sleep with the rats after all? What happened to, ‘Strong teams are formed from strong bonds’?”
Caden slowed his steps and angled his head over his shoulder. “You’d like that, wouldn’t you, Graves? It’s been a long day. I’m going to take a shower. Looking forward to those witchy pajamas when I get back.” He winked and moved through the door, dodging the towel I flung his way.
“Can you believe that guy?” I grumbled to Loki, who’d curled up on the bed, watching us with interest.
Loki huffed out a snort that sounded like he was on my side then dropped his head onto his paws.
I sat next to him, wishing I could ruffle the fur behind his ears. “You did well tonight. You’re the best lookout on our team.”
Loki tilted his nose up into the air, preening from the praise.
“I wish we could have gotten a look at who was in Professor Roberts’ office. But at least we know what they were after.”
Reaching for my phone, I searched for the address that was on the card from Caden’s photo. The search results showed it was the Thornbridge Historical Society. Not too surprising for a history professor to have a connection to the historical society, but whatever that connection was had to be linked to her murder.
I stifled a yawn and padded over to my closet. Selecting a tank top and a pair of cotton shorts, I changed quickly then ran a brush through my still-damp hair. Tapping a fuzzy slipper into the floor, I sighed in resignation and unearthed the extra blanket buried inside my closet. I didn’t have an extra pillow. He’d have to use a rolled-up towel or something.
Next, I cleared a space for him on the floor. It wasn’t the most comfortable setup, but it would have to do. Though, compared to one of the decrepit rooms in the manor, my floor was the Four Seasons—minus the mints on the pillow.
Now, all that was left was to wait awkwardly for him to get back from his shower. This wasn’t uncomfortable at all. Should I read or pretend to do something cool, like sharpen my demon blade? Are you even supposed to sharpen it? I’d better not ask.
Grabbing Professor Roberts’ cell phone, I plugged it into the charger and climbed into bed. After a few minutes of charging, I was able to power it on. The device came to life with a little chime and a request for an alphanumeric password. Shoot. What would she have used? It was impossible to guess, but I tried anyway.
“Do we know her date of birth?” I asked Loki, drumming my fingers on the keyboard. We did! I retrieved her police file and scanned the report. June 25, 1963. I tried the date a few ways. None of them worked. The password wasn’t her birthday. She didn’t have any pets I knew of and wasn’t married, so no wedding anniversary. With no other clues, the possibilities were endless. It could be HistoryIsDaBest22! for all I knew. It wasn’t—I’d tried it—but guessing passwords was a waste of time. What we needed was a hacker. Someone on our team who could crack the code.
Oscar was out; cell phones didn’t even exist when he was alive. Loki didn’t have opposable thumbs. Which left Caden. Maybe he was the computer whiz on his old team, though I highly doubted it. He didn’t give off a tech vibe. He was more of a daredevil who broke into offices and jumped out of windows.
A Grave Spell (The Spellwork Files Book 1) Page 7