Page 109 of Cruel Abandon (Fallen Royals 5)

“Ms. Buckley, this is Detective McAdams. I’m calling to inform you that your roommate, Whitney Travers, has been reported missing.”

“I saw the news.” I glance at Liam. “She moved back in with her parents, and I moved out of that apartment. I haven’t seen her since Monday morning.”

Liam shakes his head, motioning for me to get off the phone.

I understand: the last time the police fished around one of his friends, they spent a night in jail. Of course, that was Detective Masters, and he was sure Caleb had kidnapped Margo… An assumption that was later proven false.

Ridiculous, really.

“Her parents filed the report, and they did mention you had moved out.”

Liam is still shaking his head.

“Okay…” I say.

“Can you come down to the station? We have a few questions.”

Liam hits the gas harder.

I wince. “Um, no, sorry. We’re headed home for the week. We felt it was safer to get out of the city since classes were cancelled.”

“Ms. Buckley—”

“You can contact my lawyer,” I say softly. “I don’t really know what else to say.”

I hang up on her.

Two girls dead. One caught in limbo—Jasmine is probably gone, but her body hasn’t been found—and one missing.

A serial killer. What else could it be?

I’m glad we’re going home, if only until the end of the week. I settle back in the seat and close my eyes.

29

Liam

There are a lot of songs that reference angels. Angels falling, angels crying. Beautiful angels and sad ones. Then there are the tortured souls who try to save them. Who die trying.

In my bones, I know that will be me—the fool who tries to save my angel.

The girls’ photos lined up in a row is burned into the back of my eyelids. I see them every time my attention wanders.

Like now.

Sky is asleep next to me, her gray hair covering half her face. She’s the sort of beautiful people write songs about, too. Sad songs. Love songs.

We’ve been driving in silence for an hour, and I can’t stop picturing Skylar’s senior photo from high school in the lineup.

Jasmine. Amber. Natalie. Whitney. Sky.

All beautiful, thin, popular, blonde. If Sky and I didn’t experience the viral video, she would still be the same as them. Fate did her a service, changing her ever so slightly as to knock her off the path of the monster hunting them.

I shiver and twist on the heat. My chill has nothing to do with the weather and everything to do with the thought of Sky missing.

Again.

I kept her mother’s secret for seven years. Hid the point of our connection from Sky like it was easy. Forced her to stay away from me.