Page 44 of Cruel Abandon (Fallen Royals 5)

He calls after me, but I take a calculated risk and ignore him. I pretend his words are carried off on the wind, never touching me.

Concentration proves impossible in both my classes. My nerves are walking a tightwire, but I can’t let myself slack. Tomorrow, I have classes with Mitch and Liam, then Taryn. It should be an easier day than this isolation… unless Liam and Mitch decide to start something.

Speaking of, I was supposed to meet him yesterday.

I wince and open my phone as soon as the professor ends her lecture.

I shoot him a quick text, apologizing for flaking. He was going to drop off notes to another classmate, then meet me for dinner.

Mitch: You okay?

He’s got to be the first guy who’s said that in response to a girl ditching him.

Me: Yeah, I went home to be supportive. Natalie is her BFF.

Is, not was.

Verb tense has never been so stressful.

She’s like Schrödinger’s cat—alive and dead at the same time. Both variations exist simply because we don’t know.

Simple. When has life and death ever been simple?

Mitch: Come to the library. I have a strawberry donut with your name on it.

I grimace. I don’t think I’ve ever given him the indication that I enjoy strawberry. I’m more of a chocolate girl myself. Plain glaze donuts, sure. I might be on board with that. Fake-strawberry is the bane of my existence, including but not limited to ice cream, hard candies, and donuts.

“You’re smiling.”

I shove my phone in my pocket.

Detective McAdams blocks my path, and she seems a bit frostier than before. I tuck away the fear that she was waiting for me.

“I was talking to someone funny,” I inform her. “Humor goes a long way in morbid situations.”

“Is that what this is?” She cocks her head. “Morbid?”

“I’m not sure why you’re bothering with me,” I say instead, skirting around her. “Didn’t your captain warn you off of me?”

She tuts. “I’m not asking you about Natalie. Wasn’t planning on it. Simply escorting you to… wherever you’re going.”

I pause. “The library. But if I said home, would you walk me all the way there?”

“Depends how far it is. These are new shoes.”

“I hope you find Natalie, Detective,” I say.

We reach the entrance to the library, one of the outermost buildings of campus. I put my hand on the door and turn to face her.

She scans my face. I can’t tell what the hell she’s thinking, because her mask is almost as solid as the ones worn on Halloween. Maybe that’s why you don’t like her, a little voice whispers.

“The press will be all over this,” she finally tells me. “Her parents are making a statement tonight, and after that…”

I shake my head, unsure of where she’s going with this.

“You just never know what they might dredge up.” She spins on her heel and follows the path back to the heart of campus.

“Hey.” Mitch jogs down the steps. “Who was that?”