Page 74 of Endless Anger
Maybe I should’ve just leaned into things when she kissed me in the sunflower field. If I were anyone else, I never would’ve let that opportunity pass me up.
I’d have had her flipped onto her back, my face between her trembling thighs, before she could’ve comprehended the words I’dstupidlyuttered out loud.
Then maybe we wouldn’t be here at all.
Foxe frowns. “I miss when your insults were less than two syllables.”
“Okay, dick.”
“See? Isn’t that better? It’s crisp. Rolls off the tongue nicely.”
“Why are you even here?” I snap, slamming the book shut. “Don’t you have groupies you could be harassing or parents you should be checking in with?”
“I already video chatted with my mom this morning, thank you.” Keats jumps off his chest, landing on the floor before scurrying under the bed. Foxe props his arms behind his head, staring at the ceiling. “As for groupies, I think Lulu was right about the students at this school. No one seems to notice they have a god in their midst.”
Snorting humorlessly, I turn back to my desk. “Or maybe they have more than two brain cells to rub together.”
“I’ll forgive you because I know you’re projecting.”
Putting the sketchbook down, I swipe my phone from the desk, pulling up my school-sanctioned email. Already, the inbox is overflowingwith welcome bullshit from the student government and different organizations trying to lure me in with promises of parties, networking opportunities, and course credits.
As if I need any of that. My degree is practically finished, having spent my time on tour with Foxe taking online classes, and if I never go to another party again, it’ll be too soon.
And I definitely don’t need to network, especiallyhere.
Opening the oldest email thread in the inbox, I scroll up to the forwarded message, clicking on the attachment.
Scans of Fury Hill city plans, several centuries old, and the original Avernia College blueprints. Sections were broken off to allow housing for each founding family member, six structures evenly dispersed at the edge of the bulldozed property, just inside the forest.
There was no lake at that time, just eroding mountains and dense foliage. Two of the houses were demolished in favor of adding Lake Lerna, cutting off some of the access to the cave systems that supposedly run beneath campus.
Of the remaining four houses, one was condemned due to poor engineering and spatial issues, and two were converted into administration buildings.
The last remaining residence was engulfed in flames. An attempt by the others to rid themselves of the man they saw as a problem due to his ambitious nature and strange homeopathic practices.
Cronus Anderson.
The reason we’re a target now.
During my first visit here, I’d gathered as much through the encyclopedia in the Obeliskos, but it hadn’t gone into as much depth, nor had I fully believed it.
Even now I’m skeptical, but after being assaulted in the woods again, I’m understanding a little more.
If the curse isn’t real, these people certainly think it is. This email, explaining Cronus’s role and how even those who associate with his bloodline could be cause for concern, felt too pointed to ignore.
After throwing her to the wolves in the name of safety, I couldn’t very well leave Lucy to fend for herself this time.
A high-pitched siren sounds down the hall, causing both Foxe and me to nearly jump out of our skin. He clamps his hands over his ears, sitting up on the bed.
“What the hell is that?” he shouts. “Fire alarm?”
The one in the corner of my room isn’t flashing or blaring, so that doesn’t seem possible. Unless maintenance cuts corners on those sorts of things, which wouldn’t be surprising.
Several loud thuds and crashing noises echo outside. I glance at Foxe; he hops up, throwing on a T-shirt as he bolts across the room.
I get to my feet slowly once he’s at the door, grabbing a baseball bat from the corner. Slipping on my boots, I nod for him to open, and we both lean out into the dark hall, squinting at the window at the far end.
We don’t see anything at first, though it takes a moment for my eyes to adjust. Once they do, I note that the hallway is bathed in shadows, and there’s a solitary figure standing just a few doors down, staring at the wall.
