Chapter Thirty-Two

Lucianne's eyes fluttered open, a groan leaving her as she blinked repeatedly. Something had dragged her out of her good sleep, something… loud.

The wailing sounded like a baby with a voice that was too mature, and it was crying at the top of her lungs, as if it was being sliced in half by a crowbar. Her eyes blinked in confusion as the sound continued to bounce off the walls directly into her ears. She cursed as she got up, looking around at herself.

She was on the floor at an aisle of the library, and right below her was Gabriel's trench coat. He was not beside her, and bits and pieces of last night came back to her. They had fucked all night, and when they finally stopped, she rested in his arms, talking to him until early morning. She drifted off to sleep first and now, it was late morning and classes were about to start.

Rubbing the sleep from her eyes, she got to her feet. Picking up her panties, she stepped into them before putting her pantyhose on. She brushed the sex out of her hair and clothes, then shrugged into the trench coat Gabriel left behind. She wanted to return it to him later when she met him.

The siren continued to wail.

Leaving the library, she lurched back when a group of students came rushing down past the corridor. She looked to either side of her, wondering what the hell had happened this time. In the far corner, she saw a group of girls huddled around each other, two of them patting the back of a girl who was in the middle, crying.

She walked up to them. "What happened?"

"They found another body!" a girl said.

"Who was it?" Lucianne asked.

"I haven't heard," she replied.

"You haven't?" the crying girl said.

"No."

"Who was it?" Lucianne asked the crying girl, who was hiccuping as she cried.

"It was - it was - "

"Calm down and speak properly," one of them said to the girl.

"Leave me alone!"

"Give me a name," Lucianne said.

"She - "

"It was a girl?" one said. "Oh, that makes it even worse."

"What's her name?" Lucianne repeated.

"A-Abbie Moore."

Lucianne's jaw dropped. "Are you sure?"

"Yes!"

"Fuck, fuck, fuck," Lucianne said. "Where did they find her body?"

"At the lake beside Glacier Forest."

"Fuck, fuck!" Lucianne said, her feet springing into action. She flew down the hallways, down the winding staircase and all the way across to the main gates of Ravenspire.

They were closed and she rattled the chains wrapped around it hard. The security guards came out, faces black, and pointed bony fingers at her.

"Stop that, girl!"

"Let me out!" Lucianne yelled.

"Get back inside!"

"No! I have to see the body!"

"What? So you can post it to your Instagram? Leave!"

"No! Let me out!"

"I'm not saying it again - "

"I know the girl!" Lucianne said in a hurry. "Abbie Moore. I know her! Please, let me out."

"Oh," the security guard said, placated. "She was your friend?"

"Yes."

The security guard turned back to stare at his friend, who shook his head in pity and waved at the gates.

"Fine," he said to her finally. "But come back quick."

"I will, I promise," she said. They opened the gates for her and once it was wide enough to fit a person through, she escaped into it and ran down the path to the lake beside Glacier Forest.

When she reached, there were several uniformed people walking around, putting yellow tape on or snapping pictures. She panicked, and ducked under the yellow tape, running all the way to the bank of the lake.

There was a body floating face down across the lake. She was naked, and the paleness of her skin was a stark contrast against the murky water. Her head was also shaved, as if only recently cut by a thin blade.

Her heart rang in her chest. No, not Abbie! What happened? She stepped into the water against the yelling of the people behind her, and her skirt turned dark as it soaked up the lake water. She waded through the grime, until she reached the body.

Flipping her over, she stared down at her face. It was really Abbie! She caught her arms, checking her wrists. They were bare and free of fresh wounds, only covered in scarred lines from a long time ago. How did she end up here? She shook Abbie's body furiously, but the purple of her lips told her that she was gone.

Was Abbie a victim of the campus murderer? The campus murderers? Or was she one of them? Did she belong to a cult? Did Jonas or Harper kill her? Did the escaped prisoner kill her? Or was there really a Hex Beast? Did she kill herself?

Lucianne knew so much, yet so little.

She continued to shake Abbie's body, trying in vain to summon life back into her body. She couldn't even hear the protests that surrounded her. Abbie had a special bond with her, but she was gone! She wiped her hand across her bare head, her tears falling onto Abbie's cheeks. She closed her eyes as she cried, pain wrecking her chest. Abbie was truly gone.

At least that was what she thought.

Because a shower of water suddenly spurted from Abbie's mouth, her body jerking.