Page 30 of The Cursed Fae

“The Arena Games,” he answered. I'd almost forgotten the question. “Gladiator-style fighting, with magic. The university has four in-house teams. We play against each other, mostly. Except on Night of Four Moons. Then, we compete against other colleges for glory, bragging rights, and the Mystic Cup.”

My mind stuck on “gladiator-style fighting” and couldn't truly appreciate the rest of his explanation.

“And this is fun?” I asked. “Fighting each other to the death?”

His laughter reverberated off the rounded walls. “We don't fight to the death. Each round lasts five minutes and competitors get points. It's very civilized. Very safe. I'm captain of my team, and I've competed for Arcane at the last two Night of Four Moons Games. The first in-house matchup of the season is on Sunday.” The corner of his mouth quirked upward. “Come check me out.”

“We'll see.” I held out my hand, and Laz tossed the water bottle back to me. “Let's see how tonight goes first. I might not want to check you out after I see what you're really like.”

Laz's grin was wicked. “I'm pretty sure you will.”

Astrid invited me to her room to get ready for the cove party. While choosing an outfit for me from her closet—a pair of black jeans and a form-fitting pink sweater—she tried to grill me about Laz. There wasn't anything to tell, so I dodged the questions and focused on her shoe collection. She tried to talk me into wearing a pair of heeled boots, but I didn't trust myself on the ice.

Morgan was at dinner with her parents and brother, but Astrid convinced her to meet us out at the cove afterward.

“She needs a drunken night,” Astrid said as she applied a third coat of mascara to her long lashes. “Everything with Missy has been really hard on her.”

It was the opening I needed.

“How is she holding up?” I asked, feeling only slightly like I was going behind Morgan's back.

Astrid stepped back to admire her handiwork and then reached for a lip gloss. “About as well as expected. She's having a really hard time accepting Missy's death was an accident.” She traced her mouth with the gloss and then smacked her lips together. “Apparently Missy got a magic infusion the day she disappeared.”

“Yeah, right before she died,” I said without thinking the words through. My heart dropped into my gut.

Shit.

Astrid spun on her heel, eyes flashing. “How did you know that?”

Panicked, I said the first lie that popped into my head. “Um, Nana. She told me Missy died the same night she disappeared.”

Astrid narrowed her gaze. “And the infusion?”

“Yeah, Nana again. She checked with Maven Institute.”

Astrid simply stared. My palms started sweating, causing the brush in my hand to slip from my fingers.

“That's not possible,” Astrid said at last, voice cold and hard. “Maven Institute wouldn't have a record of the infusion because Missy didn't go to the hospital.”

Dammit. I knew that.

“Who gave her the infusion? Her parents were out of town.” As soon as I said it, I knew I'd misspoken again.

“Did Essie tell you that too?” Astrid crossed her arms over her chest and arched an accusatory eyebrow.

My shoulders sagged. “No. Not exactly,” I admitted.

A range of emotions played across Astrid's pretty features as realization dawned. Her arms dropped to her sides. “Have you seen Missy?”

“Maybe.” My insides squirmed. Time to fess up. “Okay, yes. I have seen and talked to her. That's how I know about the infusion and everything else.”

Astrid sat heavily in her desk chair. “Missy didn't say who gave her the infusion?”

Of all my admissions, I found it surprising she focused on this one.

“No. I guess I just assumed it was someone from the hospital.” I shifted uneasily from one foot to the other. “Do you know who it was?”

Astrid stared at me pointedly, and I felt like an idiot for not figuring it out sooner. Morgan. Morgan had shared her magic with Missy. That was the reason she was so convinced Missy's death wasn't an accident.

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