Page 8 of The Cursed Fae

“Sorry I deserted you,” she said as we made our way to the dining hall.

“It's okay. Really, I understand,” I assured her.

The cafeteria was subdued when we entered. There were a lot of shaking shoulders and sniffling noses. Watery eyes and curious stares followed Morgan and me as we loaded our trays with lasagna and salad neither of us was likely to eat.

Morgan looked like she wanted to be anywhere else. “It's a small school. The death of a student affects everyone.”

“Right. Of course it does,” I said.

We joined a round table of three other girls near the windows. Morgan made introductions with a forced cheerfulness that was painful to watch. One of the other girls was Astrid, Morgan's roommate. Then there were Fern and Belle, also roommates.

“Helluva first day,” Astrid said to me.

“Yeah,” I agreed. “Not one of the best.”

Tears pooled in Morgan's dark eyes. Chair legs screeched as she pushed away from the table.

“Excuse me,” she muttered and turned to flee the cafeteria, bumping into Laz as she left.

“Should we—” I started.

Astrid cut me off. “I've got it.”

Fern waited until the other girl reached the doors before turning to me. “Do you know how Missy died?”

I blinked and offered an awkward laugh. “I didn't even know her—how would I know what happened to her?”

“Right, but Essie Sable is your great-grandmother,” Fern said, speaking in a tone laced with annoyance. “She is the High Elder. The Gemini Council was on campus all morning meeting with Chancellor Keene and the other professors.”

I knew our family was Gemini Fae—whatever that meant—and I'd heard something about a council in passing. High Elder wasn't a familiar term, but I wasn't about to show my ignorance in front of Fern and Belle.

“Did you talk to Essie?” Fern pressed. “Does the council know how Missy died?”

“I didn't ask.” I made a point of stuffing a large bite of salad into my mouth.

The conversation was veering into uncomfortable territory. Missy's cause of death wasn't school gossip. No way I was repeating something Nana told me in confidence.

Belle shot Fern a warning look and then speared a crouton. For several minutes neither of them spoke, both feigning interest in their dinners. My eyes wandered the cafeteria. Laz sat at one of the long tables surrounded by a crowd of people with the same gossip hungry look in their eyes as Fern. Archer stood toward the back, arms crossed as he listened to the others prompt Laz for news from his father about Missy. He saw me watching him and gave a nod of acknowledgment.

“I hear you're living with Tina,” Belle said when the silence at our table stretched past the point of awkward. “Have you met her yet?”

“Not really,” I replied.

“Are you nervous?” Fern had a wicked gleam in her eye.

I frowned. “About living with Tina? Not at all. Should I be?”

While I wasn't looking forward to rooming with Tina, nervous seemed dramatic.

“You couldn't pay me to sleep in a dead girl's bed,” Fern said.

My jaw dropped open like a real-life cartoon character. I was living in Missy's room. Sleeping in her bed. And no one had thought to mention it until now. What the hell.

“Oh, you didn't know.” Belle wrinkled her nose. “I figured your mom would've told you.”

My tongue stuck to the roof of my mouth, making it hard to form coherent words. “Me too.”

Morgan and Astrid didn't return to the cafeteria. Although I considered excusing myself many times to get away from their pointed questions, the thought of returning to my dorm room held less appeal than their company. Even after the duo left, I lingered at the table. Taking out my phone, I tapped aimlessly so I didn't look like a complete loser sitting alone.

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