Page 74 of Faerie Marked

Acid reflux burned my throat. I didn’t want to go down that particular dark path.

The entire issue was wrapped up tightly in shifters and we both knew it. The man who’d chased me the other night had had shifter speed. The one who bit me tonight was a werewolf. Whatever was happening to the rest of the first-year top students, it stank of shifters.

At least Melia shared my opinion.

I’d thought I was the only half-shifter at the school, an assumption that had turned around and bitten me in the ass. Or rather thigh. Close enough. Nurse Julie had the same issues I did. And now, sitting and thinking about it, I was pretty sure my divination teacher had a secret to hide as well. She’d felt like part of my pack. I didn’t have the sensation about anyone else.

There was always Detective Wilson…

“Do you think it could be another student?” Melia mused. She squeezed my hand almost to the point of pain.

I straightened. I’d initially thought it to be another student doing the killing, then dismissed the theory when I became the target, figuring it was personal to me only, what with Uncle Will and Kendrick Grimaldi and all that going on. “How do you figure?” I asked.

“It makes sense if it’s another student. Why target the top students if you have no skin in the game? I mean, I’m sure your fated mate has people looking out for you, but there’s no reason for whoever attacked you to have killed the other boy and girl. Unless there aretwokillers, which means it’s someone who has more to lose. Someone who is hiding like you are.”

I shivered. “It does make sense. Why didn’t I think of it before?”

“Because you’re too close to the heart of it. This ispersonalfor you. I’m guessing it’s personal to someone else as well. We just have to figure out who and find a way to stop them before they kill again. Because you’re still alive and they probably aren’t too happy about it.”

I couldn’t help the dry chuckle. She wantedusto stop this? Once upon a time, if someone had suggested I’d one day play a key part in catching a murderer, I would have laughed in their face because it sounded ludicrous.

After everything… “No, it’s definitely not going to go over well with them to know they failed,” I muttered.

I thought about Detective Wilson’s card in my pocket. Melia was right; we needed outside help. There was no way we could handle this alone. The pack had mighty muscle behind it.Anypack, not just the one I’d belonged to. Did I chance bringing in someone who might rat me out to my family?

Another rock and hard place moment.

“Will you lend me your phone?” I asked Melia before I had time to change my mind. “I need to make a call.”

She looked surprised but the look faded quickly as she tilted her head. “At this hour?”

“He’ll be up. Trust me.”

I watched her dig into her back pocket and punch in the code to unlock the screen before handing me the sleek black cell. It was a simple matter to type in the detective’s number from the card.

As I had suspected, he was awake.

His brusque voice answered the call after three rings. “This is Wilson.”

“Detective Wilson, this is Tavi Alderidge. I need your help.”

I kept the details to a minimum, describing the attack and telling him of my suspicions. The scratch of a pencil sounded in the background as Wilson took notes.

“Don’t do anything rash. Hide until morning and don’t let anyone see you. I’ll meet you at the gates at sunrise. Do you understand me, Miss Alderidge? Your life is in danger if what you say is true.”

“It’s true,” I assured him. “I’ll be there.”

“Good.”

He hung up with a decisive click and I stared at the screen for a moment before ending the call on my end.

“There you go,” Melia said, having overheard everything. Her brown eyes searched mine. “Think you can make it until the morning?”

“I hate to ask you this. You’ve already been so helpful. Do you think I could stay in your room?”

Instead of answering, she grabbed me in a hug, and I didn’t have the heart to tell her the gesture hurt my broken arm.

“Girl, you don’t even need to ask. Come on. Let’s get a little sleep while we still can.”

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