Page 218 of Sigils & Spells

“Or he was guilty of murder and thought it had been in his mind,” Ravyn said.

The dean shrugged. “It’s all speculation from there, but the second tragedy forced the family to sell the island and move far, far away. There’s a reason we ask students not to go joyriding at night.”

“To prevent encountering ghosts?” Ravyn asked.

“That part of the island is dangerous at night, not because of ghosts.” Dean Caelan stood up, brushing off the thighs of her fancy suit as though sitting had caused her to get grimy. “I am not sure if you two are messing with me, pretending not to know the history of that section of road, or if you know something you may need to report…”

Daniel sighed. “We were driving that night, and saw a woman.” He ignored the way Ravyn’s hair whipped around as she turned to look at him, probably trying to prevent him from saying more. But he had to tell someone. Maybe the dean could make sense of it. “In white.”

The woman’s cool green eyes seemed to nearly shimmer in the fluorescent light for a moment before she assessed Ravyn as well. “I don’t want to know what you two were out there doing, but can you describe this woman?”

“Dark hair, pale skin, white dress. Night gown, possibly.” Ravyn stared down at her hands. “I asked Daniel not to stop. I thought she was creepy, but he thought she might need help.”

“And still you didn’t stop?” the dean asked. She looked back and forth between them. “Why not?” It was neither an accusation or reprimand. Her expression and tone stayed neutral, likely a talent honed from dealing with students and faculty issues.

“Another car passed us and stopped.”

She nodded, understanding. “Mr. Richardson?”

“Maybe,” Daniel said. “We didn’t see the driver. He wasn’t driving erratically, and he came to a stop, so we kept going. It was only after we saw the emails sent out that I realized it was probably him we saw that night.”

“Did you make a report to the police or campus security?”

They both shook their heads and the dean sighed, dramatically. “I understand why you didn’t, but next time you witness something that results in disaster, report it.I’mgoing to have to report this, which I am sure you understand.” To this they both nodded. “Good. Now, away with you. I have work to do.”

They quickly gathered their belongings, and he rushed ahead to hold the door for Ravyn at the top of the stairs.

“One more thing,” Dean Caelan said, as they were exiting. “There’s an ancient prophecy that when death omens gather, catastrophe is sure to follow. Pray we don’t notice as much as a large black bird atop the school chapel, facing a dorm building. One unfortunate accident is too many for anyone to cope with while away at school, don’t you agree?”

Daniel didn’t know what to make of that odd statement. He did, however, note the way Ravyn’s hands shook when she told him goodbye. She’d tried to hide it by crossing her arms, but the dean’s statement had meant something to her.

But what?

CHAPTER7

Three weeks had passedsince the accident. Most students had forgotten it already, but not Ravyn. It was all she ever thought about. She hadn’t told her family, hoping it didn’t make the news and they found out. So far there hadn’t been any angry calls or emails begging for her to come home. Aoibhe suspected something was amiss but was far too polite to call her out on it.

The two of them had decided to walk to the cafeteria for dinner, heading through the bottom floor of the dorm they were in when she came to a halt. There had always been a display case near the front doors, but Ravyn really never paid it much attention, assuming it was a bunch of school photos and trophies, and there were those things, yes. However, in the middle of it was a large plaque, and the text had caught her attention.

Kasper House

Est. 1878

This historic building was the home of the Kasper Family over several generations for nearly 125 years before being sold to a friend of the family who donated it to the state of Maine in hopes of turning it into a college. The original rooms and inner structure have been renovated by request of the family to become student dormitories.

There were six dormitory buildings.This one was the original house where the Kaspers had lived. Amelia had lived here. A shiver coursed through her. The dean’s story had been on her mind since that day in class. She’d told Aoibhe about it, and what Daniel and she had seen that night. Though Aoibhe had been intrigued, the idea of ghosts didn’t seem to spook her in any way. She’d simply said, “Oh,” and carried on with her homework.

“Have you been noticing a lot of moths in the building?”

Ravyn spun around. “What?”

“Moths.” Aoibhe curled her hands at her sides and flapped her elbows like wings. “Wee little pests.”

Laughing, she shook her head. “Not particularly. Why?”

Her friend shrugged and joined her as they exited into the waning sunlight. “I’ve been seeing them all over the place. Starting to worry they’re gonna get to my sweaters and start eating them or something.”

“I’m sure they won’t get your sweaters,” Ravyn assured her while swatting a bug that flew too close to her face.

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