Page 18 of Unbinding the Demon
“Where in God’s name have you been!?” Oliver stormed out of the kitchen, waving a half-eaten bowl of cereal in his hand. “Did you really think it was a good idea to go off with some random guy and not tell anyone where you’d be or who you were with!?” His wavy brown hair tumbled in disarray to the nape of his neck. He and William were wearing their matching light pink pajama shirts, which had“Slut for the Sub”written in bold cursive letters and a picture of a sub sandwich on them.
My cheeks reddened with embarrassment. I knew there was no good way to explain what happened last night or being in Ashton’s shirt and boxers other than having slept with him. “Look, I’m sorry. I had a lot to drink and didn’t really think it through.” I bit my lower lip as a wave of nervousness washed over me. It wasn’t technically a lie, but I still felt terrible about being dishonest with my friends. “I didn’t mean to worry you guys.”
Oliver’s expression softened. “Well, just please don’t let it happen again. I don’t know if you’ve heard, but—”
Oliver was interrupted as Lacey burst out of her room. “Oh, thank goodness you’re home!” she exclaimed in relief while rushing down the hall. I stumbled back and laughed as she bombarded me with a big, suffocating hug. “I’ve been calling and texting you all morning!”
Wait, where did my phone go?
“Oh gosh, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to worry you. I think I must have lost my phone at the party.” I tucked a lock of hair behind my ear while trying to recall what happened to it. It had probably gotten lost during all of my drunken struggles with Ashton.
“It’s okay. I’m just glad that you got home safely. William told me you were off with some unknown and apparently rather kinky guy. And I don’t know if you’ve heard, but there was a murder last night.” Worry filled her big brown eyes, and her voice was laced with fear.
“Oh... a-a murder, you say?” My body froze up, and my widened eyes shifted around anxiously.
Oh shit! Oh shit!
“Yeah, you know Allison Reynolds? Apparently, she was found in the woods with her chest cut open and her heart removed,” Oliver stated grimly.
A glorious wave of relief crashed over me. However, it didn’t last long and was quickly followed by a sickening sense of dread that made my stomach churn. “What!? That’s horrifying!” Shock filled my voice and eyes. I reached down to pick up Pepper Paws again, since he was rubbing against my legs and meowing. “What kind of sicko does that to someone?”
“I know, right? Police think it might be a serial killer,” Lacey whispered while shifting her eyes back and forth in worry. “She’s the second one who’s been killed in such a way within the past month.”
“Which is why we were so freaked out when you weren’t here this morning and no one could reach you!” Oliver scowled, pinning me with his blue stare. “I mean, for fuck’s sake, what if you had been kidnapped by a murderer last night!?” He then glanced out the window. “Luckily, that guy had the decency to bring you home in one piece, but still.”
After a few more minutes of Oliver’s berating and learning about the murder, I was feeling pretty freaked out by everything. Ashton suddenly didn’t seem so bad considering that Jack the fucking Ripper was now on the loose. I eventually managed to slip away and scurry up to my bedroom after an uncomfortable interrogation about my wild and crazy “sex-filled” night with a handsome stranger. Despite the whole serial killer scare, they seemed happy that I had let loose a bit and had some fun. Especially Lacey, which made me a little sad.
Am I really so much of a boring recluse that everyone’s shocked by the idea of me having fun?
With a sigh, I slipped out of Ashton’s clothes and put on a boring dark blue dress to match my gloomy mood. I folded the shirt and then grabbed the boxers to do the same. I didn’t know what I should do with them. Sneak over to his place in the dead of night while wearing a ski mask and slide them into his mailbox? Maybe?
I held the large pair of black undergarments in front of my face. The size of them reminded me of what a massive, hunky, muscled-up man he was. I wondered if they would have the same fire and spice scent as the shirt. My hands seemed to move on their own as I brought the crotch of the material up to my nose. I inhaled, and the scent was so deliciously...masculine.
Despite the liquid heat pooling between my legs, I suddenly felt spooked, as if I wasn’t alone again. My body stiffened, and I glanced around the room like a paranoid person. “Hello?” I warily called out. I looked under my bed, in the closet, behind the curtains. Hell, I even checked under the rug...andnothing. It felt like I was losing my goddamn mind.
The numbers on the large wall clock shifted from 4:33 to 4:34. I inwardly groaned, knowing that I was stuck in my psychology class for another agonizing twenty-six minutes. Paying attention to the monotonous utterance of my professor, Mrs. Esposito, was proving to be quite the struggle. My gaze kept shifting to the empty seat a few rows in front of me, which had belonged to Allison Reynolds.
Thinking about how her heart had been carved from her chest just last night made me shiver with unease. What upset me further was the fact that no one here seemed to care. The class continued on like nothing even happened. There hadn’t even been a mention of her. It was like...poof... she never even existed at all.
Luckily, Amelia’s seat was right next to mine. She was dead tired and hungover from the party. Her straight, shoulder-length red hair was pulled back in a sloppy high ponytail. The dark purple lipstick she had on was faded and cracking. Black eyeliner was smudged all willy-nilly around her blue-gray eyes, blending with her dark circles to make her look like a disheveled Ricky the Raccoon on drugs. Looking at her overall decrepit state had me considering how weird it was that I hadn’t woken up in just as terrible of a condition.
I cleared my throat to get her attention. She slowly pried her exhausted eyes away from the wall to look at me. “I can’t stop thinking about Allison Reynolds,” I whispered, still pretending to pay attention to the class.
“Yeah, it’s freaky, right? I mean, if it is a serial killer, who knows who will be next,” Amelia whispered back as she chewed her gum.
“I’ve heard that it takes a few bodies turning up before detectives can track down the perpetrator.” I tried to seem smart and tough, and not as worried as I felt. I had always thought that if a situation like that ever arose, I would be able to go all Rambo on their ass and victoriously fight the perp off. But after last night, I was seriously doubting my strength against a homicidal maniac.
“I’ve heard that too. Do you—”
Amelia was prevented from finishing her sentence as an older, very flustered man burst through the door and rushed over to Mrs. Esposito. He began telling her something that seemed urgent. It looked like he was trying to stay cool, but he was totally freaking out. Judging by the expression on their faces, whatever they were talking about wasn’t good at all. A sickening feeling sank in my gut while we sat there, anticipating what it could be.
“Attention class, everyone is to go home! There has been a terrible accident on campus, and all classes are canceled for the rest of the night,” Mrs. Esposito announced, her hands trembling. Her brown eyes were wide, as though she were haunted by the news she’d just received.
The entire class gathered their things while murmuring in speculation about what could have happened. There was a heavy atmosphere of apprehension hovering throughout the room, silencing even the most talkative students. I glanced at Amelia, who was wide-eyed while collecting her things. After grabbing my stuff, we exited the building without saying a word.
The bright sun blinded my eyes as we stepped out. Strong winds whistled through the trees and blew my hair all around my face. I stepped over one of the few remaining puddles that lingered on the sidewalk. Flashing lights and sirens came from emergency vehicles that surrounded the main study hall across the street from us. It looked like something serious was going down.
“Let’s see if we can get close enough to check out what happened,” Amelia nudged me while eyeing an ambulance.
