Page 13 of Starry with a Chance of Nightshade

Aunt Rachael had walked away from a family fortune and refused help from them at every turn, wanting to live life on her own terms. So much so that she’d even gone as far as to legally change our last name to Franks.

I’d been little when we’d moved away from the big house and drove for what felt like an eternity before we unloaded the few boxes of items that had fit in the car into a tiny home in the middle of nowhere. My cousin, Demi, had only just started to crawl when we’d been forced to uproot and try to start over again elsewhere. The pattern continued for years. Us moving, our past following, and us moving again.

My four years in Grimm Cove had marked my longest stay anywhere since before my father had decided to really, truly embrace the Frankenstein family legacy. It also was the longest I’d ever gone with the sins of my father not coming back to haunt me. I wanted to believe it would stay that way. That I could spend the rest of my days in Grimm Cove and live a normal life, but deep down I knew better.

Nothing lasted forever, especially not happiness.

For now, I’d continue pretending that everything was normal, and that I could have a life. I had my sights set on starting on my master’s degree, and to make that happen, I needed to increase my efforts to find roommates to fill the opening spots.

I had high hopes my flyers that were posted all over campus, announcing rooms for rent for dirt cheap, would yield some takers. There were two potential prospects who were supposed to stop by tonight to see the place and for me to interview them. Beyond that, there hadn’t been much in the way of interest.

Stevie, one of my roommates, had suggested I remove the picture of the house that I’d included in the flyers. She liked to point out that the house could be used to stage a horror movie or a haunted house attraction. She wasn’t wrong. We’d gone so far as to host a Halloween party last year. We’d charged admission and made enough to cover our minimal living expenses and also donate to the local animal shelter.

I sighed. She was probably right about taking the photo off the flyers though.

The house had a certain “dark charm” and was located ideally, only two blocks from campus, The school had recently decided to undergo a rebranding and was now a full-fledged university, rather than a college. The town was growing at a fairly steady pace. I wasn’t exactly sure what the difference between a college and a university was, but apparently it was celebration-worthy, as noted by all the banners and signs around campus.

It also meant I’d been able to grab a decent amount of apparel with “college” written on it for next to nothing. They’d become staples in my wardrobe. I was in one now. It was too big for me, but comfy. I had the lower portion tied just above my belly button. My shorts had started as sweatpants with the old labeling of the school, but they’d fallen victim to my monthly hair dyeing sessions.

Reaching up, I touched the back of my head, running my hands over my pixie cut. I kept the back close cut, but the top was slightly longer, with varied, choppy layers hanging down to my eyebrows. I’d had the same hairstyle for the whole of my college career, though I had gone from my normal dark hair color to a bright purple at the end of my junior year. It stuck. But upkeep was messy. Beyond the monthly haircuts, which I got for cheap at the local cosmetology school by letting students do the cutting, and monthly dye touch-ups, it was a no-muss style. Wash and go. Just the way I liked it.

My aunt hadn’t seen me since I’d gone purple since I’d not gone home over the summer. She’d only laugh. There would be no judgment. Aunt Rachael was good about that. She’d spent the majority of her life being judged by others because of her last name. She didn’t make a habit of doing it to others. She’d also gotten very used to my independent personality. I was the type of person who marched to her own beat and was perfectly happy doing so. It took me a while to warm to new people, and I liked having alone time. That was hard to come by in a house full of girls.

None of my roommates knew the truth of my childhood or the family secrets that were best left unsaid. I’d managed to keep my past separate from my current life for nearly four full years and had no intention of ever letting the two merge. I wasn’t the only one of us who had been vague about her life before university.

All of us were to some extent.

Krissy had come up with a “fun” way to spend the last weekend before classes ended. I didn’t exactly find what she’d planned to be fun. In fact, I found it to be troubling, especially when I’d seen the extremes she was taking.

Mina, her twin Willa, and I had voted on watching movies and pigging out on pizza and popcorn. We’d been outvoted. Mina had done the smart thing and made herself scarce and headed to class to get some lab time in when Krissy had come in with Emily close at her heels, each carrying bags of items they’d purchased to complete their night of supposed fun.

Jessica had retreated to her room the minute she spotted what Krissy and Emily had brought home.

Also smart.

I was starting to think I should have done the same.

Currently, white candles formed a circle around Krissy on the floor at the entrance area to the dining room. Not only was what she had planned something that could backfire with ease, she was basically planted in a spot that would leave all of us having to hop over her. There were better places to play what she kept terming a game. Like nowhere near me.

Before me on the table was an array of works by Edgar Allan Poe. They were spread open as I went over the accompanying text from one of my courses. The class was dedicated to Poe and the only final I was currently worried about. The professor was big into trick questions, so I didn’t want to leave anything to chance. I’d been cramming for the final all day and evening with the hope I could graduate with honors.

I leaned back in the dining chair, rocking on two feet, and debated on getting up to make myself a snack. I was a bit concerned to leave my roommates unsupervised at the moment, so I remained in place, mostly out of fear they’d open a revolving door to Hell, and we’d become a late-night treat for a legion of demons.

Sharing the table with my study material was the remainder of the candles and various herbs and crystals Krissy and Emily had bought. There was an old book Krissy had gotten from the library room of the house. A spot we tended to avoid because it was full of dust, spiderwebs, and smelled like one of those antiques shops that never had anyone shopping there and was crammed to the gills.

The contents of the table all seemed harmless enough, but in the wrong hands, could be dangerous.

Deadly even.

Emily’s attention span was virtually nonexistent, so I was a bit shocked she’d managed to stay put as long as she had. That being said, she wasn’t on the floor next to Krissy. She was sitting in a chair next to me at the table, watching as Krissy did all the setup work.

ChapterFive

Astria

As I watchedKrissy finish placing white candles around her, I found myself shaking my head slightly, my gaze sliding to the basement door. A sinking feeling filled my gut. “For real. This is not a great idea. Let’s do something else. Please.”

“Astria, stop being a party pooper,” said Krissy as she lifted a box of matches and glanced at me. “Don’t be a scaredy-cat.”

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