Page 6 of Casper
“Sure you did.” Athena winked, like they shared some saucy secret. “Next time you want to sneak off for a quickie, give us a heads up. You could’ve texted so we could move onto the next haunted house. We’ve been waiting for you guys.”
Stray caught my eye, subtly raising a brow. I gave a small head shake. Once we had a few minutes alone, I’d fill him in on what happened. If I started signing now, the girls would wonder what we were talking about.
Thankfully, Auryn appeared then, saving us from further teasing. He strolled up, hands shoved into the pockets of his Squid Game jumpsuit. Platinum hair like a beacon. “Have you guys seen Dom? The fucker ditched me. I think he might be tailing Noah through the park.”
I rolled my eyes. That would be just like Dom. Noah Cunningham and his crew had gone over and above to screw with us and our business. Then they paid the price. Even though I felt certain they wouldn’t bother us again, Dominik had developed this strange obsession. He was constantly checking up on Noah, convinced that he was always plotting against us.
“Haven’t seen him,” Rebel confirmed. “He’ll turn up.”
“Let’s keep moving. We have two more haunted houses. I hope they’re better than the last one. It wasn’t scary at all.” Athena looped her arm through Luna’s, dragging her along as she headed toward the next house.
Hanging behind, I fell into step with Auryn, watching Luna get farther away. If she knew what was good for all of us, she would keep her mouth shut about what she’d seen. I had no choice but to trust her.
CHAPTER FOUR
LUNA
“Did you hook up with that hottie?” Athena loudly whispered into my ear. “Don’t hold out on me, girl.”
Ripley leaned in on my other side to catch my response. The two of them had dragged me away from the others so they could get the juicy details. Unfortunately, I had no juicy details. Not unless murder and chaos counted.
“No, we really didn’t hook up,” I insisted. “Like I said, we went to find the restrooms. That’s all.”
Athena studied me closely, her expression skeptical. “Seriously? That’s disappointing. Casper totally wants you. It’s so obvious every time he looks at you.”
“He does not. Stop talking about it. I don’t need him to hear you.” I risked a glance back over my shoulder to find Casper and the others strolling along several feet behind us.
Even though I denied her claim, there had been a moment in the washroom when he looked at me with this dark hunger in his green eyes. I got the feeling he was thinking about kissing me but decided against it. Probably afraid I would scream bloody murder. I might have.
When he tied my hands with his belt, I’d been sure he was going to choke the life out of me and leave me for dead in therestroom. That would be a solid way to get rid of the witness. I told him what he wanted to hear. I wouldn’t say a word to anyone. Even though my instinct told me to call the cops and wipe my hands of this whole mess, I knew that I had to keep Casper’s secret.
If I ratted him out, the authorities wouldn’t only look at Casper. They would look at all of the Kings. Two of my best friends were involved with those guys. I wouldn’t be able to live with myself if they all went down because of me and everyone’s lives were ruined.
Besides, it wasn’t as if Casper had killed an innocent man. That guy had threatened me. He was going to hurt me. Casper saved me. Even though I’d seen something dark and disturbed lurking in his eyes, he was the good guy here.
That’s what I kept telling myself as we walked through the park to the next haunted house. All I wanted was to go home and curl up in my bed in my nice safe, quiet dorm room. The girls would never let me leave without an explanation. There was nothing I could tell them that would convince them I needed to go home. We were all supposed to party at the graveyard after this anyway. I had no choice but to stick it out.
“Do you think he’s that silent when he’s fucking?” Athena continued, a mischievous smile on her face. “Find out. Let us know.”
My jaw dropped. “I’m going to pretend you didn’t say that.”
I so did not need such thoughts in my head. Casper and I were much too different. He wasn’t my type at all. Not that I really had a type. I’d dated all kinds of guys, preferring personality over anything else. Unfortunately, a lot of the guys at WU had a shit personality.
We reached the next house, and this time I made sure to enter with Athena and Ripley. Keeping my distance from Casperfelt like the safest move. I didn’t think it was a good idea for us to hang out anymore.
This haunted house was as scary as the last. Maybe even scarier. It had no effect on me though. After what I’d seen, the costumed character actors did little to frighten me.
I kept seeing it over and over again in my mind. The man’s grotesque mask. Casper grabbing him. The two of them struggling for the knife. Then the brutal moment Casper stabbed the blade into his throat. The blood spilling. It was a horror movie come to life. Nothing here compared to that.
I was so immersed in the horrible memory that I didn’t see the plastic sword someone had dropped. In the darkness it blended in with the uneven wooden floor. My foot landed on the sword. It rolled beneath me, tossing me backwards. I flung my arms out, bracing for the fall.
Strong arms went around me, stopping me before I hit the ground. Casper’s familiar aroma engulfed me. His hard body pressed against me as he helped me to stand upright.
I jerked out of his grasp and spun around to face him. He offered me a small smile and a head tilt before stepping back. The sudden absence of his warmth left me cold.
“Thanks.” I kicked the sword aside. “Someone must’ve dropped that.”
Feeling awkward, I quickly put distance between us, hurrying to catch up with the girls. I needed to stay away from Casper. He was bad news in a gorgeous as hell package. I didn’t need that kind of temptation in my life, especially if what Athena said was true. Had he been looking at me?
