Page 46 of Casper
Casper’s offer to get rid of him replayed in my mind. All I had to do was say the word and Jace would be dead. Having that kind of power didn’t feel good or right. It felt daunting. Overwhelming.
I wasn’t that person. Even though Jace had been involved in various crimes while we were together, I’d never participated in any of it. If I told Casper to go ahead and do it, that would make me an accessory. A willing participant in a murder. I mayhave been able to overlook Casper’s crimes but I couldn’t be part of them.
Maybe I wasn’t the person I thought I was. Being with someone like Casper meant accepting what he and the other Kings did on a nightly basis. Did that make me a bad person? Was I just kidding myself here?
By the time Monday morning rolled around, I’d completed my assignment plus another that wasn’t due for a month. Sleeping had been next to impossible. Only a few hours here and there.
I wrestled my hair into a messy bun, applying a light dusting of my favorite pink eyeshadow. After a quick perusal of my clean clothes, I opted for a pair of leggings with a mermaid scale print and a purple top. A long teal cardigan kept me warm on the walk from the dorm to the school.
Sometimes I wondered how I got myself involved with these guys. To look at me one might assume I’d be hanging out with vegan hipsters, listening to boring music, and drinking gourmet coffee in a pretentious manner. That had never been me.
I may have fairy-like hippie vibes but I’d always been drawn to those who walked the darker path. Was it because my own inner darkness never got the chance to escape its cage? Perhaps the whole world was fucked up. Only some of us had learned how to hide it.
Going to class was easier now that Tony was gone. Much as I hated to think of him, I didn’t miss the creepy jerk. Once his death had been made public, the school had replaced him with a no nonsense woman who came in, taught the lesson, and left. Professional and to the point.
Last I heard, the police were investigating his disappearance. They found his burned out car in a farmer’s field but currently had no leads. Casper wasn’t the least bit concernedthat this would blow back on him. Aside from me, he had no tie to Tony, and nobody outside the three of us knew the things he said to me.
The day was more than half done when I went in search of Ripley. She was the only one who had a break at the same time as me today. We were supposed to meet in the cafeteria since it was too cold outside for the picnic tables.
I was about to round the corner to the cafeteria when Jace stepped out in front of me, blocking my path. I let out a yelp, drawing the attention of two guys passing on the other side of the hall.
“Did I scare you?” Jace grinned. “Sorry about that. You always were a little jumpy.”
“What are you doing here? I have nothing to say to you.” Clutching my bag tight, I took a step back. I didn’t want this scumbag in my personal space.
“That’s fine. I’ll do the talking.” He watched me inch away, his malicious smile growing. “Settle down, Luna. If I was here to hurt you, I wouldn’t have come to the school. There are plenty of better places for that.”
That was reassuring. My gaze frantically darted around, seeking a way out of this situation. People strolled up and down the hallway, lost in their own worlds, oblivious to us. Their presence did offer some security though. Jace couldn’t do anything with so many witnesses.
I tried not to stare at the bruises on his face. His swollen nose and black eyes. In the short time they fought, Casper had done a number on him.
“Enjoying your boyfriend’s handiwork?” Gesturing to his face, Jace nodded. “That’s good. Enjoy it while you can. I’m here to fight for you, Luna. If that means I need to kill that motherfucker so he never touches you again, so be it.”
My heart skipped a few beats. “Come on, Jace, that’s crazy. You just got out of prison. Why would you want to go right back?”
“From what I hear, the Graveyard Kings have plenty of enemies. No reason for the cops to assume it was me. I’ll make sure there’s no evidence.” He reached out to tuck a stray strand of hair that had escaped my bun behind my ear, laughing when I slapped his hand away. “Soon we’ll be together again. I can hardly wait. It’s going to be special.”
Try as I might to wipe the disgust off my face, it wasn’t happening. “How many times do I have to tell you that I don’t want to be with you anymore? We were teenagers. That was a long time ago. You need to get over it.”
Jace’s fist clenched tight. If we’d been alone, I was certain he would’ve hit me. Casting a glance around at the busy hall, he lowered his hand to his side.
“And you need to get it through your pretty little head that I’m not going anywhere without you. Your boyfriend doesn’t scare me. Once he’s out of the way, there is nothing stopping me from taking you back. Not even you.” With those parting words, Jace stormed off down the hallway.
I stared after him, feeling like the rug had been pulled out from under me. Everything had changed so fast. I didn’t know how to cope. A restraining order was out of the question. That wouldn’t do a damn thing to stop someone like Jace. I worried that my limited options were going to back me into a corner. If it was Jace or me, I would choose myself.
Pushing through the rest of the day felt like a painful challenge. My mind was everywhere except where it needed to be. After leaving my last class, I headed for the dorm, making sure to walk near a group going in the same direction. There was no sign of Jace, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t around.
Casper had been texting me. He wanted to see me tonight. I wanted to see him too. I couldn’t deal with this by myself.
A simple dinner of ramen and a protein bar still managed to sit heavily in my stomach. I washed it down with bottled water. Something stronger would’ve been nice. I had a personal rule about not drinking on weekdays. During my freshman year I’d gotten a little carried away.
Checking the time on my phone, I wondered what was keeping Casper. He said he would be here by seven. It was almost eight. Most likely some kind of Kings business.
The sudden knock at the door startled me, even though I was expecting him. I leapt off the bed, peeking through the peephole. Relieved to see Casper on the other side, I opened the door. When I saw the blood seeping between his fingers as he clutched a wound in his upper arm, I had to bite back a shriek.
“Oh my God, what happened to you?” I stepped back to allow him inside, glancing up and down the hall to make sure nobody had seen him before closing the door.
I rushed into the bathroom to wet a face cloth with cold water. He moved his hand so I could press the cloth to the wound, revealing a deep gash. Before he even signed the words, I knew the answer.
