Page 58 of The Kiss Of Death
I wanted to ask him why he had never offered me those ribbon stickers, but deep down, I knew the answer. I was the privileged princess, and he was the outsider, labeled as a freak by others. Perhaps he’d never imagined I could see him differently from everyone else. He protected me, yet he was the one in need of protection.
“It’s nothing.” I forced a smile, feeling my heart ache in my chest.
I had to do this for him. I had to solve this mystery. There must be a reason Lucie left those music scores to her son.The colors…It had to mean more. Why did she divide the score into four parts? Why four?
Music was Lucie’s language, so what if the notes represented a word? I referred to the seven letters of the musical alphabet. I continued it by adding its seven flat notes, repeating the process like a loop until the last letter.
I blinked and stared at Levi.
“What?” he growled, his fingers drumming impatiently on the table.
“It’s just that I continued the music alphabet, and it gives me:Mi?is L,Miis E,La?is V, andSi?is I, the four parts mean…” I gulped. “Levi. This is meant for you. She was trying to tell you something.”
He hummed, clearly not impressed. “What else?”
I divided the measures into a box and realized there was a pattern between the measures.
“It’s seven,” I said. “Each seven measures, we find the right order of the melody. But why seven, though?”
I started arranging the music score in its proper sequence, feeling Levi rise from his chair and circle the table to peer over my shoulder. A gulp caught in my throat. His presence looming behind me, I sensed his breath grazing my hair, as if he were inhaling its scent. I bit down on my lip, my handwriting quivering on the sheet.
“It’s done,” I whispered, hardly believing my eyes as morning approached. We’d spent the entire night on it. “But look here.”
I pointed at the sheet music I’d rewritten, letting my hair fall over my opposite shoulder to give him a clearer view. His eyes absorbed the sheet, and it took me some time to avert mine from the gray depths of his gaze and the sharp, merciless edges of his face.
“Inside some measures, it still feels incomplete.” I cleared my throat. “There are abnormal pauses, but no notes are left, no more information. It’s all here, yet still incomplete. Every thirteen measures, something is missing.”
Levi nodded, pulling himself upright. “That would be enough. You’ll play the music score for me tonight at eleven o’clock in our special spot. Don’t be late, and try to be discreet for once.”
“But I’ll have to go to class soon!” I swiveled in my chair to face him. “Then I have to study for the mission and analyze all the notes before that because this music score is still a mess, and I haven’t slept and—”
“You’ll manage,” he deadpanned.
“Easy for you to say. You’re a cyborg,” I mumbled.
“We both know you love your late-night violin sessions.” His lips turned into a thin line. “As for the other thing, you should begin with the memoirs of the youngest brother.”
He glared at the largest book of Pantheon’s origins dating back to the 18th century written by the oldest founding member of the Hungway’s family. There were four brothers and sisters: each member founded a house.
“But—”
“The eldest founding member’s book is worth nothing. Take my advice or leave it, I don’t care.”
On that note, he left.
“Check.” Cillian’s satisfied grin pissed me off.
My fingers tapped the chessboard as I studied the position of Cillian’s useless white pieces.
“Something is on your mind. It’s not like you to lose so easily,” Kay said, perched on the arm of Cillian’s chair. “Especially against Cillian.”
Kay and Cillian exchanged baffled glances before the inevitable squabble began, much like schoolboys, while my mind was cluttered with my white-haired thief. Her name was a sinister melody that had taken root in my psyche. I even reduced myself to jerking off in the shower because no women were entrancing enough to ignite a quarter of the effect she had on me. I stooped that low. And worse, I wasniceto her. I didn’t do nice.
I rose from my seat, retrieving my jacket. “Who said I’ve lost?”
“Where do you think you’re going?” Kay asked, his half-empty bottle of alcohol dangling casually in his hand. “The night is young, and I heard the Guardian girls are hosting—”
“I have other plans.” I grabbed my keys and pointed toward the door. “You two can vacate my dorm when I return. Cillian, we’ll continue this game tomorrow.”
