Page 85 of Shadowface

My phone dings, bringing me back from the inferno in my mind, and I crawl over the wet, frozen grass to answer it.

It’s Dani. And I’ve missed three calls from her.

I fumble in the dark until I’m able to swipe my fingers, my hand numb.

“Hello?” I barely recognize the voice that rasps out of me.

The numbness in my bones isn’t from the frozen water—I experienced it even before the heavens opened up on me. It’s because I can barely feel anything anymore unless I’m with him.

“Where the fuck are you?” Dani sounds composed as usual.

I rise and pull my backpack on and rub my arms. “I’m still at school,” I tell her and run my hands over the goosebumps prickling my flesh. I scarcely know what it’s like to be in my own skin, and when I take a careful step forward, it’s like my body isn’t my own. It’s like each step is controlled by someone else. He seems to control my thoughts, my movements, my soul. Every minute I don’t run to the police, his darkness takes over to the point I can almost taste it. Except the taste of his darkness is so fucking sweet.

“Well, get home. We’re going out. It’s Friday night, and we’ve been invited to a party.”

I check the time and frown. Somehow, it’s already seven PM, but I swear, when he called me earlier, it was only six PM. I’m not sure where the last hour has gone. The campus is empty, eerily quiet, like the cocoon that is my mind. I must have sat here in a trance for longer than I thought.

“Fine,” I mutter as my teeth chatter. I don’t have the energy to argue.

“Do you need a ride?” she asks.

I scan the dark, empty campus, half-expecting to see a burlap mask. The lights in the windows are all twinkled out. The whispers of the fallen, the ghosts of this town, tickle my ear.

“No. I’ll walk. Give me twenty minutes, and I’ll be home.”

“Okay. Suit yourself. Be careful. Love you, bye.”

I walk through the stone pathway to the tree-lined road that leads to town. The wind is still howling from the passing storm, and in the distance, the moon lights up the sky.

“Wait…Dani?” I ask her before she hangs up.

“Yeah, what’s up?”

“What party are we going to?”

“Not sure. A mysterious invitation showed up on our doorstep. And before you say anything about it, yes, we’re going. I suspect it’s Xander’s house, and I’m desperate to see if it was him at the rave dancing with me. Don’t tell anyone, but I have a feeling it’s them.”

My stomach twists. “Who?”

Dani sighs. “The Order, Summer. I think they are connected to all of it. I have a strong suspicion they are involved in my father’s conviction.”

I trip on a rock and steady myself. “Why do you think that?”

“Just a gut feeling, but I need to get into that house to be sure.”

CHAPTER

TWENTY-FIVE

SUMMER

Dani and Misty are both wearing loose sweats when I get home, looking fresh as daisies. They are sitting and drinking wine at the kitchen island, their hair and makeup done to the nines.

Dani’s eyes widen when she sees me walk in like a drowned rat. I did my best to wipe the mud off my face, but I’m sure it’s still caked on. “Summer? What the fuck?”

Guess not…

I wipe my hands over matted hair, as if that would make me look any better. “I fell asleep on the lawn at school, then got caught in the rain. It’s not a big deal.”