whirl around, breathing loudly. “Shit.”
“Ember, are you okay?” Cameron eyes me over and his gaze lands on my forehead. “Did you hurt yourself?”
I wipe my forehead with the sleeve of my shirt and there’s blood on it. “Ummm…” I glance behind me at the ceiling and her body is gone, but the blood is real.
“I must have scratched myself on the edge of the shelf when I was pulling the book out,” I lie.
He scans me over warily. “Are you sure you’re okay? You look like you’re going to be sick or something.”
“I’m fine.” I swallow hard and start to head back to the table.
He follows after me. “Are you planning on going to the cemetery tonight?”
“I don’t think so… I really think I might need to get some rest.”
“Alright, everyone,” Ms. Kinsley stands up from her chair and shuts her computer off. “Everyone needs to get there stuff and exit the library. I need to lock up early to go to a town meeting.”
As I gather my books and bag from the table, Cameron wipes some remaining blood from my hair with the sleeve of his shirt. “Such a shame.” He grins slyly. “I’ve been dying to get you alone again, but I guess I can wait until tomorrow.”
“About that,” I start to cancel, not wanting to add more to my cracking plate. “I think I—”
“I’ll pick you up at eight,” he cuts me off, sensing a rejection. Backing away, he runs his fingers through the locks of his blonde hair. “I promise, I’ll give you the time of your life in ways you can only dream about.” The way he says it sends a chill over my skin.
“Oh my God.” Raven comes running up to me, with her purse on her shoulder and the car key and a bottle of soda in her hand. “Did you hear?”
I shake my head, my eyes locked on Cameron as he shoves through the exit doors. “No, what?”
“Farrah Taverson’s body was found next to the lake.” Raven says as we walk out the door of the library and step onto the sidewalk. The street is eerily empty as if it’s suddenly become a ghost town. “I guess she told a few friends she was going to go looking for Laden. Some boaters found her floating in the water, and she had stab wounds and there were feathers in the pockets of her dress. They think it’s murder. And probably the same one who killed Laden and your—”
“Neither of their bodies has been found.” My heart crushes into tiny bits and pieces that stab into my stomach. “So they might not be dead.”
She gives me a look of pity. “Yeah, maybe.”
I swallow the lump in my throat. “How do you know this?”
She leans in and whispers, “I overheard this guy talking to a cop about it when I was walking into the gas station,”
What if what Raven is saying is true? How did I see the body? Could my death omens be cranking up and now I can see them without touching someone? I’m not sure—I’m not sure about anything anymore.
“What’s wrong, Em?” Raven asks, unlocking her car. “You look like you saw a ghost or something.”
Or something. “I’m fine.” I frown, opening the passenger door.
She frowns at me with doubt from over the top of the car. “Are you sure?”
I nod, ducking into the car. “Yeah, absolutely one hundred percent fine.”
“Want to know something really creepy,” Raven says, turning the keys in the ignition. “I got this really strange text from Farrah and now I’m wondering if it had something to do with this. Like maybe she was being stalked by the murderer and was starting to get scared.”
“Why would she send you a text?” I take out my cell phone and check my messages. “I didn’t know you guys were friends.”
“We talk a lot in art class.” She cranes her head and backs out of the parking spot.
I toss my cell phone into my bag. “What did the message say?”
She shoots me a haunting look. “Fear the Reaper.”
***
“Oh my God! Oh my God!” Raven bounces up and down in the middle of my bedroom, holding my hand. Her bangle bracelets jingle and her eyes are as sparkly as her glitter eyeliner. “This is so amazing. Why didn’t you tell me in the car?”
“Because I knew you’d want to bounce up and down, which is a total road hazard.” I wiggle my hand free and shake off her death. She’s been really