Page 126 of Pink Ink

I haven’t seen this prick since our pitiful date a week ago. I would’ve been happy if I never saw him again. Since we don’t run in the same circles, I figured it would’ve been doable.

I glance around at the deserted campus buildings that are cloaked in darkness. “What are you doing here?”

“Reyna,” Lawrence grunts, frowning down at me.

My eyes narrow on his hands when they stiffen on me right before he lets me go. My mouth dries when I catch a glimpse of his golden cuff links peeking out beneath his suit.

Bees. Tiny, unmistakable bees.

My breath rushes out, and I take a cautious step back, eyeing him up and down. He’s out of his uniform and in a cheap suit and polyester coat instead. There’s no reason for him to be on campus at this time of night. The university wouldn’t host an event well past dinnertime.

I will my face to relax and pass off as empathetic. “Hey, look. I’ve been meaning to reach out about the other night.”No, I haven’t been. “I’m…”Come on, just spit it out. “Sorry about the way things went.” The words taste like acid.

Lawrence’s smug little mouth tightens. I force a smile anyway and hold out my hand. “Let’s let bygones be bygones?”

He considers for a moment. “Sure.” He takes my offered hand, and my sights lock on his wrists again. Definitely bees.

I drop my arm, putting more distance between us.

“It was good to see you.”No, it wasn’t. “Sorry, but I really have to go.”

His annoying face scrunches up in displeasure and confusion. “Uh, sure.”

I smile sweetly at him and continue in the direction I was going, keeping my ears peeled for his footsteps. I spin back around once he sounds far enough away, and rush to the very edge of the building to peer around the corner at his receding frame.

He’s hiding something. Maddox is hiding something. My parents were hiding something. I’m going to find out what that is.

Digging my nails into my palm, I creep out of the shadows and keep close to the buildings, following Lawrence across campus—away from the library. My heart pounds as brick and plaster walls watch me stalk through the night.

The frigid air burns my lungs with every inhale but makes me feel like I’m coming alive. The chill penetrates my bones when he turns around. For a second, Iswearhe spots me shadowing him. But he turns around and continues walking, pulling out his phone, completely unaware of my presence. I breathe a sigh of relief and put more space between us.

We’re heading into a part of campus I’ve never been to. Unease prickles the back of my neck when he slips into a side door at the very edge of the university. If memory serves, it’s the administration building that holds all the higher-ups’ offices. It’s one of the older buildings that isn’t as well kept, so it sees a lot less traffic.

The anxiety multiplies when I rush up to the door to find it unlocked. I mean, Lawrence doesn’t exactly strike me as a competent person, so I’m not surprised if he forgot.

Unless it’s to allow more people inside.

No, there could be an entirely reasonable explanation for this. Lawrence is a cop. He could be investigating something.

This late at night.

In a shitty suit.

Without backup.

I mean, I should follow him in, just to be sure.

Plus, it’s not like I haven’t been in substantially worse situations. It’s dangerous, and I’m beyond giving a shit. I’ve hit more dead ends than I can count, the two men who have any information about my father are conveniently withholding it from me, and I amso sickof being kept in the dark by everyone.

If this ends up with me in cuffs, or dead in a ditch, then it can be my father’s last act of disappointment. His life will forever be a secret, because if nothing comes from this, I’m done. I came here to find the truth about him, not pine after my serial-killing professor.

With a deep breath, I turn on my phone’s flashlight and slip into the building to attempt to retrace Lawrence’s steps… which is surprisingly easy since every door is closed except the ones I can only assume he’s gone into.

I keep turning down various hallways, padding along on the balls of my feet in case anyone is close enough to hear. Being somewhere I shouldn’t be is thrilling. It’s like taking a dip into the dark side without knowing if something will reach out and drag me under.

My feet stall at the threshold of an office room. Is that… What type of Scooby-Doo shit is this? Why is there a hidden entrance behind a bookcase?

As I ease closer, the musty air fills my lungs. I hold up my phone to shine light on the entryway that leads to a winding, uneven staircase descending into the earth. The walls are made of stone and mortar. It must have been made hundreds of years ago.