Page 45 of Divine Oaths

“I was a teacher’s assistant for an art elective,” Kasem began. “We were in the woodshop. Some of the machines there are as old as the school itself. I didn’t see one of them turn it on. Not until it was too late. Nathan pushed me out of the way. He was the one who got caught in the machine. We thought he’d live at first. But he’d lost so much blood. He was already dead by the time the paramedics arrived. He died here. But he’s not gone. They never really are.”

He looked pained, as if he was teetering on the edge of something dark and sinister, like he was harboring a weight too heavy for one person to sustain.

“But I saw him,” I whispered. “Nathan was in the maze. And then again, in the tunnels.”

He couldn’t be dead. There had to be another explanation.

“You have psychic powers but you don’t believe in ghosts?” Kasem said. “A little ironic, don’t you think?”

I glared at him. “So you were stabbed in the alley by a ghost and your two ex-friends.”

“That’s not what I said.”

“Then explain.”

He laughed, a twisted, bitter thing. “Anyone who saves my life is bound to forfeit theirs,” Kasem said. “Nathan already died. His ghost would have been tethered to Westfield, the place where he perished—hence the hauntings in the maze and the woodshop tunnels.”

I rolled my eyes at these wild claims, but Kasem didn’t stop. “But Pete and Jay were there in the alleyway,” he said. “I found out that the police questioned them since we’d all been at the mall together, and they confessed to their part in the attack. They’re out on bail now, both of them. But they’ve been expelled from Westfield.”

“So what about the third figure?” I said. “What about the one who stabbed you?”

His lips quirked, a wry smile hardening his gaze.

“You tell me. Didn’t you say my brother was there that night?”

“The bracelet was in his car, yes. But”—I shook my head—“murder isn’t something Jojo is capable of. And he’s your brother!”

“You don’t know our relationship.”

“Oh, and you’re so close with Alaster?”

“I never said that either,” he answered.

“Alaster wants your inheritance,” I said, counting the string of evidence against his cousin on my fingers. “He told me just as much when I got here. And he has leverage with students across departments. He could have convinced your so-called friends to off you. Someone had to pay their bail, didn’t they? And seeing how well your family has kept the Saint James image squeaky-clean, I’m sure he wouldn’t have an issue covering up what really happened.”

“But you said you saw my brother that night. Alaster has too many ties to the university for him to risk planning an attack like this. But not Jojo. When my brother left here, it was understood that he was giving up his inheritance and its privileges. But despite whatever fake lifestyle he was performing while he was gone, I know my brother. He’s ambitious, and he blames me for everything he’s lost. I wouldn’t be shocked if the Board is rethinking the inheritance going to me instead of him. So, no, if the attacker was my brother, it wouldn’t be a surprise.”

“Are you saying you saw the attacker’s face?” I challenged.

“No,” he admitted. “But I recognized them. I mean, I wasn’t really conscious after getting jumped, but they were familiar—the same way when someone you know walks up behind you, you get a sense of who they are. Besides, he’s lied to you before. Why would now be any different?”

“Because that’s impossible. It would mean—” I shook my head, unable to even let the thought take root in my mind. If my powers weren’t so unreliable right now, I’d offer to look into Jojo’s past from that night, to see for myself where he’d been and how he’d ended up with the bracelet. But even if I could see a vision of that night, Kasem probably wouldn’t take my word.

Whatever had happened between the two brothers had driven a wedge so deep that even attempted murder didn’t seem unreasonable to the other.

“You’re wrong about Jojo,” I said, pushing past him. But he caught my wrist, his grip tight.

For a moment, he searched my gaze. And then understanding settled into his own.

“Maybe you’re the one who doesn’t know him,” he whispered. “Love does that, you know. It makes you see things that aren’t real, to take a lie for the truth even if the answer is right in front of you.”

I looked away, hiding the defeat brimming in my eyes.

“I’m sorry about what happened to your powers and that I got you involved in any of this. But it’s like your Jojo said: Don’t make our problems your own. Because you’ll regret it.”

Shrouded by his tall frame, and under the burn of his gaze, I craned toward him, meeting the intensity of his stare with my own. But he released his hold on me and made for the exit.

The conversation was over to him. But it wasn’t for me.