Page 31 of Nothing to Lose

“Oh. Oh, of course. Because why wouldn’t we?” Jesus Christ. This had better not be a shit show.

We walk shoulder to shoulder through the athletic department, crossing over to the other side of campus, where Thorne Hall sits. It’s a massive building that’s a true representation of the dark beauty of Gothic architecture, especially when aged. Towering spires crown nearly every structure, while stone gargoyles and grotesques perch high overhead, silently watching and judging the sacred ground below. Wild ivy climbs weathered brick walls, winding through the mullions and delicate tracery until it conceals the stained glass windows beneath it. Majestic white oak trees serve as sentinels across the campus, their brilliant shades of crimson, amber, and gold adding a rustic pop of color to an otherwise subdued, gray landscape.

Together we keep our chill, even though we’ve only got three hours to find all three items and get them back to the team clubhouse. As we pass through the quad, Thorne Hall directly in front of us, Corvus Cemetery sits off to the side, hidden between acres of the Corvus woods. The gates are thick iron, and not that I’ve tried myself, but the rumors are that there are no doors and there’s only one way in.

As we reach the stone steps of Thorne Hall, a chill runs down my spine, and I physically shiver. What’s more bizarre is the same thing happens to Eli.

“You sure about this?”

Eli looks at me just as two ravens land on the stone perch above our heads, their large wings flapping. “Jesus Christ. Okay, I haven’t been in this hall since freshman year, and it’s creepy as hell.”

“That’s what I’m saying!”

“We need this key, so suck it up.”

“I could say the same to you.”

Eli rolls his eyes and climbs the steps with me hot on his heels. The large door cranks open before slamming shut behind us with an echo that makes me jump, the sound almost immediately swallowed up by the vast silence of the lobby. If you can even call it that.

Oddly, there’s no one milling about. The entire place looks as though it was plucked right out of Dracula and dropped in the center of Corvus College. The air is cold, and the scent of damp stone, candles, and centuries of old dust and cobwebs hits our noses. Our footsteps echo across the black-and-white stone tiles, each one sounding louder than the last. I cringe at each step.

“The idea is to not alert anyone that we’re here,” I whisper-shout.

“Yeah, well, it seems like the building itself wanted an announcement, okay? We’re going with it. Just try to walk softer.”

Walk softer. Sure. Okay. I chance looking above us, half expecting Dracula himself to be hiding in a corner, waiting to drop down and suck our blood. I’d definitely let him suck something but would prefer to keep my blood in my veins. Instead, towering arches disappear into shadows, ribbed vaults stretching like some colossal beast glaring down from impossible heights. Sunlight filters through the stained glass windows, no longer vibrant as they once were, but ghostly, casting fractured pools of color across the floor.

The corridor stretches endlessly ahead of us, portraits lining the walls in elaborate gilded frames. Their paint has cracked with age, yet every single face appears unnervingly lifelike.

As we reach Professor Thorne’s chamber, we stop in front of the door, facing a large, black, ornate frame hanging next to it on the stone wall, a portrait of the five founders—three males and two females—looking back at us. They look almost dead, their eyes hollow, their stares blank and emotionless. Each of them is dressed in robes, standing together in front of what’s now Crimson Keep. Everyone has heard the stories about the dark magic and blood that was spilled below that building. It now serves as a residence hall, but it wasn’t always that way. That building used to be the very first. It’s where the school started. A chill skitters up my spine.

“You really want to do this?”

“Will you pull yourself together?” Eli snaps, and I slap him in the stomach with the back of my hand. We both lean close to the door, listening for any noise, any indication that someone could be inside. When we hear nothing, Eli envelopes the knob with his hand and cranks slowly, pushing it open to reveal the chamber behind it. A massively ornate and ostentatious desk sits in the center of the room, a candle flickering in the only window. The scent of burning sage is a refreshing reprieve from the stale air of the hallways,

Ominous silence fills the room, and for the first time since stepping foot in Thorne Hall, I take a deep breath. But then it’s ruined when I hear a faint noise that freezes me to my spot.

Chapter 19

Eli

“Shh. Do you hear that?” Hunter whispers. I freeze just as he latches onto my wrist, pulling me so my back is flush against his chest. We stand in silence, listening. When I don’t hear anything, I shift slightly, but Hunter keeps me pressed against him, nuzzling his face into my neck.

“Fuck, you smell good. You think there are cameras in here?”

“Are you serious?”

“Deadly. That’d be the story of a lifetime. How you got fucked, bent over the desk of the most notorious professor at the prestigious Corvus College.” Jesus. One of the many things Hunter does right is paint a picture. And this one has my dick perking right up. He slides his hand around my waist, brushing his fingertips below the waistband of my joggers. Then we hear it again, and I spin around in his arms, pushing the flat of my hand against his mouth.

I shake my head once, his eyes wide. We aren’t alone. To our right is a door, and we have no idea where it leads. I quickly scan the room, looking for anywhere that Professor Thorne may have the skeleton key, when my eyes land on an ornate box on his desk.

A low whine hits our ears, and I push out of Hunter’s arms, moving to the desk to open the box, and by pure fucking luck, find what I’m looking for. I look up at Hunter, mouthing “bingo,” and then I’m pulling it out. It’s aged bronze, with a gorgeously detailed raven on the end. Another whine through the door has me moving my ass, grabbing Hunter’s hand and dragging him out of the chamber. He slowly closes the large door behind us, and the moment it engages, we bolt.

Hunter and I race down the long corridor of Thorne Hall like our asses are on fire . . . and like we’re actually racing. With the skeleton key firmly in my grasp, Hunter and I shove and push at each other, trying to outrun the other person. We push through the large, heavy doors of the entrance at the same time, the brisk Massachusetts air filling our lungs.

“Holy shit, I can’t believe we just did that,” he says as he starts laughing.

“You told me to live a little!”