Chapter 47

KATHERINE.

“You can keep them.”

I blinked at Theo in surprise. “Oh,” I muttered, wondering why. “...I didn’t blow my nose in them,” I said in case he wanted me to keep them because he thought I did that, and it was only after speaking that I realized how weird it was to say so.

Theo lifted his gaze to mine again, a small frown on his face, and I pursed my lips. Now, he thought I was a lost cause ‘and’ weird.

“Thank you,” I said in a rush and immediately walked over to a couch in the corner, sitting on it without glancing in his direction.

Neither of us spoke after that and while he kept putting stuff together, I busied myself by reading a book that I had met on the couch. It was a textbook on the history of Blackwood and since I’d resumed two weeks after the semester started and I’d never really paid attention in its class, I decided to catch up. Surprisingly, the history of Blackwood was quite interesting.

A couple of minutes later, the sound of the front door opening drew my attention and I looked up to see Keith, one of the members, walking in. He pulled the hood of his hoodie down as he nodded at me before walking over to Theo.

“Dude.”

“Keith,” Theo said before they did some kind of ‘bro handshake’.

“It’s starting up again?”

“I’m not sure yet, but I think so.”

“Have you let Faringray know?” That was the name of the lecturer teaching the history of Blackwood.

“Not yet. I’ll drop by her office after the meeting.”

‘What are they talking about?’ I lowered the textbook as I watched Keith pick up the ‘absorber’ Theo put together and turn it on. After letting it hum for a few moments, he turned it off.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Theo asked, a smile playing on his lips, and my head tilted. With just a hint of a smile, he looked radiant. What would he look like with a full-blown smile? Or laughing?

“That I still remember what you did last year. Or what you didn’t do,” Keith replied, drawing my attention back to their conversation as Theo heaved a sigh.

“I’m going to keep apologizing for that till the day I die, aren’t I?”

“Yes, you are.”

“I’m sorry.”

“You’re not forgiven.”

Theo let out a laugh. It was a deep, low sound that made warmth spread through my bones and even though I was staring right at him, I glanced at Keith to make sure that it wasn’t someone else that laughed. ‘Whoa.’

“So what am I dealing with?” Keith added while Theo tossed him a backpack.

“Esvele Belltower,” Theo answered and my brows drew together because I recognized that name.

“Ugh. Where’s she at?”

“Tegan Hall.”

It took a couple of seconds for me to remember that where I’d seen the name before was the CMES website, the day Lenore and I did a late-night reading. She was one of the ghosts that haunted the old clinic in Blackwood, and Tegan Hall was a boy’s dorm. Those two places were at least a mile apart from each other so how was she at Tegan Hall?

“...Ghosts leave their haunting place?” My eyes were round as I asked that and both boys glanced at me before returning their attention to each other.

“She didn’t read the booklet,” Theo said because of the confused look on Keith’s face.

“Oh.”

They both glanced at me again but this time they were silently judging me for not reading the booklet and I wanted to throw my hands up because ‘give me a break’. I was only in this school and this club to find my mate, I didn’t sign up for all this ghost stuff.

‘Technically, you did,’ the voice in my head whispered. ‘You know? You signed up, did the test and passed it.’

‘Damn it.’ And some ghosts are malevolent. ‘Double damn it.’ No wonder Priyanka didn’t want to join the club. Ghosts leave their haunting place and people have to catch them… ‘How often does this happen? Have malevolent spirits ever left their haunting places? Has a ghost ever killed someone? …Can ghosts kill people?’ I had a lot of questions!

“I’ll get going now,” Keith said and they did their bro handshake again before he began to head towards the door. “Should I bring her back here or take her to the clinic?”

“Bring her back.”

“What?” I squawked and Theo glanced at me.

“Read the booklets next time,” he said.

‘I’ll get right on it the moment I get back to my room,’ I thought, drawing my bottom lip between my teeth.

“Be back soon,” Keith stated and with that, he left.

Less than a minute later, Hunter came back down to the main room and a smile lit his face when his gaze landed on me. “Hey.”

“Hey.”

“Where’s golden boy?” Theo cut in snarkily and Hunter’s smile dimmed a bit as his eyes darted to him.

“He’ll be here for the meeting.”

Theo didn’t respond to that and my gaze bounced between them before Hunter headed over to me.

“You're here early,” he said as he sat next to me and I closed the textbook, dropping it on the couch.

“I wanted to get a tour of the clubhouse.”

“Oh, I can give you one.”

“I'd love one,” I replied before glancing at the stairs. The door to the room Blake had disappeared into remained firmly shut. “Is he okay?”

“Blake?”

I nodded.

“Yeah, he's just pissed at Theo.”

“What happened between them?”

“Ah…” He smiled sweetly at me. “I think it would be better if you asked Blake or Theo that.”

Embarrassment stained my cheeks at the gentle way with which he told me I was nosy. Blake would straight up call me nosy if I asked him that while Theo would most likely tell me to mind my business.

Thankfully, Hunter changed the topic the next moment. “Do you want the tour now?”

“Yes, please.”

He proceeded to show me the various rooms in the house – most of which were bedrooms and offices – but we skipped the room Blake was in and walking past the door kinda made me disappointed because I ‘wanted’ to see him.

Don't get me wrong, Hunter was amazing and I loved spending time with him. But getting time to spend with him was easy while getting time with Blake was not.

“And that's it,” Hunter said as we came to a stop, back in the main room, and I smiled at him.

“Thank you.”

“My pleasure,” he glanced at Theo who was still assembling devices on the table. “I should go help him prepare for the meeting,” he added and I nodded before he went over to him. They talked for a few seconds before Hunter went into the storage room that held most of the devices the CMES members used in the club activities, leaving me with Theo once again.

Then my gaze slid from Theo to the room Blake was in and I heaved a sigh. Hunter had said he’d be here for the meeting though, so there was a chance I might get to talk to him after it ended and I held onto that as I walked to the couch. The moment I plopped down on it, I realized I didn’t even know who I was more drawn to between Hunter and Blake, or in the words of my pack’s seer, ‘the one whom my heart aligned with’ more.

And then there was the issue of when I’d finally find out who my mate was between both boys. Was I just going to drop the other person and disregard my feelings for them?

I groaned. ‘Crap.’ This was going to be difficult.