Chapter 12
Ellie's POV
"Think about the timing and the method," Jackson said, his eyes fixed straight ahead as if analyzing a medical case. "If that person knows you'll be performing at the anniversary and knows silver has a special effect on you, then this attack might just be the beginning. If you insist on going on stage, who knows what might happen next?"
I frowned, seriously considering this possibility for the first time. Inside me, Thalia stirred restlessly, letting out a wary growl. I'd already suspected the attack might be deliberate, but Jackson was the first to connect it to my performance in the anniversary celebration. The timing was too perfect to be coincidence—someone wanted to make sure I wouldn't be on that stage.
"You're protecting me," I said softly.
"I'm protecting everyone," Jackson replied. "Including you, and also the audience members who might be frightened if something happens to you on stage."
I fell silent, processing Jackson's words. I had to admit his reasoning made sense. If someone really knew about my silver allergy—or worse, knew I was a werewolf—then this attack could indeed be premeditated.
"Do you think... that person knows what I am?" I asked carefully, my voice barely above a whisper.
Jackson shook his head. "Not necessarily. Werewolves are rare in America nowadays; most people wouldn't jump to that conclusion. But they definitely know about your silver intolerance and want to prevent you from going on stage."
My mind raced. Not many people knew about my silver allergy besides my family and Lucas. Despite our deteriorated relationship, I couldn't imagine Lucas using this against me. Unless... Samantha somehow learned this secret from Lucas and was using it against me. The thought sent another chill through me.
"I need to find out where that silver candlestick came from," I said, standing up with sudden determination.
"We should report this to the university first, let them investigate," Jackson suggested.
"There's no time for that. The anniversary is in five days," I quickly gathered my belongings. "Thanks, Jackson. Even though I still don't like your decision to pull me from the performance, I understand your reasoning now."
I hurried toward the door as Jackson called after me: "Ellie, at least give me your contact information!"
But I was already rushing out of the dance studio. Jackson was undeniably attractive, and I could tell he was interested in me. However, since he was human yet somehow knowledgeable about werewolves, it was better to avoid forming too many connections with him. I pretended not to hear his request and quickly disappeared down the hallway.
I made my way to the campus security office and explained the situation to the officer on duty.
"I need to see the security footage from this morning around 10 AM, focusing on the third-floor corridor of the Humanities building," I said.
Security Officer Jeff frowned. "I'm sorry, Miss Green, but coincidentally that particular camera has been out of order since the day before yesterday. We're waiting for maintenance to fix it."
"Out of order? Just that one?" I couldn't believe my luck.
"Yes, only the third floor. All other floors are working fine."
This was too suspicious. I took a deep breath. "What about the silver candlestick? Is there any way to track where it came from? If we knew which classroom or office it belonged to, we might narrow down the search."
Jeff shook his head. "That's too broad a scope, miss. A decorative item like that could be from any building on campus. We can't possibly check all the security footage."
I left the security office feeling frustrated. As I slowly walked back to my dorm, I kept thinking: Who would know about my silver allergy? Who would want to prevent me from performing at the anniversary celebration? And why use this method?
When I reached my dorm, Lily immediately noticed my shoulder.
"Oh my god, Ellie, what happened?" Lily put down her phone, concern evident in her voice.
I briefly explained about being hit by a silver candlestick and the coincidence of the security camera being broken, but didn't mention my silver allergy.
"That's terrible!" Lily exclaimed. "You should report it to the police!"
"It's useless without evidence," I said wearily, sitting down on my bed.
Megan looked up from her makeup mirror. "Wait, are you talking about a three-pronged silver candlestick with vine patterns on it?"
I whipped my head around to stare at Megan, my eyes wide. "How did you know that?"
"Because I've seen it before," Megan put down her eyeliner and turned to face me fully. "And I know who it belongs to."
My heart raced as I waited for her to continue. This was the lead I needed.
"It's from the Drama Department," Megan said. "They use it in their Victorian-era plays. I helped with costume design and saw it in their prop room."
I wasn't surprised by Megan's knowledge of theater props. Despite being a computer science major like me, she was nothing like the stereotypical programmer. She had a passion for makeup and fashion that rivaled her interest in coding, and often spent her free time volunteering with the Drama Department to learn more about costume design.
"Do you know who has access to the prop room?" I asked, sitting up straighter.
"Most drama students and faculty," Megan replied, returning to her makeup. "But they've been doing inventory for the winter production, so a lot of people have been in and out of there lately."
My excitement deflated slightly. This narrowed things down, but not by much. Still, it was a start.
"Thanks, Megan. That helps," I said, mentally preparing a list of drama students I knew.
Megan finished applying her makeup and stood up. She'd created an incredibly sultry cat-woman look tonight, making her appear both clever and dangerous.
"You know, there are security cameras all over campus," she said, adjusting her outfit. "If you carefully check the footage from the Drama Building, you'd likely find something."
I sighed. "The scope is too broad. Campus Security won't authorize that kind of access."
Megan gave a mischievous smile. "Who said anything about needing their authorization?"
Lily and I exchanged confused glances.
"You two are such good students, but you don't really know how to bend the rules, do you?" Megan teased. "We just learned about finding security vulnerabilities in our last class. I didn't quite master it, but you two are the real brains here."
She playfully tapped the tip of my nose, and I felt momentarily captivated by her confidence.
I turned to Lily. "What do you think? Want to help me hack into the campus security system?"
Lily's eyes widened. "Are you kidding? Breaking school rules? Something this exciting—of course I'm in!"