They Came In Hoodies

Chapter 32: So I Could Suffer

Song for the start of the chapter!

Grayson POV

I turned another page of the book on my lap and frowned at its content. Every book I picked up held no useful information in them. Frustration and despair filled me like an empty grave. I was trying to find answers but was falling short and as my eyes glanced at Stella, who looked clammy in Else's bed; I knew I was running out of time.

All the books I thought would have answers came up with empty pages or missing information. It was as if they were trying to cover up everything they could. I knew Else lied to me, but even the books in the library seemed to lie to me. They just wanted to tell us what they wanted to, controlled and simple.

I ran my hands through my hair and let out a heavy sigh as I tried to control my anger and panic. My mind raced with what to do. Who would tell me the truth? Who would be willing to help me out in order to let the school burn? My father was the only person that came to my mind. Maybe this was why he had Stella come. He wanted to show how there were answers, but the school and their authorities covered up answers. I looked at Stella again as I started to realize my father's motives.

Stella met my eyes and forced a smile in an attempt to ease my mind, but I could see pain in her eyes. "Find anything?" she asked with hope.

I forced a smile back at her. There was no hope because Churchwell removed all of it for reasons I didn't understand. Churchwell didn't want me to heal her of the poison, but why? "I think I have a lead."

"That's exciting," she said as she snuggled into the bed, pulling the covers around her shoulders as if that information was enough for her to relax.

I stood up from the bed and slipped on my shoes. "I'll be back, I promise," I said to Stella as she closed her eyes.

"I'll just take a small nap. I'll continue to look when you come back."

I nodded as I looked at the Darkling scratch which had turned her whole shoulder black and was spreading down her arm. The frown lingered as I left the room, knowing I was running out of time. The scratch was spreading quicker than I thought, and I was trying to talk to my father on a belief that he had answers. I didn't even know this for a fact, but if he didn't, that meant I chased him down for nothing.

By now, I knew the guards changed almost every hour and as I checked the time; I knew they should switch again soon. As the clock rang, signaling the top of the hour, I walked to the basement door to see it unguarded for a second.

Wasting no time, I grabbed the closest small item on a passing shelf, which happened to be an apple. Calmly, I took a bite out of it, then tossed it in the air, knowing what to do next with it. Without even thinking further about the topic, I opened the door to the basement and threw the small apple through the door. As it hit the basement stone floor, it caught on fire, showing that the spell was tripped.

The guards would come soon and with that thought in mind, I walked into the basement and shut the door behind me. I took the basement stairs two at a time, not wanting to waste a single moment. As I got to the bottom, I went into the first door and opened it to see my father in the same cage as he was the day before.

He stood up from the ground and brushed himself off. His calm demeanor set me on edge even more. "How's Stella?" he smirked as I walked closer to him.

Anger flared up within me, making me realize how much I hated him. We were dealing with life or death and he smirked at me as if this was nothing. He wanted her here; he wanted her to be attacked and now he wanted me to watch her die, for what? For me to loath him? "How dare you talk about her."