The principal was already down The Archives when we arrived. Yuuzel was already waiting for me at the front gates that morning. Because of the sudden turn of events, he wasn’t taking any chances at all, so it seems.
Joseff was also off his guard duties for Mr de Lima. Our 'de', Ms Claire de Lapaz was also safe and was just seen entering the teacher's lounge that morning.
Apparently, the creature didn't strike last night. So my hunch was right. It had probably known that we were already searching for it. That was bad. If this was true then we wouldn't be able to carry out our plan of luring it out. That means, while waiting for it to strike again, we'd have to weed out the likeliest person behind all of this.
"Have you any leads then?" the principal asked. His forehead shone under the light casted by the swinging candelabras overhead.
"I might have one...but the source is kind of..." I trailed off. Last night was real I know. I felt it too. It didn't need to have a logical explanation or scientific evidence or anything because I actually experienced it. It sort'a came with a certain knowing. But saying it out loud --- oh who cares?
"It was from a ghost." I said, lifting my gaze from the burgundy ground. The three of them weren't repulsed neither did they turn away in contempt.
"He-he said that he was a former teacher in the school. And that the perpetrator was someone named 'Si-' something. He said goodbye before the entire name was spelled on the Ouija board."
They nodded.
"It could be the first two letters of a name" Yuuzel said.
"Or the initials of a name. Who do you think comes close?" Joseff intervened. Yes he was right. That was also a great possibility.
"There was one of the students, who was always there during one of the first two attacks, although she keeps saying it was by accident." the principal said, positioning his thick-framed eye glasses. "Sta. Mira, Ivy Rose"
Wait a minute. I didn't just hear that. "Ivy?"
All three of them nodded.
"But Ivy is my - she wouldn't do a thing like that!" I felt the blood go warm on my chest. Ivy was just chummy. She's not evil.
"You saw it too Ruby. She was the only one around when the first victim was attacked and that she also happens to be around during the comfort room incident was just too big of a coincidence" Yuuzel spoke as if they were truth all throughout. He was always like that. And he had a point right here too.
"So right now, she's our prime suspect. But the ghost could've been pulling our legs off on a wild goose chase. S.I. that could be the initials of anyone. Siegfried - Ines..."
"You mean, Siegfried Sta. Ynez. No. He's not. Ruby, you know I'd much rather die for you. There's not a thing in this world I wouldn't do to protect you. And I really think that it would be best if you were to keep a distance from your...friend."
"Distance? What? It's not like she's one of you guys"
Joseff and Yuuzel both looked at each other and then at me.
"Wait. Is she?" Ivy? You gotta be kidding me!
“Joseff and I will investigate on this matter while you –“
“No you don’t. Whatever happened to ‘I’ll protect you no matter what’? If you guys are hunting this creature down, I’ll go with you. You want to protect me right? That'll save you the effort"
So that was that. As soon as the sun had dipped into the eastern sky, we moved towards the direction of the two remaining teacher’s with ‘de’ as the beginning of their last name. Yuuzel had me sit atop a tree branch with him. We were staking out Ms Claire who happens to be out this fine evening. I was holding onto Yuuzel while he moved stealthily. He was so fast and so agile, I felt like thin paper being swept away by him.
Ms Claire was innocently having dinner outside a Chinese restaurant. She had no idea; we were up there, looking at her. But the thing is when someone was staring right at you, even if you weren’t looking, you’d still be able to feel that. She was feeling our presence by the time she was walking back to her apartment. She dashed off in remarkable speed and locked her door with the familiar sounds of metal.
Yuu had set me down at his side. We were at the roof top now. I guess, what we do now is wait.
He was wearing a grey overcoat and his glasses weren’t there anymore. Ok maybe, I was the one who needed him to put them on. In the blinking lights of the city they were like ponds that seemed to drink you all in – I mean …
“Y-Yuu….”
“Hmm?”
“Uuuh…uhm…I was wondering…” Common say something Ruby…
“Yes?”
“I was wondering… y’know, if…you ever …get…thirsty-?” Whatthe--???
Yuuzel was now half an inch away. He was so close I could feel the air come out as he exhaled – deeply and then, abruptly, he began to back away. And he chuckled.
“That was a lousy attempt to seduce me, don’t you think?”
I grumbled, concentrating on the cement we were standing on, as if I could see through the walls. Yuuzel sat down atop a metal railing. I rested my elbows next to him. And then, a few moments later, there was something that moved from the other building.
“It’s finally arrived.” Yuuzel hopped down from the metal railing and offered me a hand. “Shall we…?”
I nodded.
And so the hunt begins…
YOU ARE READING
Blood Ink (The Archives Book I): Editing
Vampire"Two deaths that happened in the distant past were revealed to me. Now there was a recent murder within the school that I had to witness for myself. And when I fled to a new found friend (though I wanted to be more than that) for comfort, he tells m...
