Two days later they found another body, and this time there was no concealing the wound.

Luke had always wanted a dog someday, but that morning he found the prospect just a little less attractive when it was confirmed that one unfortunate teenager's faithful companion had gone rummaging into the undergrowth in the trails not far off campus. The enthusiastic retriever had unwittingly treated its owner to a horror show.

The spooked kid had come running onto the campus screaming; screaming in extreme detail about what they had just run across in the woods. From there the news had spread across ELU like a plague until every classroom, lecture hall and bar buzzed with stories of murder, of a mad serial killer taking the brains of his victims. No matter how much Sheriff Nalen might have wanted to contain it, the secret was well and truly out.

The victim was male this time, not a student but a local; a young man named Brian Draper who'd been a barista at a coffee shop not far from ELU. What he'd been doing out in the woods, no-one knew, but it had apparently gotten him killed. Luke had no idea how the poor guy factored into this mess, but the second death finally pushed him over the edge.

Sitting with Gabi, Kenny, Aliyah and Kyan in the campus diner, he watched the news story play out, the fingers of one hand digging into his knee in frustration.

What they'd found in the library that night had been pin-balling around his mind every minute since. It might not have been proof of anything specific, but it was also far too many coincidences for him to let slide on by. Oaklynn knew about these murders, more than she would tell, and right now Luke couldn't help thinking her somehow responsible for the deaths that had happened. She could have gone to the sheriff – she should have.

But she went to Kasper instead.

"This is nuts, man," Kyan murmured, shaking his head in disbelief as he watched the report.

"Who does that?" Aliyah shuddered, picking half-heartedly at a salad. "Like, why? Why here?"

Beside her, Gabi shot Luke an awkward glance. The revelations from their night in the library hung more heavily than ever, but none of them had been able to agree on what to do about it. After all, all they really had was a blurry photo and a blog that any police officer would laugh into a cyberspace black hole.

"I heard they're doubling up on campus security." Kenny cleared his throat, leaning forward to place his elbows on the table. "Gotta say, when I hit college I thought there'd be more wild parties and not so many bloody murders."

Kyan let out a weak laugh. "I think that makes all of us."

Around them the other students in the diner were similarly glued to the news report, hushed words rippling through the groups. Part of him wished they'd shut the news off and crank up whatever generic music they could find to drown out the dread that seemed to have settled on the campus today. He sighed, letting his head loll forward and digging his fingers through his hair with both hands.

Then he decided he'd had enough.

"I've got to go," he muttered, rising out of his chair.

"Woah, where you going?" Kenny asked. He gave Luke a questioning glance; a small shake of the head. On some level he already knew.

"Just need to clear my head." He turned away, tugging the strap of his rucksack up over one shoulder. "Go ahead and order. I'll catch up with you guys later."

Before anyone could say another word he set off as fast as his legs would carry him. He swept out of the diner and into the cool afternoon breeze, tension coiling in his limbs at the prospect of confronting Oaklynn with what he knew. He hoped against all hope that there would be some sane, rational explanation for all of this, but right now he just couldn't see it. Only one person could give him that.

Luke headed away from the beating heart of the campus, walking south towards her residence block and trying to order his thoughts. On one hand he couldn't pretend he didn't have a kernel of jealous anger sizzling away from how he'd been treated, but he didn't want to be angry at her. He just wanted things to go back to how they'd been. He missed seeing her; talking to her. Something about her presence made him feel like the whole world had reached an equilibrium.

The blocks on the southern edge were more expensive than his. They were big, curve-roofed modern buildings, all primary colours, big windows and white letters blazing vertically from top to bottom to designate their block names. Hers was Bracken Fields Lodge, rearing up in shining splendour with the sun blazing across its face.

He didn't slow down, moving purposefully towards the front door of the building and only stopping once he stood in front of the line of buzzers. His eyes fell on one: 3C12.

Luke took a deep breath. The last time he'd pressed this buzzer he'd been collecting her to go to the library for a catch-up study session. He'd never set foot in the building itself – she'd always come down to meet him. Always.

Casting his nerves aside, Luke flung a hand forward and pressed the button. A low, electronic snarl burst from the speaker grill for a few seconds before he pulled his finger away. He shuddered; breathed in deep through his nose. Depending on how the next few minutes went, he might never speak to Oaklynn again.

A few seconds crawled by and he shifted nervously from foot to foot, shoving his hands into his pockets and looking around. Nobody was around, but he still felt like he was loitering in some kind of restricted area.

"Hello?"

The uncertain, familiar voice jolted him into action. He leaned forward to the intercom in a sharp, jerk of a motion.

"Hi, Oaklynn? It's me."

"Luke?"

"Yeah, Luke."

"We don't have class today."

"I know that." A tremor of annoyance shot through him at that, but he suppressed it, trying to keep his voice level. "Did you see on the news?"

"Yeah... yeah I saw."

"Then you know it's the same, the same thing that happened to that girl?"

"I know, Luke." She sounded pained, as though forcing the words out. "What does it have to do with me?"

"I was hoping you'd tell me. Can... can I come up?"

"Luke, I'm kind of in the middle of something-,"

He could hear the lie in her voice and he hated it enough to cut her off.

"Oaklynn, please!" he exclaimed, slapping a palm against the stone beside the receiver. "I have to talk to you. It's important."

"Luke I... I'm not sure that's a good idea."

"Why not?" Luke glared at the intercom, anger beginning to get the better of him. He decided to throw caution to the winds. "I know about Thunder Bay, Oaklynn. Now are you going to let me talk to you or do I walk away from here and go straight to the sheriff?"

Silence crackled on the intercom for a moment but he could just hear her breathing. He waited, closing his eyes and hoping, praying that he wouldn't have to carry out his threat.

The door lock buzzed.

He lunged frantically forward, half-expecting it not to open. In reality, he went tumbling forward and almost fell flat on his face. Straightening up and clearing his throat he looked around. One student heading out of the building gave him a dubious look but didn't stop, passing through the front door and leaving him alone in the lobby.

After a moment he located the elevator and darted inside, pushing the button for the third floor, his nerves returning with a vengeance. Luke could feel his stomach knotting and his fingers drummed on his thighs without his consent. There was a thrill at the prospect of seeing her alone, face to face once more, mingling with the apprehension of what he was about to accuse her of.

He wasn't even sure what that was, in all honesty. All he could say for certain was that she knew more than she was telling.

The elevator doors dinged open and he stepped out, forcing his legs out, one in front of the other like a normal human person. For some reason the motion didn't feel right; somehow not urgent enough. His eyes darted furtively from door to door as he counted his way along the corridor. He turned left, looked at he first door and found it hanging open, with Oaklynn leaning against the doorway, arms folded.

Her long tresses of dark hair hung loose and she was dressed casually in a grey tank top and black leggings. The storm of her eyes seemed to brighten when she saw him. For a moment neither of them spoke and Luke found himself frozen to the spot. He'd been prepared to come hammering on her door if he had to, his lungs braced for a screaming match.

Instead she gave him a smile shot through with regret.

"Hi," she said simply.

"Hi."

"You'd better come in." Oaklynn eased the door further open and stepped aside, giving enough space for him to slip by. Feeling a little thrown by her calm demeanour, he shuffled awkwardly past into her room.

He quickly saw that she had no room mate. That shouldn't really have been a surprise, he supposed, given how she liked to keep to herself. The room itself was pretty bare, with walls of soft grey and evergreen paint, a single bed, bathroom – a kitchenette tucked into one corner. Most kids hung posters or paintings; something to stamp a little bit of themselves on the space they would have to live in for the semester, but not Oaklynn. Some clothes were haphazardly strewn around the place, but the only other real sign of habitation was her desk.

Clogged with books that clustered around her laptop, it seemed to be the nucleus of her life here. Pens and scribbled notes spilled into the spare spaces and a half full cup of coffee still steamed, filling the room with its rich aroma. Some of the books he recognised from their coursework. Others not so much.

The door clacked shut and he stiffened as Oaklynn walked past him. She turned, leaning an elbow on her desk chair and looking at him expectantly.

"Alright, Luke," she said. "What is it you need to talk about?"

"Where do I start?" he muttered, shaking his head as he tried to figure that out. "Well, you know what's going on out there, these murders. Everybody on campus is freaking out."

Oaklynn nodded. "I know that, Luke."

"You know more than that though, don't you?"

She swallowed hard. "Luke..."

"This all started when I told you about what happened. What was done to those kids, you've seen it before." He swept the rucksack off his shoulder and dug a hand into it, yanking out a print out of the articles from Thunder Bay. He held the first one up, pointing to the headline. "Pickaxe Murderer? That ringing any bells?"

"That didn't have anything to do with me."

"Stop lying to me, Oaklynn!" Luke placed the first article down on her desk and thrust the next out towards her, the photograph of her, and her family, clearly in evidence.

"You went snooping on me?" she said, but the accusation felt half-hearted. She looked at the floor, hugging herself.

"You lived there, in that town, when these people were getting killed."

"So did a lot of people."

Even he could tell she didn't believe the line she was selling. But then why was she still trying to keep up this flimsy charade?

"What am I supposed to think?" he asked, the edge fading from his voice. "Oaklynn, first Thunder Bay, now here. Same killings. The only thing in common is you."

"What, you think I'm a murderer now?" she snapped, fire burning back into her words in an instant. "Is that what you think of me? Because I'm not hanging out with you any more I must be a serial killer?"

"I'm pretty sure I never said that," he shot back. "But I think you know something about what's happening here. Kasper too – however the hell he fits into this mess."

"He had nothing to do with any of that."

"But he knows something. The way he reacted when I told him. This isn't the first time either of you have seen this, is it?"

A sigh of weariness sagged her shoulders and she shook her head at last. The movement brought a surge of both vindication and worry sweeping through Luke's body.

"Oaklynn, I'm not crazy. If you don't want to go on a date with me, or you don't want to hang out, I can handle that, but I already know there's more to it. You just won't say what, and it's driving me crazy. I can't just sit and pretend I didn't see what I saw."

"I wish I could..." She bailed out of that sentence, biting her lip as she looked up at him. "What you're digging into, Luke? You should leave it alone. Leave me alone. You're better off that way."

Luke's expression softened. "I don't believe that for a second."

A shrug. "It's true. You should stay away from me."

"Is that what you really want?"

Oaklynn didn't answer. Couldn't answer. He saw her jaw tightening. For the briefest moment he caught a shimmer of fire behind her eyes before she squeezed them shut.

"If you know about what is happening to innocent people out there, you can't just keep it to yourself. You need to go to the sheriff."

"That wouldn't make any difference."

"What?" He gave her an incredulous look. "Oaklynn, you're not making any sense."

"I can't." She shook her head helplessly. "I hate this, Luke, but I just don't know what to say to you."

"Just help me understand!" Luke's patience finally evaporated and he lost control, hurling the handful of papers onto the floor in front of her, his voice rising to a yell. "What is going on? Who is Kasper, and who the hell is this 'family' of yours? Why are people dying in this town the same way they died in yours? Why won't you talk to me?" He heaved in a shuddering breath, feeling the uncomfortable sensation of tears welling in his eyes. "I thought we were friends. I trusted you, but in the middle of all this you just... abandoned me!"

"I'm sorry!" she blurted stepping suddenly towards him, the paper crunching under her feet, forgotten. "Luke, I am. This has all gone wrong."

"What has?"

"Please, you have to understand, I was trying to protect you." Oaklynn rung her hands tightly together, battling for the words. "I thought I'd gotten away from this. I thought if I left... well, it doesn't matter now, does it? I was wrong." She let out a bitter laugh, dragging her nails through her hair. "There are a lot of things you don't know, Luke. Things nobody knows."

"About you?"

"About a lot more than that."

"And you're not supposed to tell me?"

A shake of the head.

"Because of Kasper?"

"He's just the messenger." Oaklynn sighed. "He's just doing what he's told. Right now I don't even know if he's wrong or right."

"Do you want to tell me?"

She shrugged. Her voice wavered dangerously, on the verge of a sob. "None of this is fair. To either of us. Cutting you off – I didn't want to do that to you. It just seemed safer. If anything happened to you because of me..." She scuffed a foot against her carpet. "I didn't ask for this any more than you did."

A wave of frustrated sadness seemed to roll off her, and he found himself caught up in it. In that moment he could feel the turmoil boiling inside her, a free spirit tied down and constrained, like a phoenix trapped by a ball and chain. A glimmer of light rippled through her skin so quickly that he couldn't be sure he'd really seen it, but the emotions remained, digging into his bones.

For a moment it paralysed him, his body frozen by a feeling not his own, but eventually he managed to push the sensation to one side. With a conscious effort Luke stepped forward, taking a firm grip on her shoulders with both hands. The familiar tingle of electricity prickled his skin, as welcome as a loving embrace. She reluctantly met his gaze once more and he forced a smile onto his face, trying to put her at ease in some small way.

"I trusted you," he said softly, fixing his eyes on hers. "Don't you think it's time you trusted me?"

He could see the indecision on her face, like something was tearing at her from the inside out. She opened her mouth but no words came out, as though she couldn't force them from her throat. In the end she suddenly turned away, stepping over to her desk in a single, violent stride. She tore a piece of paper from one of her notebooks and began scribbling on it with a pen.

Luke waited, trying to suppress the nervous energy racing through his veins. He clenched and unclenched his fists, feeling the sweat on his palms as he watched her. She finished writing, tossed the pen carelessly aside and turned to face him, clutching the rumpled paper in one hand. He waited.

For a couple of seconds she just stood there, holding the paper and staring at him, her whole body trembling. He could see the tension in her shoulders, and the facial expression of someone psyching themselves up to plunge into an ice-bath or walk across hot coals. Then whatever internal debate that was raging inside her resolved itself abruptly. She crossed the room towards him and jammed the paper into his hand.

"Okay," Oaklynn said, her voice small and to his shock he saw the glisten of tears in her eyes. She nodded to the note. "Meet me there tonight and I'll explain everything. Whether you like it or not."