It Will Come Back

The Searcher, the Cynic, and the Serial Killer

“You, Lux, are on research duty. Look up all the potential reasons why these weird-ass things are happening—why your eyes keep going white, why Levi’s keep going red, and, of course, why I’m insanely sexy. Actually, scratch that last one. I’m kidding!” Ravi says with a wide grin, gesturing grandly as he leans back in his chair in the library.

I slam my hand hard on the communal desk, making a sharp thwack that earns us a glare from the librarian. “I can’t be the researcher! It’s the most boring task ever. I need a nap. I’m running on empty over here—I haven’t slept or eaten in forever! I swear I just saw a sign floating above your head that said, ‘Eat Me,’ and if one of you doesn’t get me food soon, who knows what I’ll do!”

Levi rolls his eyes like he’s heard this dramatic monologue from me a thousand times before. “You’re ridiculous,” he mutters.

“No, we need to stick to the plan, genius,” Ravi snaps, his tone snarky. “We figure out what’s going on with you two weirdos first. Once we do that, we’ll be in a better position to track down the killer.”

I raise an eyebrow. “What more do we need to know besides who the killer is?”

Ravi stares at me with a look so full of exasperation it could wilt flowers. “Oh, I don’t know—maybe why this psycho is linked to you, what their endgame is, and what weaknesses they have? You know, basic survival stuff?”

Levi mutters something under his breath that sounds suspiciously like “dumbass.”

“Levi, take her to get breakfast before she passes out on us,” Ravi orders, waving him off dismissively. “I need to go visit an old friend.”

I raise an eyebrow at Ravi, smirking. “Wait, you have a friend other than me? The world really has turned upside down.”

Levi’s lips twitch into a grin, and I mock his grin right back at him, causing him to snap his mouth shut fast.

“Just go get her food before she dropkicks you,” Ravi mutters, rubbing his temples like dealing with us is exhausting.

I flash him a bright smile. “Thanks, Mom,” I quip.

Levi sighs, already walking toward the door. “Come on.”

Twenty Minutes Later

“So, what’s your deal, anyway?” Levi asks, breaking the silence as I sit across from him with an egg muffin in one hand and a cup of coffee in the other.

“My deal?” I ask, mid-bite.

“Yeah,” he says, leaning back in his chair. “What do you want out of life? Like, what’s important to you?”

I chew slowly, considering the question. “Before all this…manic chaos, I guess I wanted to be a baker. Own a little bakery, make some pastries, live a quiet life. But somehow, the universe has this funny way of changing your plans without asking for permission.”

Levi rolls his eyes.

“What?” I snap, narrowing my gaze at him.

“Don’t take this the wrong way, but there’s nothing good about being normal,” he says, his tone matter-of-fact. “Normal people die all the time. You’ve seen it. You’ve lived it. You’re not normal anymore—you’re weird now. One of the crazies. So, you might as well embrace it.”

I snort. “Okay, Elton John, thanks for the pep talk. What about you? What do you want out of life?”

Levi shrugs, leaning forward dramatically like he’s about to deliver a monologue. “I don’t know. But I know I don’t want to be a small-town nobody. I want to be something great—not ordinary. Ordinary sucks.”

“Let me guess,” I say with a smirk. “You’re going to end up as a snot-nosed lawyer or something equally pretentious.”

“Is that so, princess?” he counters, his grin sharp and cocky.

“It is so, asshole,” I reply, matching his grin with one of my own.

Levi chuckles softly, shaking his head. “You know, you should come with a warning label: This person has a minuscule amount of brain cells, will make you feel dumb constantly, but is somehow vital to solving the murder of a serial killer in this town.”

I beam at him, taking another bite of my muffin. “That’s the nicest thing you’ve ever said to me.”

“Don’t get used to it,” he mutters, though the corner of his mouth quirks up in the smallest hint of a smile.