Chapter Seventy-Nine

Tuesday morning, and there was still no word from Damien. Valerie debated reaching out or going up to his apartment to make sure he was all right. His car hadn’t seemed to have moved since Sunday, which worried her. He was never one to stay put long. Nor had any of his friends been over to check on him. At the very least, she would have expected Nick to stop by, but there had been no sign of him.

As she stepped out of her apartment, heading for work, she paused and glanced up the stairs at the darkness that swallowed Damien’s door. With a deep breath, she debated whether or not to go up there and knock to see if he would answer. Finally, she gave in to the impulse, climbed the stairs, and knocked on the door.

He didn’t answer, however, and she blew out a breath of frustration. “Please text me,” she said through the door. “I just want to know you’re all right.” And then she turned and headed to her car and then the college.

Entering her office, she noticed Dean sitting at the outer d