The man stood tall again. I tried shoving against his chest, but he didn’t budge. In the room’s periphery, two other people stepped out of the shadows. They wore black clothing too, but their masks were different.
There was the black demon skull in front of me, who’d now been joined by a red devil and a blue wolf.
The way they all looked my direction, faceless yet not, like I was their prey, was terrifying.
It was the devil who finally answered me. Sort of.
“Hasn’t anyone ever told you that curiosity killed the cat? You really don’t want to find out. Run, bitch.”
6
“Oh my God.”
Blue wolf mask stood from where he’d been lounging against the wall, almost bored. “Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but God can’t save ya now, kiddo.”
“Five. Four. Three…” Demon mask counted down the last few seconds, taunting me.
Before he could get to the “two and one,” I turned around and fumbled with the door handle.Shit.Why had I locked this?Oh yeah, because I hadn’t expected to wake up to three lunaticsinthe room with me.
Finally, the lock sprung, and I flung the door open. Ignoring my nudity, I sprinted through the hallway, trying to find someone to help, or a phone to call the police with. I’d had to flee empty-handed, and it wasn’t like I could go back and ask to borrow one of theirs.Excuse me, mister crazy man, sir? Any chance I could see your phone for a moment? What? Me, call the police? Wouldn’t dream of it.Yeah, that would have gone over well, no doubt.
I glanced behind me and saw two of the men—Demon and Wolfie—chasing after me. I didn’t know where the third one, Devil, had gone to, but at the moment, I didn’t care. I couldn’t breathe, I was naked, and the only reason I wasn’t yet crying was because I was in shock. This took what Alex used to do to me to the next level. Like ten levels up. Yet I saw that damn scarecrow mask every time I gasped for air. In my mind, it was chasing me too, trying to corral and lead me to them.
My heart pounded in my chest when I looked back and got a glimpse of them gaining on me. I took a few more twists and turns, and ended up in front of the staircase that went down to the second floor.To go that way, or not?I didn’t know if there was still anyone around from the party. I’d get over the embarrassment of someone seeing me naked, but if I led the men downstairs and someone ended up hurt, I’d never forgive myself. Their footsteps approached again, and that’s what settled it for me. I didn’t have time to pick another route. I flew down the steps, tripping over the carpet and smacking into the banister but otherwise not stopping. I continued down to the first floor of the house and through the main area, keeping to the side as much as possible. It was deserted, but evidence of the party was still around. I vaguely recalled that a cleanup crew was scheduled to come in at 6:30 a.m., so I knew it wasn’t that late yet. I didn’t know where Blaine was. Had he passed out somewhere and was asleep? Had they kidnapped him? Killed him? That was a sobering thought.
I made a beeline for the study and carefully, softly shut the door behind me. I’d always hated this room. It was Blaine’s favorite, so I’d spent a fair amount of time here. The decor was creepy as hell. Taxidermied animals mounted to wooden plaques adorned the walls or sat out on display around the room. They were all frozen in time in a hunting or other aggressive pose. The creepiest of all was the white goose with a massive wingspan. Someone with a very twisted mind had frozen it in attack mode. Its wings were raised, and its mouth was open, showing off the sharp beak and the creepy teeth-like spikes along the tongue.
There was a blanket thrown over the back of the leather couch that I scooped up on my way past, wrapping it around my body. I headed toward the back where I knew there was a small closet. I’d hide there. I went in and shut the door behind me, then sat down and put my head in my cold, clammy hands. I couldn’t stop shaking. Tears finally started flowing freely.I don’t want to die.That thought made my poor heart race even faster; I was certain the sound of it beating against my chest would give me away.
Unfortunately, not thirty seconds later the closet door was ripped open. I got yanked off the floor by my hair and turned around roughly.
Red mask. Devil. It was fitting. This was my own personal hell.
He gripped my throat, squeezing hard enough to block my airflow. I clawed at his arm. All it did was annoy him, and he tightened his grip. “I should kill you right now. But I won’t. Because we need answers.” He stuck the nose holes of his mask against my neck and inhaled deeply. “Fear has a scent, ya know? And you fucking reek of it, you pathetic piece of shit.”
I saw the punch coming but there was nothing I could do to stop it. Sharp pain and intense pressure radiated from my cheek and jaw, and a second punch hit my eye. I slumped forward.
Devil put his mouth to my ear. “Welcome to hell,” he whispered. Pain exploded through my head as he smacked his forehead into my temple, and then everything went dark.
* * *
I raised my head, slowly coming to, and blinked as I looked around. The building was some sort of warehouse, from what I could tell. The floor and walls were concrete. There were no doors or people in sight. Fluorescent lights hung overhead. Several of the bulbs flickered, and many were burned out or broken, leaving the area in low lighting. There was a layer of grime everywhere. I sat in a folding chair with my hands tied behind my back and my feet tied together.
“Help!” I shouted at the top of my lungs. I screamed it over and over, but no help miraculously arrived, to my dismay. Not that I’d really expected it to.
What I did attract was the attention of my captors. They came around a corner and strolled into the room like they owned the place. And maybe they did. They all still wore their masks but they’d changed clothes. Which reminded me that I’d been naked, and…my shoulders slumped. I still was. I had no way to cover myself.
Devil dragged a matching folding chair over and plopped down onto it backward.
“So,” he said.
I peered at him through my good eye. The other was swollen shut, thanks to this oaf. I waited for him to finish his thought but all he did was stare at me expectantly.
“So…?” I repeated.
“This is the part where you admit what you did and why you did it.”
I didn’t know what sort of confession they were expecting or what information they were looking for, but I was certain I didn’t have it. I started to shake my head but stopped because of the sharp pain in my temple. “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I croaked.
