I hugged the wall of the foyer, slinking to the panic button, to help.
A slow clap on the stairs made me whirl, and I readied to swing the fake laser gun, but I accidentally hit the trigger as the barrel lit up the foyer with red and blue lights and a weak stream of embarrassingwoo-woosounds.
That’s when I saw Russo’s expensive leather loafer as he descended the wooden staircase in front of me. He must’ve been waiting on the darkened steps, just watching the front door this whole time.
“You got me, kid,” Russo joked, and grinned at my choice of weaponry. I debated whether to throw the gun at him and lunge for the panic button, but then I realized he was pointing a non-police-issued Glock at me.
I glared at him. I was too furious to be afraid. I dropped the flashing fake gun on the ground with a metallic clatter. “Why don’t you put yours down too so it’s a fair fight?”
Russo threw back his head and laughed. “This is why I love you, kid. Feisty.” He shook his head. “Why don’t you look in the kitchen first?”
He flicked on the light to the vintage kitchen. And that’s when I noticed Jude sitting in one of his kitchen chairs, gagged and zip-tied, his eyes wide with fear.
“Dr. Cheese doesn’t have your Houdini skills,” Russo said. “He’s been tied up a lot longer than you. He never made it to his office after all.”
Next to him at the dinette set sat Mateo, also bound, but not gagged. Instead, he had a VR set over his eyes, and noise-canceling headphones on his ears.
“Spider-Man hasn’t even tried to get out. He’s watching cartoon Spider-Man. He can’t hear us.” He looked kind of content, actually, mouth slightly agape, moving his head ever so slightly to chase the action.
Jude looked sweaty and scared, his eyes wide with fear. This made me angrier. I was right back in the crab apple tree, watching bullies surround him on his bike.
“Let them go,” I growled.
“I don’t think I’ll do that,” Russo said.
“Neither one of them are canceled, so let them go.”
Russo’s lips parted into a slow smile.
“I don’t care about that.”
I cocked my head to one side. “Odd, since you’re the Canceled Killer.”
Russo burst out laughing. “Your picker issobroken,” Russo said. “I’m not the Canceled Killer!”
I hesitated. He sounded sincere. But then… why kidnap me?
“Why deny it?” He had to be the killer. Everything pointed to him.
“Because it’s the truth.” Russo studied me.More mind games, I told myself.
“We’re less than a block from the police station,” I said. “When I turn up missing, Oscar will come here.”
Russo shook his head. “No, he won’t, kid. I ditched your phone in the woods a long way from here. They’ll be chasing that around until they find it. A bunch of local losers.”
I glanced at Jude. His gaze flicked to the front door. The panic button.
“First, we’ll play a game.” Russo grinned at me. I never wanted to knock one of his extra-whitened incisors out so badly in all my life. “Kiss, Marry, Kill.” He pointed his gun at Spider-Man and then Jude.
“I thought it was fu—” I began moving toward the panic button, but Russo shushed me, and cocked his gun.
“Nobody is screwing anybody around here except me,” he growled. “And you aren’t going anywhere. Don’t think about heading to the door.”
I raised both hands gently. “We don’t need to play the game. Why don’t you let them go, so we can talk?”
“Pfft.” Russo cocked an eyebrow. “You don’t want to talk.” A sly smile played at the corner of his mouth. “You want to break my nose.”
Maybe the man did know me.
