Insidious(101)
“Tiffany…”
Reese nodded. “Eric, too.”
“No.” Without thinking, I snatched up the clipboard behind us and raced over to where Reese had fallen, fiercely fanning the fog until it cleared. My hand shot to my mouth, forcing my palm to eat up the scream I couldn’t repress. Reese was right. Long shaggy locks were tangled across Eric’s face, his eyes fixed in an empty stare. His body lay contorted, his neck snapped in the most unnatural angle. Just like Tiffany’s.
I started frantically batting the air, trying to clear away the rest of the floor. Reese joined me as more and more classmates appeared beneath the fog, all their necks snapped. But no sign of Carly.
“She’s not here,” said Reese, watching me pull out my cell. “We need to go.”
Justin Timberlake’s “Sexyback” sounded off behind us, and a heavy metallic clack! followed as we both whirled around towards the side exit.
“Oh, what’s the rush?” mused Daniel, gleefully twirling the ends of a chain in his hands.
Reese and I immediately bolted to the other end of the gym, shoving our weight into the push bars of each dual door leading to the hallway. Neither opened. The chain rattled behind us, but it wasn’t coming any closer. Something thudded, and we both turned around to see Daniel had used the chain to fasten the side exit shut with a large padlock snapped in place.
Every expletive exploded in my mind as Reese and I continued throwing ourselves into the doors.
“Come on, Kat. Won’t you stay? Our boss will be with us shortly, and he’s just dying to see you,” Daniel laughed, pulling out a bedazzled pink rectangle from his pocket. Carly’s cell. “We really appreciate the heads up, too. Saved us from having to come and hunt you down ourselves.”
My stomach dropped.
I told Carly in my texts to her that we were coming here.
I’d given them everything they needed.
Chapter 28
Tonight
“Where is she?” I demanded.
Daniel knew what I meant. “Somewhere around here, along with that idiot, McDowell. They got lost in the commotion, but we’ll find ’em soon enough. There’s really nowhere else to run. Every exit’s blocked, locked, or bolted shut.”
Carly and Mark had both gotten away, at least for the time being.
“Why kill everyone else?”
“Couldn’t really help it.” Daniel shrugged. “If anything, it’s your fault.”
“Mine?”
“Well, you are the one who broke Hell’s seal after all. Triggered the Blood Moon into effect.” He took a long drag of air and sighed. “And how wondrous it was. All that energy surging through your veins, just begging for release. It sent us all into a frenzy, and well…” Daniel casually gestured to the floor. “You see what happened.”
“Who’s we?”
“Trace, myself, and some other folks you may have seen around town,” he chuckled, pointing to the missing person’s flyers still plastered across the activities board beside the door.
The rest of the Hersey basketball and cheerleading teams.
“But enough about us,” insisted Daniel, motioning to me. “You’ve been very, very naughty lately, haven’t you, Kat?” It really wasn’t a question. He beamed from ear to ear, the smile jarringly happy.
“What do you mean she broke the seal?” asked Reese, stepping in front of me as to shield my body from Daniel. “Kat didn’t do anything.”
Daniel threw his head back and laughed. “Oh, how naïve you really are. Even with all your resources, you still haven’t got a clue.”
Reese stole a look over his shoulder, seeing me as equally confused.
“She’s been slowly breaking it since the night she was resurrected,” Daniel purred. “Kat first had to prove that she was worthy of her hellish groom-to-be. And what better way than to have her commit the unforgiveable? Gluttony, sloth, wrath, envy, pride, greed and—”
“Lust,” I muttered. “The seven deadly sins.”
“Right you are. And you definitely tried our patience, I’ll give you that,” sighed Daniel. “Committing the first was always going to be the easiest. The transition into a Changeling made it impossible for you to resist the urge to eat so much. But for a girl always on the go, we knew the second would be the biggest challenge. So how could we stop you in your tracks?”
A thousand pound weight slammed into my chest. I couldn’t breathe. No, no, no, no.
“That’s right, pretty girl,” Daniel crooned. “Just as I predicted, you moped about in your misery and guilt over Blaine’s…untimely demise.”