We shouldn’t have come here.
We fell for this twisted trap like mice lured in with the promise of cheese.
We weren’t supposed to end up like this.
But I guess that’s what happens when you reach for the stars when you were only meant to admire them from afar.
They burn you.
Scald you.
Searing you into nothing but a flame of regret.
Much like the flame alight in the roaring fireplace before us.
Our captor walks back into the room with a duffel bag slung over his muscled shoulder.
His mouth turns into a wicked smile as he takes the three of us in with his dark, amused eyes. The duffel bag drops to the ground with a loud thunk, and he winks at me as he kneels to open it. The sound of the zipper reverberates through the large study, making my insides quiver in fear. A fear like one I’ve never known before.
One by one, he takes three items and places them at our feet.
A dagger.
A butcher knife.
And a pair of metal handcuffs.
“Come on, Teagan,” he says with a sneer. “Which one of your friends gets to live?” He sweeps his arm toward Lexi and Capri like this is some game.
But this isn’t a game to any of us.
This isourlives. And possibly,ourdeaths.
I look at my two best friends in the world and tell them with my eyes how sorry I am for dragging us into this. My mouth is gagged, and my body bound by tape to the plush velvet teal chair.
They both glance back at me, tears trailing down their beautiful faces as they shake their heads at me.
We know this is how we die—together until the very end.
We shouldn’t have come here.
Chapter one
TWO WEEKS EARLIER
“Alright, my thriller-loving queens—and kings, that’s it for this week’s episode ofLive, Laugh, Murder,” Capri says into her pink microphone. “Catch us next week for another deep dive on how to survive a thriller novel—because you know there’s always a way to have more than one final girl—or guy!”
“Until then, our dearest listeners,” Lexi purrs before the three of us yell, “Live, Laugh, and Murder your little hearts out!”
Shouting our podcast slogan has always been my favorite part of recording sessions.
I hit stop on our recorder and grin at my two best friends in the world. “Another fantastic episode, if I do say so myself.”
Capri yanks her headset off, tossing it onto the sofa next to her, and pulls out her hair tie. She shakes her teal and pink braids loose and lets out a huff of air. “That might have been our best episode. I don’t know how we’ll top that one.”
“I do feel a little bad about how harsh we were about this particular author’s books,” Lexi chimes in as she stares down at her notes.
I roll my eyes at her—not that she’s paying attention. “I would feel bad because A. M. Pierce is our all-time favorite thriller author,” I say. “But they’re a recluse. They don't even have social media, so it’s not like they’ll ever listen to our silly little podcast on how shitty their character’s survival skills are.”
