“Who cares? Mom and Dad won’t be back until Sunday night. I come in here all the time, calm down.”
“You do?” I joined him in the closet. “Why?”
“Because of Mom’s lady porn.” He dove into the closet and pushed aside racks of clothing, revealing a hundred or more stacks of thick paperbacks.
I frowned. “Mom doesn’t read.”
He laughed loudly. “Oh yes she does. And this stuff is dirty. See for yourself, pick one.”
Tentatively, I looked at a stack and picked the first one on top.
“Prisoner of the Scoundrel’s Desire.” I read aloud.
“Oh yeah, that’s a good one.”
I looked up at Priest in surprise. “You’ve read it?”
“I’ve read most of these.”
A giggle escaped my lips at the thought. “No!”
“Movies aren’t my thing; books are.”He shrugged, unashamed.
“You steal Mom’s porn.” I couldn’t believe it, yet, as I read the back of the book in my hands, I was tempted to steal it myself.
“I try not to think about it that way, but if you’re insisting on saying it like that. Yeah, I guess.”
I shook my head in disbelief. “I mean, I always knew you liked to read but…”
“I read just about anything. Not just this stuff. I’ve actually been looking into the other side of things. Publishing and stuff.”
“You want to write books like this?”
“Not write but be a part of the process. An agent, or editor. I don’t know, maybe I’ll go to college for it or something.” He rushed. “Hurry up. Pick a few out, then we’ll lock up. I’m ready to get out of here.”
I grabbed a small stack and turned away from the closet.
“Promise you won’t tell anyone?” I shared a look with Priest.
“It’ll be our little secret.”
Rule 43 - Delaney
It’s okay to fuck the slasher if he’s your stepbrother.
Iwoke up in my bed, with a headache so sharp I cried out the moment my eyes opened. It was dark, the only light coming from the crackling fireplace. I sat up and looked around, screaming when I saw the figure to the right of my bed.
"Michael? I mean, Moth." The man in the Michael Myer's mask shook his head slowly. My blood chilled. "Where's Moth? What did you do with him?" I closed my eyes, trying to recall... anything.How did I get into bed? The last thing I remembered was... Moth was here. He accused Priest of...
"Priest is a bad man.”
"Priest killed Moth," I said to Michael. "Priest is a bad man. Is that why you're here? To save me from him?" The figure, half-hidden in the shadows, didn't move. "It's okay. You don't have to talk. I know the truth. Moth told me everything."
Memories of Priest flashed in my mind. I'd almost liked him. I was so close to forgiving him for all the nasty, cruel things he'd said and done to me as teenagers, but Moth hadexposed him for what he was. A monster.I was safe with Michael.
Moth was dead. He had become one of the many ghosts stuck here in The Vincent. Whoever was behind the Michael mask was Moth's gift to me. He was my protector, and I had to trust him.
"If I asked you to take off the mask, would you?" I asked him.He shook his head.
