"I wouldn't have tripped at all if I hadn't been being chased with an axe by a guy in a stupid Michael Myer's mask. Take it off, you fucking coward."
I paused and looked at Tristan through the rubber mask.
"He can't. He's cursed," Moth answered for me, his voice almost bored.
"Interesting," Tristan said and directed us upstairs to the third floor. It wasn't until we reached the landing that he thought to mention something. "You can't get in without the key."
I held out my hand expectantly, to which he simply laughed. "Why would I have it? You're gonna go have to steal it from my dead body. Isn’t that a crime?"
"Out of all the crimes this guy’s committed, desecrating a corpse doesn't really touch the top lists." Moth snickered, then turned to me. "Might want to go grab it. He's not going to do it for you."
Furious, I lifted my axe, which made them both laugh.
"What are you gonna do, kill me?" Tristan laughed.
I huffed and stormed back down to get the key from Tristan's corpse. The two ghosts followed behind me like my own personal hecklers.
Tristan addressed Moth, "You know he and Delaney are siblings, right? It's so fucked up."
"Step. But still, I never wanted to bang any of mine," Moth agreed.Reaching over the splintered railing, I hauled Tristan's heavy body up and dug into his pockets. I pulled out the paper rose from one pocket, the vibrating one from the other, and then found the key.
"Can you set me down?" Tristan said sharply. Turning up to look at him, I lifted his body up, returning it to the railing, and dropped him over it. The body made a sickening slap as it hit the marble floor below, and there was a beat before a female let out a blood-curdling scream from down below.
Oh well.
I abandoned the ghosts, standing still with wide eyes, and fled to the third floor again, key in hand and both roses in mypocket. I hurried down the hall, trying the key in every door, but they all remain locked. Panic set in as my mind went wild, thinking of all the things they could be doing to hurt Laney. Were they sexually assaulting her, as Tristan had mentioned, or were they more into gore-porn and currently cutting into her with a buzzsaw?
A door on the left unlocked and I shoved it open, revealing... darkness. A dull drum sounded throughout the room like a heartbeat. It was warm and moist and just under the drums, I heard whimpering. I stepped inside cautiously and the door swung closed. With a sudden whoosh, all around the room, candles flickered to life, and after my eyes adjusted, I saw Laney.
She was crouched on the floor with her eyes shut and hands over her ears.
"Who are you?" a voice asked. I looked around and found a tall man in leather gear talking to me.
"This room is for invited guests only," another voice said. I turned and saw the other twin. "I don't remember inviting you."
My fingers twitched, pleading for me to remove the mask. I wanted to speak, but I needed my mental facilities to be my own here. Something in here, while not directly frightening, was off.
I spun back to Laney and hurried over, knocking candles as I moved through the room. I crouched down, dropping my axe to the floor for just a moment, and reached for her.
"I wouldn't do that."
"She's currently in a very fragile state."
I needed to be able to communicate, but how? My hand grazed Laney's cheek and she opened her eyes. They were calm and then when she saw my face, she screamed!I stumbled back as she scrambled away from me.
"It was you! I saw you! You—” She stammered. "You killedMarco, you killed Moth, and you convinced me you were my protector! I let you..."
What was going on? I shook my head, but she continued to cry. She looked toward the twins, who nodded.
"We showed her the truth," Twin A told me.
I leapt to my feet and swiped my axe back into my arms. They shook their heads in sync.
"This will not help your case. The truth has been revealed. She knows the masked man is the monster. If you want her to follow you, you must reveal your true identity to her.”
I lifted the weapon. I knew it was pointless to aim it in their direction. They were already dead. But I could destroy the room.
"Priest…" Laney's soft, sobbing voice came from the corner of the room. I turned. She had her head tucked into her knees. "Priest. I need Priest to save me. Where is he?"
