So she could be forgiven for taking a few seconds to register that Michael was holding an axe. He was a tech wizard, not an outdoorsman, and it seemed completely out of character. Although his hip was cocked to one side and his posture relaxed, like the weapon had always been part of his body. Carrie’s breath stilled in her lungs as she anticipated the blade biting into Jason’s neck, then Patrick’s, releasing torrents of blood.
“Michael, what are you doing?” She stepped forward, perplexed.
“Get away from him, Carrie,” said Patrick, pulling her back.
“Where did you find that?” Jason asked. He sounded more curious than alarmed. At least he had the good sense to stay calm.
“It was in the kitchen, standing in a corner,” said Michael. “The Slasher must have left it.”
Patrick’s face darkened. “There is no Slasher. It’syou.”
Carrie’s jaw dropped. How could Patrick think that? It was utterly ludicrous. “What?”
Jason’s face was similarly a mask of confusion. Patrick flung out his arm to keep him back from Michael. “Jason, you too.”
Jason shoved Patrick’s arm out of the way as he stood beside his cousin. He was so loyal to Michael. Patrick was a fool to try to stand between them. Carrie felt a pang in her chest. She’d always admired that integrity.
“He can’t be the Slasher. That guy with the axe threatened both of us,” Jason said.
“Are you sure?” Patrick said. “You could’ve easily gotten separated in the dark. Maybe you thought Mikey was hiding, when he actually put on the costume.”
Michael shook his head. “That’s bullshit.”
Carrie grabbed Patrick’s arm. Couldn’t he see how wild this accusation was? “It’s Russ. We all know it’s Russ. He followed me to the cabin, then took the kitchen knife and left his hat.”
Patrick’s face could’ve been carved from stone. “Russ is dead.”
Carrie stared at him, stunned into silence. Her mind raced as it tried to recalibrate. Had she completely misjudged the whole night? Was everything she knew wrong?
“I don’t understand.” Her voice quavered. Events were spiraling out of control. The rules kept changing, and no one had bothered to explain them to her in the first place.
She rubbed her eyes, which still stung from lake water and tears. She was surprised she’d been able to cry for Tiffany. Tiffany Podemski, the queen bee of Cedar Lake High, who’d made Carrie feel less than acceptable after The Photo had been shared. Just a grasping little hussy. Not good enough to rub shoulders with decent people, no matter how hard she tried.
At that moment, Carrie felt as small as Tiffany had made herfeel back then. But now was not the time to sink into despair. She reminded herself of her therapist’s teachings. These feelings of inadequacy were only her traitorous brain lying to her.
She silently repeated her mantra.I am a strong woman who can’t be hurt anymore.She could get through this roller coaster of a night. Adapt and pivot. Channel Jordan Knox. A good Final Girl always got up again to fight another day.
“If it’s not Russ, then it must be Daniel,” Jason said. “Not Mikey.”
“Daniel’s dead, too,” Patrick said.
So that was why he was asking all those questions about Daniel. An icy chill feathered down Carrie’s spine. “How can you know that?”
Patrick soberly took out his phone and showed her the screen. A notification sat on top. Carrie read the news headline, her stomach shriveling with every word.Daniel Williams, 22. Killedwith a Meat Cleaver.She reeled from the shock of reading his brutal murder distilled into a brief, impersonal sentence. She didn’t grieve his loss, not after how he’d treated her. But she trembled, picturing a blade hacking through a body she’d once been intimate with.
“Who would do such a thing?” she croaked.
“Mikey.” Patrick’s mouth was grim.
She glanced at Michael. His eyes met hers, and he shook his head vehemently. She didn’t know what to say. “But why?”
“You know why.”
She did. She swallowed and avoided Michael’s gaze.
“He killed Russ, too,” Patrick added. “And cut the phone line. I took a closer look, and it was definitely cut.”
Carrie stared at him, aghast. “But it rang—”
