Page 17 of Ripe | AllFreeNovel

No service. Great.

There’s a Ward Farm network but it’s down at the moment. Probably all these people trying to access it at once.

I shove my phone away and start walking. The music gets louder in one direction, so I head the opposite way because I’m pretty sure the entire point is not to make sensible decisions.

A couple runs past me… then another Reaper.

Then three women wearing matching devil horns. One stops when she sees my ribbon. “Oh my God! You’re the Bride!”

“Hell yeah, I am!”

“Girl, RUN. You’re worth extra points if they catch you!”

“Wait, what?”

But she’s already gone.

“WHAT DOES THAT MEAN?”

Laughter disappears into the corn.

Great, I’m a fucking side quest.

I keep moving but the maze suddenly twists into a dead end. “Son of a bitch.” I turn around then freeze when I see someone standing at the entrance to the row.

He’s different. Not because of the mask. Although… yeah the mask definitely fucking helps. It’s pale like it was made out of bone or wood. He’s too far away to really tell from here. It’s longer than the others. Sharper—with black streaks running across one side as though someone dragged dirty fingers over it. The mouth is carved into something almost resembling a grin. Not a happy one… a hungry one.

He wears black from his throat all the way down to his boots. No flannel. No costume blood. No ridiculous overalls. Just black. And he’s big. Not bodybuilder big. The kind of lean muscle that makes my brain immediately produce several deeply unhelpful thoughts.

He doesn’t move.

Neither do I.

“You gonna chase me?” I taunt with a sinister smile spreading across my face. “Because standing there staring is kind of fucking creepy.”

His head tilts.

Okay. That’s annoyingly effective.