Trails

Chapter 21: Disco Inferno

"Beverly?" I cried.

I saw my hands being tied to a thick pipe, my eyes looked around at the mysterious room: there were no windows and no furniture; only pipes, a lemon scented floor, and a demented cheerleader tightening Ben's restraints.

The redheaded cheerleader stopped tightening the rope then looked at me.

"Who else?" she rasped.

I tried to get up, but the rope binded me against the pipe. I searched tirelessly for our knapsacks, but I couldn't find them.

Beverly let out a sigh then reached for the gun in her pocket.

"Wait," I cried. "I know what Cameron did to you!"

She raise her eyebrow in suspicion, but allowed me to speak.

"He raped you, didn't he?" I blurted. "Isn't that why you're killing innocent people?"

Just then, a cackle escape from her throat.

"Innocent?" Beverly scoffed. "Don't be so dramatic."

"Please don't do this," I pleaded. "Cameron wouldn't-"

"For your information," she interrupted. "Cameron didn't rape me, his buddies did."

What? I thought.

"After the stupid birthday party," Beverly began. "I took Cameron home, and I made the stupid mistake of taking the woods as a shortcut."

"Five of his buddies followed us to the creek, and while Cameron was too drunk to move, I had my clothes torn off."

To prove her point, Beverly showed me the horrid black scar across her ear.

"A gift from my tormentors," she said sarcastically.

I was unsure what to say next.

"Why don't you tell your parents?" I suggested. "Or, maybe the police?"

Beverly let out a maniacal laugh, leaving me confused.

"You really are stupid," she snickered. "The minute I told my religious obsessive parents about the rape, they called me a slut. They think I deserved to be punished."

"The police arrested the crooks, but apparently they were let off with a warning."

Oh wow, I thought wearily.

"What is your plan?" I asked. "You've kidnapped us, remember?"

As I kept talking, my finger felt a sharp prick. It was sharp and cold, almost like a blade. I then slid my finger on the metal until I felt the wooden handle.

A knife? I thought.

"I am not going to kill the both of you," Beverly stated.

"Why?" I ask directly. "Because we saw through your plan?"

I took the knife handle discreetly and rubbed the blade against the rope.

"No," Beverly answered rudely. "Because I am going to end you and your handsome boyfriend."

"Ex-boyfriend," I corrected.

Beverly shrugs her shoulders as she reach for something in her yellow backpack, and pulls out a huge bottle of gasoline.

"You're going to burn down the warehouse, with us in it." I said.

Beverly nodded and twisted the bottle lid open.

"Too bad that you're going to die painfully," she sighed, pouring the liquid all over the floor.

"I really did like you."

"Like Alice and Elizabeth?" I guessed.

I heard Ben let out a quiet moan and blinked his eyes.

"I heard the news the other day," I continued. "And I could have sworn I heard Elizabeth inhaling carbon monoxide."

Beverly stopped pouring the gasoline and looked up at me.

"So?" she snorted.

I leaned forward, hiding the blade behind my back.

"Did you have something to do with it?"

She shook her head. "Elizabeth brought this on herself."

Elizabeth killed herself.

Beverly then brought out her lighter and turned it on. "Any other stupid questions before I burn you alive?" she asked.

I shook my head no as I freed myself from the rope and lunged at her.

The sound of the pouring gasoline escaped out of the collapsed bottle.

All of a sudden, Beverly gained the upper hand. She kicked me hard on the stomach and threw me down.

Gathering my strength, I blocked her punches and kicked her in the leg. We kept trading kicks, blocks, and flying punches at each other, until Beverly did a sweep kick and pulled out her gun at me.

She cocked the gun and rested her finger on the trigger.

"Say goodnight, freak." Beverly replied.

"Goodnight, freak." said a familiar voice.

Ben slammed a brick across Beverly's head, sending the lighter to the ground. The next thing I knew, something sparked on the puddle of gasoline and turned into a wave of fire.

Ignoring Beverly, I grabbed Ben's hand and rushed out of the room.

The fire then grew into a massive glow, gaining on our heels. We rushed downstairs and kept running until I found our knapsacks sitting on the next to the staircase.

"Where are you going?" Ben yelled over the flames.

I snatched the bags by their straps and continued to keep running.

Just then, the air grew hot and dry, like we were racing across the Sahara Desert. 

As pieces of wood collapsed in front of us, Ben urged me to keep moving.

"Come on!" he screamed. We ran until I saw an opened door straight ahead, but that was when Beverly shoved me onto the ground.

A fresh burn smeared above her eyebrow, but her right hand still held the gun.

"You ruined everything!" she screamed. "You were supposed to be dead!"

I slowly got up and took a careful step back.

"Beverly," I screamed through the flames. "It is over!"

She stubbornly shook her head no and tried to shoot me again. Luckily, Ben shoved me away and took the shot.

I watched in horror as he fell onto the ground and closed his eyes.

My fear turned into anger as I marched up to Beverly. She tried to reload again, but I swiped the pistol out of her grasp and punched her hard in the face.

"Enough," I demanded, throwing the pistol on the ground.

Beverly was about to say something until the fire gained the upperhand. I watched as she screamed in pain and tried to escape her tormentors.

She kept screaming and screaming until she fell onto the floor.

After watching Beverly's death, I slowly pulled Ben up to his feet and carried him out of the house.

"Stay with me," I urged Ben. "Stay with me."

I heard him coughing smoke, but he nodded his head.

With Ben leaning on my shoulder, I managed to get out of the fire before the house collapsed.