SEREIN 。NICK GOODE

7: the end of an era

She was going to die.

She could tell.

Everything in her life had been leading her to this moment.

Stuck in a pantry in the middle of summer camp waiting to be chopped up by her own brother.

And as her mind replayed over these sinister thoughts, the door slammed open and in marched the blood-stained Tommy Slater, wielding his axe menacingly.

His back was all that could be seen from Tammy's point of view, yet, it was enough for her to tremble in fear as he made his way into the room.

She wanted to yell out for Ziggy but knew her inevitable fate would claim her sooner rather than later.

And so, as she held her gaze with Tommy's back, she couldn't help but find herself emerging from her hiding spot. She made her way up to her brother.

No plan. Just hope.

She thought back to how many times this boy had said he loved her and how many times she had completely dismissed it, not saying it back and ignoring him.

She felt as though she would throw up.

And then she thought back to all the jokes and pranks the pair had pulled on people between her reading and drawing sessions. If it wasn't for the fact she saw Tommy slam his axe into Nick Goode's leg and the mess left on the floor in place of poor Jeremy, Tammy would've believed this, too, was a prank that had maybe been taken a little too far.

Was it all a sick joke to get the girl involved with camp activities and make new friends other than her brother?

And that thought seemed to be answered as the music that Tammy had managed to block out had now ceased. And the floorboards below the girl began to groan beneath her.

"Tammy?" Came Ziggy's concerned voice from the other room.

Panic flooded through the girl as her eyes expanded, terrified. Tommy began to turn on his heel excruciatingly slow and the girl didn't know what to do.

So, she ran.

But not out the door.

Straight towards him.

Tammy ran forward screaming all the while, throwing herself onto her brother's back and grabbing his neck. Tommy groaned as she slammed into him and pulled him backwards, causing him to crash around into all the objects around them.

Tammy grunted with the impact and felt her arms grow loose, so she tried desperately to clutch onto him.

Tommy then flipped the girl over his head and grabbed at her throat, shoving her into the shelves. Her eyes expanded in horror as she brought them up to look him in the eyes.

This wasn't her brother.

"Tom— Tommy—" She gasped out, clawing at his hand and reaching out for him.

Footsteps sprinted into the room. It was Ziggy as she ran in and began hitting him, each weak hit looser than the last.

Tammy placed her hands behind her head in panic and felt the rough fabric of a flour sack and pulled it forward and shoved it over her brother's head.