hargrove. [ BILLY HARGROVE 2 ]

x. CHAPTER EIGHT

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     Max sat in front of Ms. Kelley, leg tapping up and down as she had her plan still forming in her mind. She didn't know how easy Ms. Kelley would break, but she suspected it wouldn't be easy. She wanted to get this all over with, and just know what was happening to Chrissy and maybe Fred. 

     "It's just, with everything that's happening, with all the murders, it's... it's making everything worse again," Max began to tell her. 

     "You've experienced trauma, Max, and when you keep your feelings, your pain, bottled up the way you do, it doesn't take much to trigger them again," Ms. Kelley explained to her. "So now, when it rains, it storms." 

     "Yeah, I know," Max responded quickly. 

     "Do you think you're ready to talk more about that night?" Ms. Kelley pressed. Max stared at her, beginning to regret coming here. 

     She watched as her brother collapsed on all fours, tired from fighting. Her soon to be sister was holding two tendrils in both hands, Max's heart beating. Her feet wanted to budge, and go help them. Before she could even react, two more tendrils launched themselves into Mary's side. Her eyes widened, and her heart beat outside of her chest. 

     "Mary!!" Max screamed at the top of her lungs, watching her brother dive in front of the last arm and catch it. In a flash, she was leaned over Mary's body, tears streaming down her face as she covered her mouth with her hands while Eleven put an arm around her. 

     "I live next door to where it happened," Max said quickly, pulling herself out of the memory. 

     "I'm sorry?" Ms. Kelley asked. 

     "To where Chrissy was murdered," Max explained. "The cops asked me a bunch of questions. Did they talk to you? I mean, I know you were seeing Chrissy."

     "Max, you know I can't talk about Chrissy or any other student," Ms. Kelley told her with a sigh. 

     "Yeah, but, I mean, what if there was a serial killer on the loose in my neighborhood?" Max asked with a shrug. "Did Chrissy mention anything? Anything about who might have done this?"

     "Max, I'm... I'm sorry, I... I really can't discuss this. You wouldn't want me talking to any other students about you, right?" Ms. Kelley asked her, raising an eyebrow. 

     "If I were dead and it would help catch the killer, then yeah, I most definitely would," Max said confidently. 

     "Well, let's leave that up to the police, shall we?" Ms. Kelley said, tilting her head at Max.

     "Yeah, you're right. The police totally have this under control," Max said, making her voice more calm, but still sarcastic. She looked around the house before her eyes landed on the stairs. "Can I use the bathroom?" 

     "Sure. Up the stairs, to the left," Ms. Kelley told her.

     "Thanks," Max said. She stood and walked up the stairs, almost walking through the doorway when she saw the bowl of keys. She turned to see Ms. Kelley was writing, her attention pulled away from Max. She reached in and grabbed the office keys, quickly going to the front door. She shut it quietly, then ran to Steve's car, getting in the back next to Dustin. 

     "What'd she say?" Dustin asked quickly. 

     "Nothing, just drive," Max instructed, Steve not moving. 

     "Nothing?" Steve asked. 

     "Steve, drive!"  

     "Okay!" he said, turning the car on and driving away.