DOOM DAYS ✓

Chapter 28: Lie Detection

Lie Detection: the ability to to sense when someone is lying.

Once again, Josh wakes up on Tyler's couch. He has got to stop making this a habit. There's a bandage wrapped around him middle, under his ribs where Alley Cat shish-kabobed him. Another one is patched on his forehead.

He manages to stand and wobble to the kitchen, using anything he could find to lean on as he did so, and finds Hayley at the kitchen table, drinking a cup of coffee. She nods at him without looking up from whatever was so interesting about the table cloth.

"How long was I out?" Josh asks.

"Not long," she replies, taking a small sip. "Only about an hour."

Josh nods. "The machine... it turned on, didn't it?"

"Yup." Hayley pops to P when she says it and her face twists into disgust.

"I'm so sorry, I knew I wasn't ready but I begged Tyler to let me go-"

"It's not your fault, Josh. It's not Tyler's either. It's mine, for thinking a bunch of kids were ready to become heroes."

His whole apology comes to a screeching halt. "I... what?"

"You and Tiana are hurt because I thought you were ready. But you're not. I thought if I could train you guys before Alley Cat got to you, he wouldn't stand a chance, but-" she laughs bitterly and shakes her head. "He was a step ahead of us."

"What are you saying?"

"I'm saying we're done. No more training. No more patrols. You don't deserve to have your life upended but this guy," she says.

"But-"

Hayley cuts him off with a glare. Her eyes are a ghostly pale blue, almost white. Tears cling to her lashes like they refuse to fall.

"I already ruined one life." Her voice cracks when she speaks. "I won't ruin two more."

Josh has never seen her vulnerable before. Sure, he's seen her scared, even unconscious. But this is unprecedented. She's completely broken.

"What was the machine for?" Josh asks.

She takes in a deep breath, tightening her hold on her mug. "We think he's trying to recreate the Philosopher's stone. Why, I don't know, but that means you and Tiana have to die. You two have been in danger since you got your powers, and you will be until either he dies or he kills you."

"So we take him out before he gets another chance at us," he argues. "We can't just give up. You taught us not to give up."

"No, I led you to slaughter." Hayley stands, her chair tilting so far back that it falls. "As soon as I met you, I knew what Alley Cat would do to you. I knew he'd come looking and maybe he'd let his guard down for once. So I took you under my wing, thinking to myself 'well, at least it's not Tyler.'" The last word comes out a whisper and the tears start falling.

Josh blinks, finally connecting the dots. Hayley took them in knowing Alley Cat would kill them. She trained them, but not to be heroes. To be bait.

"You- you were willing to let us die to kill him?" His voice is a whisper, afraid is he tries to speak up he'll start crying to.

"It was wrong, and I'm sorry," she says meekly. "But now we can move past this, I can get him to leave you alone-"

"You didn't think to do that before he nearly killed us both?" Josh scoffs, his throat closing up. "Tiana lost a wing, Hayl. She never even learned how to fly."

"I'm so sorry, Josh. At least let me fix this. You don't need to pretend to be a hero anymore."

"No. No! You can't just expect me to say 'oh, it's fine, my best friend almost just died because your best idea was to use two sophomores at cat food, but it's fucking dandy.' No. Screw you. I don't need you to be a hero. I don't need you or- or that jackass of a sidekick you have!"

He's angry. He's angry and he's crying. Josh wipes his face, feeling a hot tingle at the tips of his fingers.

"You were my idol, the person I looked up to. You were my hero." He shakes his head, backing up. "But you're not a hero. You're just another bully, just like Tyler. Just like every-fucking-body else!"

Hayley reaches for him but he backs up more, bumping into the oven. Josh doesn't want her to touch him in case he sees something he doesn't want to. She starts to say something, but he instinctively throws his arms up, and anything not bolted to the counters flies at her.

"I trusted you!" He screams, hysterical. Maybe he's overreacting but Hayley risked his best friend's life for a chance, and that isn't something that he could take lightly. Tiana meant more to him than anything else, and if she had died, Josh would've mean a lot worse. "You- you spoke to our dead parents, or was that another lie?"

"It was... that was real. But I-"

Josh teleports to Tyler's bathroom before he hears what she had to say. He falls to the floor and curls into a ball, unable to stop himself from audibly crying. In fact, it's so audible that he doesn't hear the door open over his own sobs.

"What was all that yelling, I thought the house was on fire or- Josh?" Tyler is in front of him, a hand on his shoulder. "Woah, what happened? Are you okay? Is it another panic attack?"

"Don't you fucking touch me!" Josh cries out, trying so hard to glare at Josh through tears.

Tyler immediately puts his hands in the air like he has to prove that he's innocent. "Sorry, sorry. Is there anything I can do to help?"

Josh musters up enough strength to look him in the eye. "Did you know?"

"Know what?" Tyler asks.

There was no way he could've known. But he could've. Maybe that was why he's been such an asshole, and why he's suddenly being nice.

"D- did you know," Josh starts, his breaths shuddering as he tries to compose himself. "That she used us as bait?"

He tilts his head to the side. "I'm not following, angel. Who used you as bait?"

"Fucking Hayley, who else!" Josh snaps again. "Did you know she was willing to get us killed so she had a fucking chance to get to him? Did you? Huh? Answer me, asshole!"

Slowly, Tyler's eyes go wide, hands falling to his side. He mouths something to himself, looking down like he's trying to calculate a formula in his head.

It suddenly dawns on Josh that he didn't know.

Tyler doesn't say anything for a moment, just stares at him with the most shocked, betrayed look on his face. His expression suddenly changes to rage and he stands. "I'll be right back," he says, slamming the door behind him.