CHAPTER THIRTEEN
GUNS-A-BLAZIN'
"He showed me the most awful things. I saw a dark cloud," Nancy breathed out, "spreading over Hawkins. Downtown was on fire, dead soldiers, a creature with a gaping mouth. There were so many monsters. An army of them, coming to Hawkins. They were coming into our towns, our homes, and then he showed me my mom," Nancy let the tears fall at this point, "and Holly and Mike." She wiped her face and Sloane grabbed Steve's hand to keep herself steady. Even though she was sitting down, she felt so unsteady. Nancy's vision from Vecna sounded alarmingly similar to what Vecna showed her, back in her own home.
Steve sighed, heartbroken for the girl. Steve hated to admit it, but he was still head over heels in love with Nancy. He'd go to the ends of the earth, even if it meant he had to army crawl his way there. But right now, hearing what Vecna showed Nance, the ends of the earth didn't seem too far.
"He's just trying to scare you, Nance. Right? I mean -- it's not real."
"I don't know. He showed me something very similar." Sloane spoke up, causing heads to whip in her direction. "I was at home, looking at our senior portraits," she looked at her brother, "and I looked back and - he showed me us. He showed me mom and dad, Steve, and -- you guys." Sloane was crying too, wondering what the hell this meant for the group and their future. "He showed me four gates. One of them at Lovers' Lake, one on the road by the trailers, and one at Eddie's," Sloane winced, "they were all connecting. It was like the core of the earth was coming through, splitting in half. The vines and monsters from the Upside Down were taking over Hawkins."
"That's the exact same thing he showed me." Nancy stated, prompting a grave tone to set in over the kids. "It was our Hawkins."
"Four chimes."
It was Max's turn to gain stares as she told of how Vecna's clock, the one he shows his victims, rings four chimes exactly. It was all starting to piece together, the puzzle of it all.
Chrissy.
Fred.
Patrick.
Max.
"If that's true, he's only one kill away."
"Try him again. Try him again!" Steve yelled, in full panic mode. Max ran over to the phone, dialing away on the phone. Sloane leaned to her brother and asked who is the him they're referring too, but he huffed and threw his hands up, seeing as Max was unsuccessful in reaching whoever.
"Joyce got a new job, remember! She's a telemarketer. No wonder the phone's busy."
"His phone's been busy for what -- three days now? No way! Something is wrong."
Shit, Mike is in California to see El. Sloane hadn't even noticed his absence, being too stuck up Eddie's butt and too mad that Nancy was involved. Nancy looked out the window, mumbling about how Lenora was connected to all of this. But - what was happening in Lenora? Was Sloane really out of the loop again? The Harrington girl realized she should be friendlier, it would keep her up to speed with a lot more things.
"We have to go back -- back to the Upside Down," Nancy spoke, erupting the teens into a fit of protests. Truth be told, despite her own arrogance and contempt for the Wheeler girl, Sloane agreed with Nancy. They had to have a shot, at least, to save Eddie. To save Max.
Needless to say, the trio of girls minus Robin and Erica, who were totally against the idea, (which Sloane didn't know why, being as Erica could end Vecna with one 'just the facts') won the argument. With the help of the Henderson boy, Sloane and Nancy had officially convinced the boys and Robin to go back into the Upside Down, guns-a-blazing.
"It'll be fine. We'll go in there, guns-a-blazin', and blow that bitch to smithereens." Sloane stated, fixing her collar. This statement alone caused Eddie to practically fall on the floor in a fit of laughter. "What?" Sloane sassed, shooting Eddie blue daggers.
"It's just, you said that like a sitcom from the fifties. Pack it up, grandma. Come here," Eddie threw his arm around the girl, walking her into the kitchen. He picked up the newspaper, laid haphazardly on the couch and slammed it on the kitchen table, sprawled out in front of the kids. Grocery coupons, missing dog photos, church announcements, and crossword puzzles filled up the pages in black and white ink. Eddie slammed his finger down on an ad, labeled War Zone.
"This store. I've been there once. It has everything you can think of for, um," Eddie paused, "killing things."
Eddie, nor Steve, for that matter, had never seen Sloane smile so big. Her grin spreading from ear to ear as she grabbed scrambled for her keys, "let's go."
"Wait, we don't have a vehicle. Shit," she mumbled, coming to the unfortunate realization they had no means of getting to said weaponry. But when she met eyes with Eddie, and he shared that he had an idea for a vehicle, he bit his lip to hold back a sly smirk.
"Hey, uh — Max? Do you have some sort of, uh, like, mask or something?"
***
Eddie ripped off his Mike Myer's mask, huffing as he finally was able to breathe. He ripped the multicolored wires from under the steering wheel in the Winnebago they'd just broken into, grabbing a pair of cutters and snipping away. "Where'd you learn how to do this?" Steve and Sloane asked, in perfect unison. Sloane chuckled as he answered, "well, Harrington's, when you were making All-Star little league and winning Miss Hawkins Toddler pageants, my old man was teaching me how to hot wire. Now, I swore to myself that I wouldn't end up like him, but I'm wanted for murder and soon, grand theft auto."
"Damn, you might have more daddy issues than us." Sloane fluffed her hair, checking her appearance in the rear view mirror. "Yep," Eddie smacked his lips, "I'm really living up to that Munson name."
Sloane allowed her mind to drift as she haphazardly watched Eddie fumble with the wires. The Munson name. Sloane Munson, it had a fairly nice ring, in her own opinion.
"Harrington's got her, don't cha big boy?" Eddie's announcement drew Sloane out of her thoughts of her in a white dress and sparkly veil. Realizing he was talking to the elder Harrington, she sighed a sigh of relief - because she wasn't paying attention to anything the boy said, focused on his hands and fingers fumbling with the wires.
Sparks practically flew (not just in the vehicle, but in Sloane's belly, too) as all the lights in the car and radio burst on, blaring some song Sloane didn't recognize. The kids ran to the back of the van, finding any seat as Steve jumped into the driver's side. Nancy found herself the last seat available, in the passenger seat next to Steve. Chaos wreaked havoc on the scene as Steve slammed his foot into the floor of the car, the van jolting forward, sending Sloane into Eddie's lap.
"DRIVE, Steve! Drive! Shit, they look pissed!" Dustin screeched, and Sloane gave him a dumbfounded look, "Gee, I wonder why they'd be mad?"
***
As the roads twisted and turned through the woods of Hawkins, the kids found themselves each to their own devices. Steve and Nancy were lost in some conversation up front, Max and Lucas were deep in conversation in the back, while Dustin, Robin, and Erica were all asleep, leaning on each other for support. Sloane looked at Eddie, who made his way to her and sat beside her on the floor.
"For a car, this is kind of roomy." Eddie tucked Sloane's now pin-straight dry hair behind her ear, revealing her empty ear. "You lost an earring," he pointed out, causing the Harrington girl to touch her ear. "Oh well," Sloane shrugged.
"I've always wanted one of these." Eddie drummed his hands on his lap, making some sort of beat Sloane didn't recognize. "A stolen vehicle?" Sloane giggled, despite the reality of the teens lives. Eddie chuckled, "would you believe me if I said this wasn't the first vehicle I've stolen?" Sloane shook her head no, cooing at the boy as if she didn't believe him -- but she totally did.
"Yep. Senior year, my first one, 1983. First day of school. You were a freshman and Steve was a sophomore. I'd heard about Steve and I thought he was a total douche, but I didn't know you were his sister. I thought you guys were dating, the way he always walked you to class." Sloane's face writhed in disgust, and Eddie chuckled, "I was dared by one of my buddies to steal Principal Morris's car for a senior prank. Astonishment and amusement spread like wildfire across Sloane's face as she marveled at the metalhead. "That was you?! Oh, that was hilarious! It made my first day of school awesome!"
"Why do you think I repeated senior year? I was expelled, Harrington!" The pair was cracking up, in their typical fashion. "But no, I've always wanted one of these camper things. A mobile home of some sort, I'd just pack it up and live in one of these. I've never felt like I really fit in to Hawkins, so I'd just travel around in one of these things and find where I feel like I fit in."
Sloane nodded, placing a warm hand on the boy's knee. Eddie was clearing his throat as he spoke up, "but uh - I don't think I'm ever gonna make it there. I mean, who wants to be ole' buddies with a murder suspect."
"We're gonna fix this."
"I know, Harrington, I know. But I'm just - I'm just having a hard time believing it right now. I feel like we've gone nowhere, but I know we have."
"I've always wanted one of these too," Sloane completely veered off the road of their conversation. "It sounds stupid, but me and Steve used to say that we'd buy a big one of these together and share it with our families. Steve has this dream of getting married and having, like, six kids or something crazy. I just want a couple, like two or three - maybe. But we'd take a family trip, once a year, wherever. Get all the cousins together, and just hang out. Roast marshmallows, hot dogs, swim in the lake or ocean, get lost somewhere, yaknow?"
Eddie's heart skipped a beat at the thought of Sloane being a mother. She was so motherly on instinct, it made Eddie feel safe around her. His own mom being a total flake, who skipped town when he was seven, he found himself nurtured around Sloane. She thought to bring him things like warm blankets and jackets and soap and bread. He thought about how her kids would have the coolest lunchboxes and freshest tennis shoes, and would - no doubt - be dressed to the nines always. He thought about their kids, and what they'd look like. They'd definitely have the signature Harrington hair, but they'd be total metal-heads. Eddie thought about a mini-Sloane for a daughter, who looked like a princess-bubblegum-sweetheart, but loved Metallica and Black Sabbath. Or maybe a son, who Sloane would dress like a total Yale-looking preppy hotshot, like Steve, but shredded the guitar like none of the other second graders.
"Yeah, I know." Eddie sighed, disappointed in the fact that he'd likely never be able to have that with someone. He knew things weren't looking good for him, and he'd learned there was no sense in hoping or dreaming. Things were always worse than they seemed. So instead of pumping Sloane full of things like, that'd be awesome, or I've been thinking of our future children a lot lately, he chose to stay silent. He hadn't one bit of confidence in this plan, and was sure that he'd end up on death row.
"Can I tell you something?" Eddie broke the silence between the two, albeit a comfortable one. Sloane nodded, prompting the boy with the wild hair to continue.
"Look, this isn't easy for me to say. I know my demeanor is all, like, tough because I wear chains and leather jackets and denim, but Sloane, I'm terrified. Downright terrified. You guys are hanging out with a fugitive. Wanted for murder, man. I don't know how much time I'll have, and I feel like at any second one of you might snap in front of me like Chrissy or the police are gonna find me and put me in the electric chair. So, I'll stop beating around the bush. I like you. A lot. Like, I really like you. I think that's the most terrifying part about this whole thing, honestly. I don't care that I'm on the run from the police. I don't care that I'm wanted for murder. Because it means you are safe, as far as anyone knows, you have nothing to do with it. You're still Hawkins's Little Princess," he connected their lips, sparks flying as if it were their first time. Heat spread throughout Sloane's cheeks, knowing her brother and friends were all mere inches away from the kissing pair.
"Hey! I can still see you guys," Steve warned, shooting daggers at Eddie through the rear view mirror.
The two laughed and Eddie gave Steve the bird, his own eyes drifting back to those ocean eyes. "What if I don't wanna be known as the princess anymore?"
"What?"
"I don't know -- I've just changed. This week, not having to keep up with the it-girl cheerleaders or fancy rich chicks, just being me. It was a breath of fresh air."
"Yeah. Well, I get that. As much as I love ruling over all of Hellfire Club, I just want to be me, too. I feel like the guys and geeks would turn me into a laughing stock if they found out my other hobbies." Eddie ran a hand through his shadow-black hair.
"Hmm," Sloane tapped her chin, "let me guess. You like baking and cooking?"
Eddie laughed obnoxiously, earning a shut-the-fuck-up from a grouchy half-asleep Robin, "you think we can afford ingredients? Ha, you think these legs come from eating home-cooked casseroles?" He lifted up his leg, mimicking the look of a bikini model, which caused Sloane to join in on the cackling.
"I like writing music."
Sloane's pulse raced as she tried to sweep up her heart, turning into a puddle in her chest. She knew Eddie was a metalhead, but something about the artsy side of Eddie made her cheeks flush bright red.
Before Sloane could say anything, the slight shifting forward of her body was enough to peer out the window of the big mobile home. And there it was -- in all it's glory, Sloane grinned ear to ear as she read the big yellow letters of the warehouse.
War Zone.
***
eeeekk I'm so excited for the final chapters of this book!!! Let me know what you guys think, I love when people comment, they are so fun to read!!