Rachel
Matt and I were getting ready in the basement of the school, uniforms on and prepared for the worst. I handed Matt a gun, and I put mine in my back pocket.
This is for Haven, I thought, trying not to cry. We're going to end this once and for all.
"You ready?" I asked Matt as he put on his Masquerade mask.
He nodded. "If you think it's the right thing to do."
I smiled but it felt a little forced after everything that was happening. "Of course it is," I said. "It's time they know the truth. It's time they know everything."
***
Josh
The idea that Damien was gay was racing through my mind nonstop all afternoon. How had I never noticed? Were there any signs that I missed? And more importantly, was he as in love with me as I was with him?
I didn't have much time to question it. Shortly after our discovery, I got a text from Eden.
I know who all the helpers are, I said. I finally figured it out. I'm on my way. And whatever you do, STAY AWAY FROM MATT!
Stay away from Matt? My blood ran cold. Was she suggesting that Matt was one of Daisy's helpers?
"Uh, Brandon," I said. "I think we have a problem."
"What is it?" he asked.
I didn't even know how to explain it. I was shaking with fear, trying my best to breathe. Matt was the helper. All along, Matt was the helper. All the lies. All the acting. All the times I trusted him. It was all one big lie. But how did Eden actually get the proof?
"Matt's the helper," I said finally.
Brandon's eyes widened. "How do you know?"
"I don't, exactly," I said. "Eden texted me. She said she knows who the helpers are and that we need to stay away from Matt."
A knock on the door got our attention, and I stared at Brandon. He shrugged and I got up to go answer the door. Eden was here and I'd finally get some answers. Whatever she uncovered was going to change everything, I already felt it.
I threw open the front and gasped when I saw who it was.
A Masquerade stood in the doorway, mask covering their face. But it didn't take a rocket scientist for me to know who it was. Knowing what I knew now made it a lot more obvious. More obvious than it ever was before.
"Matt," I whispered.
"Josh!" Brandon screamed.
I spun around to see another Masquerade stepping into the living room from the kitchen. They stood over by Brandon, who was holding his hands up like a little girl. It was a bit funny--if anything about this could be funny.
I turned back to the Masquerade in the doorway. Staring at the eyes, I knew it was Matt. Tears started welling in my eyes. "If you're going to kill me, go ahead and do it," I said through gritted teeth. "You've already lied about everything else. Who's to say that your intention hasn't been to kill me this entire time?"
Slowly, Matt reached up to take off the mask. When he revealed his face to me, it was getting harder to fight back the tears. Seeing him standing in my doorway dressed down to his feet in the Masquerade uniform, I was disgusted. A sick feeling sat in my stomach and I felt like I was going to throw up.
"Let me in," Matt said. "Please."
I knew if he really wanted to hurt me, he'd do it without my permission anyway. Taking a deep breath, I stepped out of the way to let him inside. He stepped through the threshold and walked over to the couch but didn't sit. Instead, he made a hand motion toward it. "You should sit." He looked over at Brandon and said, "You should sit, too. We have a lot to discuss."
"Why should we listen to anything you say?" Brandon said.
That's when the other Masquerade took off their mask, revealing themselves to us. It was Rachel.
"Because you need to hear this," Rachel said. "Whether you want to listen or not, it's important that you know everything we do. No more lies. No more secrets. I swear."
I looked at Brandon, unsure of what to do next. Knowing that I didn't have any other choice, I took my seat.
***
Rachel
Seeing the look of horror on Josh's face as Matt and I stood before him made my heart clench in my chest. Remember why you're doing this, I thought. Remember why you made this choice in the first place. All of this has been for him.
"God, I don't even know how to begin," I said, pacing before them.
"How about the from beginning?" Brandon snapped. "That'd probably be a smart idea."
If only it were that simple. It was worth a shot either way.
"I guess it's my turn to tell a story," I said, trying to hold back a nervous laugh. This was so screwed and it wasn't until now that I realized it.
"You're probably wondering why I became a Masquerade," I said, trying my best to explain it so it'd make sense to them. "The girl who was tormented by Ryan, who lost all of her friends to a sick guy for mistakes we made four years ago now. I don't think you have any idea how that affected me when it was all finally over."
"No shit I don't know!" Josh shouted. "Look what you've done to me! To my friends!"
I shook my head. "No, no, you don't understand. I wasn't helping Daisy. I would never help a killer, I swear to you. It was about a month after Ryan died at the old Fear Games site. I was at my house one day and I got a text from the new killer. They were posing as Noah, and they told me that they wanted me to help them."
Josh and Brandon still didn't look like they believed me. I sighed, running my hands through my hair.
"Look, I never wanted to help them. In fact, I didn't. They told that I needed to help them or they'd kill me just like Ryan intended to. That's when I admitted myself into St. Mary's. I faked it. I faked losing my mind because I knew that was the only way to keep myself safe. Before I fully checked myself in, I got in contact with Audrey, the receptionist. She told me that she'd be able to help me get in and out of that place if I really wanted to. I know it sounds crazy, but it was a really good idea. I didn't actually have to live there. All I had to do was convince the killer that I did."
I knew it sounded crazy. But they had to believe me. I was practically pouring my heart out to them.
"It wasn't long before Haven came to visit me," I explained. "I was only there for about a week or two before she showed up at St. Mary's. She was telling me that someone started texting her, trying to get her to join the new Fear Games. She was scared. Terrified. Just like you, she came to me looking for answers that I didn't have. Not really. But when she came, an idea formed in my head. An idea that could benefit all of us. I decided I wanted to spend my time at St. Mary's not only solving the mystery as to who the killer was, but protecting those that were going to be affected by the new Games."
"Oh my God..." Josh said, eyes widening. "That first day I met you...you kept saying how St. Mary's was safe. You kept mentioning how white everything was in there. The walls, the bed sheets..."
I nodded. "I was trying to send you a message, Josh."
And it was true. When Josh showed up, I not only had to act crazy for the sake of being in a mental hospital, I was trying to give him a sign. To let him know I was a Masquerade. That was part of why white was our disguise. It represented us being helpful. Being pure. Although, lately I didn't feel very pure.
"Okay, hold on," Brandon said. "You're trying to tell us that you're the good guys?"
"Yes," I said. "That's exactly what I'm saying. That night in the graveyard, that was me. I was trying to get the killer caught--or dead if I had to. But Josh wasn't getting it. He didn't realize it was me, and that's when I noticed how dangerous the Games were really getting."
"And the Masquerade at the school," Josh said. "Who was that?"
"The one you saw in the parking lot was Haven," I said, trying to hold back the tears at the sound of her voice escaping my lips. "The one you saw watching you from a distance off in the trees was me. Haven was there to try and save Clary..."
"So wait," Josh said. "Haven disappeared shortly after Damien did. Was she not with him?"
"Nope," I said. "She was with me in St. Mary's, actually. We sneaked her in and out. When I finally discharged myself, that's when she returned. We had to be closer to you guys in order to help. Having Matt on the inside wasn't enough."
That's when Josh looked over at Matt. "Is it true? Did you join the Masquerades to help me?"
"Sort of," Matt said sadly. I saw the pain in his eyes. "When I first got to town, Haven came to my house. She told me everything. Everything that you weren't. So I had to do something. I offered to join, to keep an eye on you. To make sure that you were all safe."
"Did you ever know it was Daisy beforehand?" Brandon asked. "Before we did?"
I shook my head. "I'm not sure why I never connected her to Ryan. I mean, there had to be some sort of connection I was missing, and sure enough, it was that simple. We found out right around the time you did. I should have realized the killer wasn't going to be caught unless they wanted to be. That's the way that the Fear Games work."
"So...Haven..." Brandon said. "She was really good."
I nodded, trying to hold back the tears. "She was. That girl was there for me when I lost everything. I just can't understand why she did what she did last night at St. Paul's...I mean, we had this whole plan for them to stay undercover and she blew it. I just don't get why."
"Here's what I don't get," Josh said. "If the Masquerades aren't Daisy's helper, is there even one at all? The whole reason we thought she had a helper was because of the Masquerades."
"But what about Layla?" Brandon said. "She could still be the helper, right?"
"No," I said. "Layla's with me. Well, sort of."
"What do you mean sort of?" Brandon said. "Either she is or she isn't."
"That's not true at all," I said. "Layla was a patient at St. Mary's, obviously. She was very depressed. Was suffering from very serious mental illness. Tried to kill herself a few times and finally got admitted to St. Mary's for long term treatment. But she also had this strange fascination with me. After a few weeks, I was able to get her to join me in trying to take down the killer and the helper. In fact, I got her to work as a double agent. She started helping the two killers, both who are always masked. They didn't trust her. The killer that's still around doesn't trust her very much, either. I think they might know she's a double agent, but I can't be too sure."
"So there is another killer?" Brandon asked.
"We haven't been able to figure out who they are, exactly," Matt said. "But we're getting pretty close. After what happened with Haven, we realized the best way to solve this is to work together. We can't be on different teams, here."
"Where's Eden, by the way?" I asked. "Aren't you all usually together?"
"She actually texted me a little while ago," Josh said. "Before you guys showed up. She said she was on her way, but she hasn't shown up yet, obviously. She figured out that you guys were the Masquerades somehow and I don't know. I have a bad feeling."
I could agree with that. Something didn't feel right. "Maybe we should go looking for her. She has to be around here somewhere, right?"
"She's not responding to my texts," Josh said. "We have to go look for her. Something's not right."
I just hoped that what we found wasn't going to be ugly.
***
Josh
Brandon and I climbed into my car, while Rachel and Matt got in his. My mind was still reeling from all the information we just obtained. Matt and Rachel weren't the killers. Neither was Layla. But despite knowing that, I felt a little betrayed by him.
Now was not the time to worry about that, though. Right now we needed to find Eden.
We drove around a few blocks, trying to see if she was anywhere around. Nothing. The only other place we hadn't looked was by her house.
I picked up my phone and dialed Matt's number.
"Hello?" he said.
"Come to Eden's house," I said. "I'm starting to have a feeling she might not have left. It's the last place to look. We'll meet you there in a few."
I continued driving to her house and pulled onto a street near her house. It only took me a few seconds before I spotted her car sitting on the side of the road.
"No..." I said.
Brandon said nothing. I pulled up to her car, throwing my doors open, and ran over to it. Her driver's door was open, as well as the door to the backseat on her side. The car was still running and the trunk was open.
About a minute later, Matt and Rachel pulled up beside us.
"Oh my God," Matt said. "What happened?"
"I don't know!" I shouted. "She's not here!"
"We have to call the cops," Brandon said. "Maybe they can help find her!"
"No cops," Rachel said, jumping out of Matt's car. "If we get them involved, we'll all have a lot of explaining to do. Things that we don't have answers for."
"Guys, look," Brandon said, pointing down the road.
There was a person standing by a car. This person was dressed head to toe in white, similar to the Masquerades' uniforms. Of course, a mask was covering their face, but when they saw us watching, they quickly got in their car and drove away.
"Wait!" I shouted. "Stop!"
But they were already gone before we even had the chance to get in our cars to chase after them. I spun around to face Rachel. "Who the hell was that? Was that Layla?"
Rachel shook her head. "No," she said. "That's the Mystery Masquerade."