Nina
It was dark as I walked through Tempe, my eyes on the roads ahead as I traced the path I'd taken before. The old house was on the outskirts of the desert, an abandoned mansion that no one ever bothered to demolish after the owner passed. I saw it on the horizon and I kept my pace steady, approaching with caution to the wind while I hiked my backpack further onto my shoulders.
The house was locked but it was easy to get in through the windows, glass scattered around the floor and I dropped my bag off in what looked like a kitchen, old appliances covered in dust and cobwebs. I'd come here before with some of the friends I used to have but they all either moved away or didn't want to be seen with the freak who was obsessed with serial killers. I twitched again and heard a car pull up outside before I took a defensive stance in the foyer. It took a few tense moments before Claudia appeared from one of the other rooms, slapping her hands together to clear away the dust while I watched closely. Either she thought this would be a clean win or she was just an idiot because she was still wearing her good clothes, expensive jeans and a branded jacket to keep out the cold.
"You've got some balls asking me to come out here," she practically snarled in the moonlight, "and alone?"
Hands suddenly wrapped around my arms and I put it together pretty quick she'd brought her two nitwits along with her. Shit! Malcom reached into my pocket and pulled my knife with a snide laugh before showing it to Claudia.
"Look what little missy had on her," he laughed, "looks like she was planning to draw some blood!"
"Give it back."
My voice shook with rage as I watched him shove it into his pocket. Yoni laughed beside me as she locked her arms around mine to keep me still.
"What, did your cousin give you a killer going away present?" She mocked, "you think you're some hardcore bitch like she is? That those serial killers will think you're sooo cool because you fangirl over them?"
"They think I'm cool alright." I laughed darkly, a wide, painful grin pulling on my face. I couldn't control it. "Kit-Kat and the boys will have your heads if you lay a hand on me."
"Yeah, bullshit," Claudia called me on it with nothing but confidence, "you said it yourself you hadn't talked to her before she decided to go on a murder spree across the United States, you think you can backtrack now to make yourself look better?"
"Yeah, bullshit," I growled, "that was before she called me last week after Eyeless Jack and Jeff the Killer showed up on my doorstep. You know those boys you saw, the pale one at the head of your bed and the dark one waiting at your feet?" My lips curled further as she recoiled. "Jeff and Tom won't take too kindly to you, not after you already got a spot on their shit-list for what you've done to us. They'll make you pay."
"Man she's real creepy when she starts going," Malcolm snorted but he seemed to realize something was up when he saw the real fear on Claudia's face, "hey Dia, what's up?"
"Y-You...you sent them there," she stammered as I snickered.
"Bingo, baby."
"Wait, you were serious about those two guys?" Yoni asked, her grip loosening. "That means—"
"They'll be here tomo-row."
My voice sing-songy tune echoed in their petrified silence, a dark, haughty giggle tearing through my chest. The only thing that made me pause was Claudia's hand moving behind her back and producing a weapon, the barrel of the pistol staring me straight in the eyes. I'd never felt my face pale as fast as it did when she clicked the safety off.
"You're about to wish you'd never said that."
The moment her finger twitched I bolted, my ears ringing from the gunfire while I booked it for the stairs. Another shot went off and I kept my head low as my heart pounded in my ears, my vision surrounded by white while I tried to focus. Where the fuck do I go from here?! My backpack was downstairs so I was defenseless, my one shot being the dark bathroom at the end of the hall as I slammed into the wall and hid behind the door. Their footsteps creaked, running and shouting at each other while I held my hand over my mouth to quiet myself, listening as close as I could when I heard someone nearby.
"Malcolm, you stay downstairs, Yoni you take left," Claudia hissed and I pictured the layout in my head, piecing together that it was Yoni approaching. I could see her body move in the moonlight that filled the hallway from the windows, her dark figure standing out against the white walls.
"Where are you, you little bitch..."
"You know, I was surprised you moved as fast as you did when we grabbed your brother," Claudia's voice echoed from somewhere and everything suddenly stilled as I focused in on the sound of her voice, "he really likes to scream."
It was a ploy. They were trying to lure me out. I scanned the darkness and patted the ground, something cylindrical hitting my hand before I tightly grasped it. My heart caught in my throat while my vision narrowed; I'd never been in this much danger before. It put a smile on my face.
"They said he was pretty messed up, I'm surprised we didn't kill him!" Her cackle echoed like nails on a chalkboard. "That's okay though, because I know he's sitting alone in the hospital right now, barely holding on by a string of hope. I bet he'll be dead by the end of the month, then your parents will have two dead shitheads to bury. Not like they'll miss you, though. No one will."
Silence settled on my shoulders as everything eased. There were whispers, all calling my name— Nina, Nina, Nina, now's your time to shine. It's finally time. I stood slowly, the bar hanging limply at my side as I watched Yoni come into the room. The moment she was clear I pushed the door closed, her phone light whipping around to illuminate me while I gripped the bar tight.
"Uh oh," she giggled to herself, "found you."
"Yeah, you did."
Before she could scream for backup, before anything else could happen I lunged, swinging as hard as I could and the metal collided with her skull, producing a musical crack before she went down. Hard. I didn't stop there though and I whipped it down again and again, laughter echoing as blood splattered across the front of my body. It was so warm. It wasn't until I was sure she was dead that I opened the door, letting out a loud creak through the house before I dropped the bar. Yoni's brains were little more than paint on the walls now and I moved forward, the advantage of darkness reminding me who was in charge here.
"Y-Yoni?!"
The voice came from behind me as I reached the staircase, turning in time to see Claudia looking in on her best friend's corpse before she screamed. It was music to my ears, the grin that split my cheeks almost painful as I descended the steps and went to find Malcolm. I wanted my present back.
"Claudia?!"
There you are.
I dropped the rest of the way over the railing as he came running out from the den, knocking him to the ground and making my knife slip from his hand so that I could grab it. I whipped it out without a moment of hesitation, his pupils nothing more than pinpricks as I gripped his hair tightly in my hand.
"Never take from me," I hissed, "you'll lose more than it's worth."
The knife slid across his throat with ease and a shiver climbed through my body while the blade cut his skin wide open. Malcolm gurgled for a moment before his body lay still, the gleam in his eyes fading to a glassy sheen while I got back to my feet and walked to the kitchen. Kitty was right, two was better than one. I pulled the pink knife from the backpack before I started back to the foyer, my laughter soft and sadistic as I readied myself to face the final bitch. I'd just stepped toward Malcolm's body when I yelped, liquid splashing over my head before a distinct smell distracted me from my onslaught, squeezing my eyes shut to keep it out just as it started to burn. Bleach?
"Nighty-night bitch!"
Time slowed as I watched a match drop in front of my face, hitting the pool at my feet before igniting the bleach. My scream echoed and I could feel my skin burning, my only thought being how to survive; it was painful but I moved, trying desperately to make it back to the window I'd entered from and hitting the ground on the other side hard enough to knock the wind from my lungs. The last thing I was aware of before I passed out was the moon hanging in the sky and the sand beneath my hand as I desperately reached out for help.
I'm sorry Kitty.
Kitty
"Tempe, here we are!"
I hung out the sun roof as we entered city limits Friday morning, the sunshine on my skin and the warm breeze invigorating as it tangled in my hair. I'd always loved coming down here since it was almost never cold during the day, the desert feeling more like home compared to the freezing temperatures up in Utah. Man is it good to be back!
"Get your head in here, someone's going to see you!"
My cackle echoed as Jeff pulled me back into the SUV and and sat my ass down, my giddiness getting the best of me while I kicked my feet around. I'd pulled out a pair of shorts and my favorite ripped up shirt for the occasion, dreaming of those lovely waters and pretty sunsets. Even Thomas seemed excited to be back as he held his hand out the window, tracing shapes while the wind wrapped around his fingers.
"Where should we go first? Her house?" Chelsea asked.
"She's probably at school right now, let's go into town," Jeff suggested, "people were pretty lax last time we were here. Plus with the bodies in Utah they're not going to suspect we're in the area."
"Sounds good enough to me," Chelsea chirped as she turned toward downtown.
I stuck my head out the side window while Jeff shook his at me, moving to tie his hair back and keep him looking semi-normal. His hoodie had been replaced by a gray tank top and the flannel I'd given him ages ago, the sleeves rolled up to reveal the pretty tattoo around his wrist. Meanwhile Thomas milled about in a long sleeve, aviators flipped down over his sockets to hide their emptiness. Jeff took the same route and pulled his from the backpack before perching them stop his head.
We parked somewhere downtown and hopped out, wiggling my shoulders as I walked and took in all the sights. People really didn't pay much attention to us, just like they said, but the longer we stayed around the more I realized there was a reason for that. Something else was going on that had the city uneasy and it slowly crept into our excitement; I gripped Jeff's hand tightly as we walked, keeping my eyes sharp while I tried to spot anything out of the blue. Chelsea stopped us to get some ice cream from a local shop though and came back with enough for everyone, kicking her legs over Thomas's as they sat down on a bench to eat.
"Anyone else feel like something's up?" I asked as I bit down on the sugar cone. "Everyone here seems on edge."
"Let me look up the local news and we'll see," Chelsea offered, Thomas running his fingers through her hair as he happily ate something that wasn't human for once.
"Y'know, now that you mention it I'm noticing it too," Jeff announced when Chelsea suddenly sat up, her eyes wide while she looked at the screen.
"Oh my God," her face had paled considerably as she scrolled, "they called 9-1-1 on a burning house on the outskirts of town last night and they found two bodies inside. Someone bashed a girl's head in with a pipe and...and slit a boys' throat." Everyone tensed as she continued. "A girl came in today and reported to the police that Nina Hopkins had killed her friends."
Everything in my body screamed at me as she said the words. No. No that's not my Nina. The rest of the cone slipped from my hand as I took a deep breath, trying to figure out if I wanted to even believe it or not. Thomas and Jeff looked like they were processing the same emotions before Thomas took his glasses off and leaned forward, his face contorted in disbelief while Jeff shook his head. That was, until he paused and anger washed over him, a scowl that sent a shiver down my spine crossing his face.
"Claudia." Thomas perked up at the name and shared a look of equal rage. "I know who reported to the police. Let's go."
"Wait, shouldn't we you know, try to figure out what's going on?" I sputtered, "we need to go to Nina's house, see if she's there."
"It looks like she has an amber alert out," Chelsea added, "let's go to her house. I can talk to her mom and see what's up."
"Agreed, let's get a move on before we lose more time."