hidden. That was a safe place. The freaks hadn’t found them there. She’d go back to that room, curl up in the darkness, and just go to sleep for a little while. When she woke up again, things would be better. She’d be able to think clearer.
Smiling at the prospect, Kerri began softly humming the beat of a song from the concert they’d seen earlier in the evening. She crossed the cavern, not bothering to be furtive or cautious. Nothing could touch her now. She had a hiding place in mind, and she’d be okay.
It wasn’t until her humming turned into quiet giggles, that Kerri realized what she was doing. Stifling herself, she shook her head, trying to clear it. A new wave of terror washed over her. Was she crazy? Had she snapped? Or was this just some kind of delayed shock—a bizarre reaction to the pressure of the situation? Kerri became aware that she was trembling and that her arms were wrapped around her shoulders, squeezing tightly. She’d twirled her hair with her fingers and then chewed on it, the way she’d done when she was a little girl. She forced herself to stop it and tried to shake the dread threatening to overwhelm her.
She straightened up and started walking again. Her hand trailed over the wall, partly for guidance and partly for comfort. A prayer came to mind, and she opened her mouth to recite it. Then she crushed it instead, before it could form. If the Lord existed, then He had a lot to answer for, as far as Kerri was concerned. She would never forgive the people—things—who had killed her friends, and she would not allow herself to forgive God either. Just because He’d written the rules, that didn’t mean He got to break them. Some sins were inexcusable. What He’d allowed to happen to them tonight was at the top of the list.
Kerri reached the cellar without incident, emerging into it from a large crack in the wall. Red clay squished between her fingers as she entered the dank room. She wiped her hands on her pants, glancing down as she did so. When she looked up again, there was a figure standing in front of her.
Kerri screamed, and the figure rushed toward her and clamped its hand over her mouth. Its palm was coated with dirt and dried blood, as was the rest of its body. It wore clothing, but the garments were almost invisible beneath the grime and gore. So were its facial features. She didn’t recognize Javier until he spoke, and even then she wasn’t sure.
“K-Kerri?”
His voice was strained and hoarse. Kerri struggled against him, and he pressed his hand tighter against her mouth.
“Sssshhhh. Kerri, don’t! It’s me. It’s me, Kerri. Javier.”
She stopped resisting and let her body go slack. Javier slowly removed his hand from her mouth, and Kerri stared at him, gasping. She took one faltering step backward.
“It’s me,” he whispered again, holding up his hands in reassurance. “Are you okay?”
“Oh my God . . . Javier?”
“Yeah, it’s me. It’s really me.”
“Holy shit. I can’t believe . . .”
She ran to him and wrapped her arms around him, ignoring the blood and filth. She squeezed him tightly, and Javier returned the gesture. Neither of them broke the embrace.
“Are you okay?” he asked again.
Kerri nodded against his chest. “Yeah. Cuts and scratches, mostly. I almost got . . .” She tried to say
“Most of it isn’t mine.”
“But your wrists. Jesus Christ, that looks really bad, Javier.”
“They’re fine. I’m fine. They’ve clotted now. Soon as we get out of here, I’ll go to the hospital and get some disinfectant and a few stitches and be good to go.”
Kerri’s spirits soared, and her head cleared. “Did you find a way out?”
“Yeah. I was looking for you guys in areas that I hadn’t been to yet, but then I got the idea to come back up here, thinking that maybe one of you had circled back around or hid here all along. But, yeah, I found a way out. There’s a sewer tunnel. These things living down here hacked their way into it. It’s got a little river running through it. We can follow the water, after we find Heather and Brett.”
“Is it far?”
“Bit of a hike, but I remember the way. Have you seen the others?”
“Well . . . Brett’s dead.”
“Oh, shit. Are you sure?”
Kerri nodded, wiping her eyes. “Pretty sure. That thing, Noigel—the one who killed Steph and Tyler—had Brett when we all ran away. He smashed Brett against the wall right below the basement stairs. Brett stopped screaming after that.”
“Goddamn it.”
“Yeah. I should have . . . I should have helped him, but I couldn’t.”
“It’s okay.” Javier smoothed her hair. “What about Heather? She’s got to be okay. Have you seen her?”
“No. Not since we all got split up.”
“She’s right here,” said a voice in the darkness.
Startled, Kerri and Javier broke their embrace and glanced frantically into the gloom. The voice was distinct. Rough and gravely.
“Scug,” Javier said. “You sick fuck.”
Chuckling, Scug stepped out of the shadows, carrying Heather’s decapitated head in one hand. Her glazed eyes stared sightlessly. Her mouth was open, as if begging for help. One of her cheeks had been torn so that it hung down in a flap of loose skin. Her cheeks were the color of bruised fruit. Strands of tissue dangled down from her mangled neck.
Javier closed his eyes and sighed. Kerri’s hands went to her face. Her fingernails dug into her cheeks as she stared at her friend’s head in horror.
“So you two recognize her then?” Scug asked. “Good. That’s real good. Had a hell of a time getting her head back from the rest of the garbage. They wanted her for themselves, you know? But that’s how the trash are. Greedy little bastards. That’s why we keep them down there. By the time I got to her, this was all that was left. Damn shame, really. I was going to use the rest of her, too. Ain’t got any use for just her head, except to maybe put it on the end of my pecker and dance around a little. Maybe fuck the neck hole. What do you say there, lover boy? Want to give her one last go?”
“Fuck you.” Javier’s voice was thick with grief, barely a whisper.
Scug laughed. “Not so tough without your little belt, huh? You’ve caused us a lot of trouble tonight. Don’t know how you got away. You were supposed to be skinned and gutted by now.”
“Shit happens.” Javier stepped between Kerri and Scug, putting Kerri behind him. “That’s always sort of been my philosophy. You and your sick friends really put it to the fucking test tonight, though. Anyway, yeah, I escaped. Sorry to disappoint you. I killed your two nasty-ass girlfriends, though, before I got away. They died slow.”
Scug shrugged. “Plenty more where they come from. I may even have a turn with the little miss standing there behind you.”
“Not tonight, you won’t. You’ll have to go through me.”
“I’m gonna go through you anyway, boy. Gonna slit your belly open and pull out your guts and show them to you. Then I’m gonna squeeze the shit out of them and smear it all over you before you die.”
“Kerri.” Javier kept his voice calm and level. “Run for the stairs. Don’t stop.”
“But you said the river—”
“You’ll never find it yourself. Now get going. I’ve got him.”
“Javier, you can’t!”
“Do you see what he has in his hand?” Javier exploded. “Go, goddamn it!”
Kerri turned and ran. When she glanced back, Scug and Javier were still facing one another. She dashed on, and when she turned around again, both men had been lost in the darkness. She looked for the stairs and found them. Panicked, she didn’t see Brett’s corpse until she tripped over it. Kerri went sprawling across the stone floor, scraping the skin on her knees and elbows. Crying, she glanced over at what was left of her friend. His skull had
