she knows - tara carpenter

꧁seven: the third act꧁

"RUN!" BELLOWED RICHIE and Carson at the same time, Carson pulling Maria out of the room and Richie tugging Sam along with him. Tara and Quinn both reached for Amber's hand as she got ready to shoot at the dispersing crowd, hitting her arm up so she shot into the ceiling instead. She looked at them in astonishment, almost betrayal, mirroring the emotion that filled Quinn like he was a cup.

Carson and Maria had fled into a bathroom, Carson's hand over Maria's mouth as sobs threatened to spill out of her mouth. Her brother and sister had most likely been murdered, and her girlfriend and best friend were trapped in a room with Ghostface herself.

"Carson," she hissed, her voice strained, "Carson..."

"Shh..." hushed Carson, twisting the lock on the doorknob. "It's going to be okay. Quinn and Tara are going to be okay. Remember, Amber wouldn't hurt Quinn no matter what, and she's always loved Tara."

"We need to help them!" Maria cried in a quiet voice. "I-I mean, she could kill someone. She's a psycho!"

"There are always two killers!" Carson ended her argument, and Maria's mouth fell open as she looked at Carson strangely. Then she broke away from him, pressing her back up against the wall.

"Maria..." Carson trailed off as he raised his hands so they were resting on his head. "Maria, you can trust me."

"You were alone when Mindy was attacked." reminisced Maria accusingly.

"So were you." Carson shot back.

"Yeah, because I would kill my own siblings." snarled Maria. "Let me out, I'm going to save Tara and Quinn."

"Maria, you're-"

Maria pulled a kitchen knife out of her sweatshirt pocket, answering Carson's question before he could even ask it. His eyes widened in surprise at her. She put a comforting hand on his shoulder, hesitating before she did so.

"Be safe, okay?" she mumbled before unlocking the door and leaving the bathroom. Carson's heart was in his throat. She could be killed.

Quinn had attempted to free himself and Tara— he'd fought back against Amber, even though every muscle in his body tried not to. However, Amber had pushed him away and fled with Tara. He'd found himself a butcher's knife in the kitchen, and was holding it in front of him as he wandered around, alone, through the eerie house. He knew why Amber hadn't wanted him to go to the party. She'd planned on getting Tara there with whoever the other Ghostface was.

Quinn ducked behind a wall as he heard Amber screaming and crying from the front porch. Every instinct in his body told him to go help her, hold her, and tell her it was going to be alright and that she was safe. But his brain told him to stay where he was.

A gunshot rang out, and Quinn shut his eyes immediately, swallowing as his mouth ran dry. He couldn't see Amber being a murderer. Maybe it was all a dream. Maybe he was just imagining it all.

Quinn heard lots of movement around the house, although he didn't know where it was coming from. He was in her dining room, and he didn't plan on moving, no matter who he heard.

"Anyone hiding, killer or not, you have five seconds to show yourself!" yelled a woman from downstairs, although Quinn couldn't identify the voice. She sounded somewhat familiar, but Quinn still did not stir from his hiding place in the dining room.

Maria was camped out in a bedroom closet upstairs, but as she heard shuffling from outside in the hallway, she quietly tried to sneak out. She knew there was a back staircase into the den where Mindy's body was, although the thought of her possibly-dead sister was driven out of her mind by terror. Each breath came out shakily from her chest as she took one step at a time, covering her mouth with her hand.