Partners in Crime-Eddie Munson x OC

Chapter 24

We all rode in a tense silence down the road. The moment to start our plan of action was really here now, and I think it was safe to say we were all terrified.

It had been decided that Lucas and Erica were going to watch over Max as she lured in Vecna. I protested that with everything I had, but my efforts did nothing. The fact remained that they would be in our Hawkins, where I was on the wanted list, so it was better if I went with Eddie and Dustin in the Upside Down. It was a fair point, but that didn't mean I had to like it.

Steve slowed the RV down to a stop on the curb of the Creel house. I leapt out of my seat to wrap Max in a quick, tight embrace before she, Lucas, and Erica stepped outside and marched up to the house.

Once they were inside, Steve continued up the road and we returned to a wooded area near Eddie's trailer. Nancy went over the plan once more.

"Okay, I wanna run through it one more time." Nancy turned around and looked at each of us. "Phase one?"

"We meet Erica at the playground. She'll signal Max and Lucas when we're ready." Robin held her eye contact.

"Phase two?"

"Max baits Vecna," I tried keeping my voice as even as possible as I said the words aloud. "He'll go after her, which'll put him in his trance."

"Phase three?"

Dustin leaned forward and gestured to Eddie and me. "Me, Eddie, and Helena draw the bats away."

"Four?"

"We head into Vecna's newly bat-free lair and," Robin swirled her Molotov cocktail around. "flambé."

"Nobody moves on to the next phase until we've all copied. Nobody deviates from the plan no matter what. Got it?" Nancy surveyed the room, making sure to give all of us a pointed look.

"Got it." We agreed in unison.

We stood and gathered our weapons, filing out of the RV one by one. Nancy and Steve took the lead to march through the woods toward the trailer. I could feel my hands starting to shake nervously as I clutched a spear and shield. Eddie must've noticed because he grabbed my free hand and held it tightly.

"We got this. Wheeler's plan is fool-proof," He says, his voice stripped of its usually hint of humor.

I bit my lip and nodded up at him. Regardless of whether or not I believed we had a fighting chance, this was no time to get cold feet. Nerves led to mistakes.

As we neared the edge of the forest, we broke into a jog to minimize the amount of time we spent in the open. It was dark enough outside that we could make it unseen if we hurried.

Steve quietly opened the trailer door and ditched his backpack. I had to admit, I was glad he was going to go first through the gate.

"Be careful." Dustin advised Steve.

"Thanks, buddy. Here goes nothing." Steve sucked in a breath and started to climb up the rope. He inched his way up and then managed to flip down and land on his feet. He looked up at us, clearly a little proud of himself, and gave a little shrug.

"Wooow, what does he want us to do? Applaud?" Robin rolled her eyes, looking between Nancy and me.

On the other side, he dragged the mattress back under the gate. "Alright, let's go."

Robin bent down on one knee to give Nancy a boost up. Next, we tossed some backpacks of supplies over. Then Eddie went through. Next was me. Then came the shields, Robin, the spears, and finally Dustin. The poor boy looked pretty shaken after he crossed over, so much so that Steve and Eddie practically had to haul him upright.

"Not as fun the second time," I brushed my jeans off and stretched.

"Agreed," Robin nodded with fearful eyes.

As soon as we stepped out of the trailer, I immediately wished we hadn't returned. Don't get me wrong, I loved horror movies and Halloween and spooky shit, but something about actually living it was ten times more terrifying. Especially when the possibility of dying was highly likely.

"Hey, guys, listen. If things here start to go south, I mean, at all, you abort. Okay? Draw the attention of the attention of the bats. Keep them busy for a minute or two. We'll take care of Vecna." Steve warned Eddie, Dustin, and I. "Don't try to be cute or be a hero or something, okay? You guys are just-"

"Decoys," Dustin finished for him, obviously tired of the lecture. "Don't worry, you can be the hero, Steve."

"Absolutely, I mean, look at us. We are not heroes." Eddie huffed a bitter laugh, but something in his tone made me very uneasy.

Steve looked satisfied with our responses and turned to catch up with Robin and Nancy.

"Hey, Steve?" Eddie called, causing Steve to stop and turn around. "Make him pay."

The two of them shared a nod and some knowing look. Steve turned back and the three of them started walking ahead, heading towards Vecna's lair.

Eddie, Dustin, and I leapt into action to get Eddie's trailer ready for our phase of the plan. Eddie got to work setting up a fence to stop the bats, or at the very least slow them down. Dustin and I started drilling up some metal sheets over the windows. Once everything was bat-proofed, we stepped back to admire our work.

"Not bad," Eddie smirked.

"Not bad at all." Dustin agreed with a smile.

"I think you missed a spot," I leaned over and whispered to the younger boy.

He scoffed. "Did not!"

I shrugged, but ending up chuckling pretty quickly because it was hard to act serious when Dustin has his angry face on.

Eddie placed his hands on both Dustin and I'd shoulders. "Come on, now for the fun part!"

This did bring out a genuine grin on my face. As scary as the situation was, I couldn't lie and say that I wasn't a little excited for Eddie's little concert. We raced off together towards the trailer to gather the supplies for the show.

Eddie threw open the door to his bedroom and froze in his tracks. "Jesus..." He trailed off, slowly stepping towards our target. "It's like she was destined for an alternate dimension."

I followed closely behind him, admiring the sight of his guitar. I'd always loved it. The crackling red and black coloring was wicked, not to mention the unique shape of it in general. I used to dream about having an electric guitar when I was younger, and I was dead set that a cherry sunburst-colored Les Paul was the coolest out there. Seeing Eddie's guitar now, though, the only thing untouched by the vines, made me change my mind. It was like some sort of prized treasure in an Indiana Jones movie with the way that it sat there.

"What do you say? Are you two ready for the most metal concert in the history of the world?" Eddie asked, picking up his guitar carefully.

"That a rhetorical question?" Dustin grinned cheekily.

I lightly poked the kid's arm before smiling at Eddie. "Fuck yeah, let's raise some hell, Munson."

"Let's do it." He slung the guitar around on his back and we hurried to set up for phase three.

•••••

A/N: Now you may be asking yourself, did the author just refer to her own guitar as the main characters childhood favorite? Yes, yes I did. For reasons.

Anyways, sorry for my little interruption lol. I hope you're all enjoying the story so far!