missing. - finney blake

⭒ chapter 13

i felt finney lift his head up from mine. he looked around the room. he sat up and scooted to the edge of the bed while i groaned.

i sat up as well and moved to beside him. i rubbed my eyes and looked around.

i saw him take out his rocket flashlight. he slowly shined it around the room and over to the phone.

he shined it against the wall, directed it down to the ground and up again. there was a line of rust, or... blood?

we both followed the light. until it landed on something. someone.

someone floated in the air, as if possessed. we jumped back. holy shit. the person slowly turned to us. blood spilling from their neck.

blood was spilling onto the floor below them. finney set his hand on my knee, but didn't move it.

the person slowly lifted their hand up and pointed it to the phone on the wall. we turned around and got up.

i locked my fingers with finneys. no way was i going alone.

finney picked up the phone. there was a scatter behind us and we turned around but saw nothing.

"hello?" finney asked. "hello?" again.

"you don't have much time." said a voice over the phone. oh good to know.

"the grabber hasn't been sleeping. he thinks this might be it. that he's gonna figure it out."

"who's gonna figure it out?"

"his brother upstairs."

"are you griffin?"

"who?"

"griffin stagg"

"probably. it's all a little hazy, but i imagine you guys know all our names."

"every kid does. i didn't know you, i don't think y/n did."

"nobody did. you spend so many years invisible, and then every kid in the state knows your name. you don't have much time."

"why hasn't he killed either of us?"

"you two won't play the game. you have to play the game. or one of you has. if you don't play, he can't win."

"what game?"

"naughty boy. or in this case, naughty girl too. if you don't play naughty boy, the grabber can't beat you. same goes for y/n. and if he can't beat either of you, he can't move on to the next part. and the next part of naughty boy is his favorite part."

a moment of silence.

"what's the next part?"

the voice over the phone only laughed.

"you don't have much time" sternly.

"you said that"

"he's not been sleeping."

"you said that, too"

"yeah well, he is now. in his chair. he passed out waiting for you to play."

"what good does that do to us- wait. the door is still unlocked."

"the door is still unlocked!" i said, with...hope?

"do we just go?" finney asked as he started breathing quicker, now gripping my hand as tight as possible.

"there's a combination lock on the inside of the storm door. it was my bike lock."

"your bike lock?"

"yeah. he took it when he took me."

"what's the combination?"

"i don't remember"

"griffin!"

"i remember being afraid i'd forget it. that's why i wrote it down."

"what? where?"

"i carved it with a bottle cap in the wall."

"which wall?? which wall?!"

"the one on the right. about shoulder height when youre sitting down."

immediately i let go of finneys hand and dashed over to the right wall. i sat down on the ground. finney sat on the bed and watched.

i started looking up and down the wall until i found a code.

"23317" i said and repeated it a few times. so did finney.

finney picked up the phone again. "23317?"

"if you say so."

"but is it 23-31-7 or 23-3-17 or 2-33-17?"

"i can't remember."

"griffin!"

come on.

"i can't remember! you'll have to try them all. and you'll have to be very quiet about it."

"yeah. okay. thanks."

and he hung up the phone.