SKYFALL | Tara Carpenter

CHAPTER TWELVE: they're still up there!

Max and Tara were in the kitchen, cooking for the group as the others were doing their own thing. Max stared at her girlfriend, admiring her. "What?" Tara chuckled. "Nothing." Max shrugged.

She walked over to her and hugged her, while Mindy fake gagged. "Ugh, will you two just make out already?" She said. "Sure, Mindy. I mean, if that's really what you want." Max giggled at Mindy's reaction.

"Sam? We do not have to stay here." Mindy said to Sam, who walked in the kitchen. "Well, too bad. I insist. Safety in numbers." She grabbed a bottle of wine. "It could be so fun, little slumber party with the core five."

"Core five?" Sam questioned. "Did you just give us a nickname?" Max cringed. "I sure did." He chuckled. "We've been through a lot together and it's a pretty cool nickname."

"That's debatable." Max said. "Extremly debatable." Tara agreed. "You can't just give yourself a nickname, dingus."

"Of course I can, dingus, because I just did. Core five up top." He raised his hand towards Mindy. "No." Mindy said. "Down low." He put his hand to Tara and Max. "Get that away from us." Tara smiled. "Please for the love of god." He begged Sam.

"Don't do it." Mindy chuckled. "You know, I would actually like more respect and support from my fellowe members of core five."

"Guys. What the hell." Anika called them. "We're hearing from sources inside the homicide division that the prime suspect is none other than Samantha Carpenter, one of the survivors of Woodsboro killings in 2022, seen here attacking a woman on the street last night."

They showed the video from after the party, when Sam was shouting at the girl who threw her drink at Sam.

The reporter kept talking about Sam, until Sam turned it off and walked to the table, as Tara and Max walked after her.

"I know you're not a fan of the way me or Max have been handeling things. But I know that none of us can relate to what you're experiencing. And I'm really really sorry you have to do that alone."

"It's not your fault. And I know I shouldn't care what people think, but it just sucks being this hated." The twins joined them.

"Hey. Hey. Just a reminder, not a single person in this room hates you. Okay? We have all been through some fucked up stuff, and we're coping with it differently. But, I mean, we moved here together for one very specific reason. We're a team."

"We are the Core fucking Five." Mindy said. "Thank you very much." He high fived her. "Ah, I hate myself."

"You said it." Tara nodded. "That's what I'm talking about. It's the Core Five." Chad smiled. "Say it." Mindy turned to Max. "No way."

She turned to Tara. "I'm not gonna say it. I mean, yes, we're a team, but...." They all laughed. "I've been sleeping with Cute Boy from across the hall."

"I fucking knew it!" Tara clapped. "Nice." Max nodded with a grin. "You called it." Mindy laughed. "I knew it from the day you had that hickey."

They kept laughing and talking about some stupid stuff, until they all got a message at the same time and Max's phone started ringing. She picked up and they all looked at her.

"Hello?"

"Hello, Maxine. Did you miss me?" Max's eyes watered and she hung up. "Who was it?" Tara asked, when she saw the state she was in. "Ghostface. Look at the message."

They all did so and when they looked at it, they saw Quinn being attacked by Ghostace. They quickly got up and Tara and Max tried to run into Quinn's room, but Chad stopped them. "Run."

Ghostface threw Quinn's lifeless body at Anika. Chad grabbed Tara's and Max's hand and dragged them out of the apartment.

They ran down the stairs, but then, they heard a gut wrenching screa. "Tara! Chad! They're still up there!" Max ran up. "Oh shit!"

"Sam!" Max and Tara anged on the door. "Do you have keys?" Chad asked them. "No, I left them inside!" Tara screamed with tears in her eyes. 

-

They all sat in ambulances, trying to process everything that happened. Max had her head on Mindy's shoulder, trying to comfort her, after she just lost her lover.

Ethan than made his way to them, but Chad took him and pinned him againts a van. "Where were you?" He questioned. "What? When?"

"Last night." He specified. "I had econ. You know this." He defended himself. "Bullshit, man. You dissapeared, my sister almost gets killed."

"Dude, I was in a study hall with a hundered other people, you can ask any of them." He said and Chad let him go. "Oh my god. Who?"

"Anika and Quinn." Chad told him. "Mindy, I'm so sorry." He walked towards them. "Step the fuck back. You're on the top of my list." She said. "I had econ!"

"Tara." Max said when she noticed Mr. Bailey walking out of the apartment. "We're gonna be right back." Mindy nodded at them. "I'm really sorry about Quinn."

"Thank you." He cried. "Both my kids are gone. My whole family is gone." He wiped his tears. "They took me off the case. But I'm not gonna stop until I find him. You fuck with my family, you die."

"Agreed." Sam said and Gale ran up to them. "Hey! You okay? I came as soon as I heard." Sam turned to her. "Gale, I swear to god."

"Truce, okay? I'm here for whatever you need." She said. "Yeah, okay. Nice try." Sam scoffed. "Really, I am. Okay, fine. Off the record, okay? 

"Okay. Thank you." Sam sighed. "I'm sorry I punched you." Max slowly said. "No, you're not." Gale shook her head and Max smiled. "I'm not."

"You're the cop, right?" Detective Bailey nodded. "I did some digging on your first two victims and I found something. I know where the masks are coming from." Gale said and they heard sirens. "Show me."

"Ladies." Kirby walked towards them. "Kirby?" Gale scoffed. "Gale." Kirby smiled at her. "She's with the FBI." Max told Gale. "She's a child. When did they start letting children into FBI."

"I'm thirty." She smiled. "Well, you look like a zyagot." Gale told her. "I have a gun, Gale." She showed it. "Okay, fine. You're gonna wanna see this too."