UNMASKED.

chapter 10.

elena found herself seated in the back of an ambulance, her mind still reeling from the horrific events that had unfolded moments earlier.

sitting off to the side, elena busied herself by helping those who needed it while the others were being treated, although she was unharmed. the silence hung heavily in the air, the loss of anika weighing heavily on everyone, especially mindy, who had lost her girlfriend.

the incident had shown that no one was safe, not even those seemingly untouched by the horrors of woodsboro. elena had been held tightly in hugs by both tara and mindy for a good fifteen minutes, the three finding comfort in each other's presence.

elena took a few sips from the cool water, the refreshing liquid helping to calm her nerves. she then took her phone from her pocket and began to type a message.

"hi." she wrote, her fingers tapping against the screen.

"hey, how are you holding up?" carter replied, his concern evident through the text. elena smiled faintly, appreciating the concern in his message.

"i'm okay, just a bit shaken up." she typed back, her words betraying the lingering fear and shock that still shown through her body.

elena was pulled out of her thoughts when suddenly, her attention was drawn to the sound of approaching footsteps. looking up, she spotted carter, casually walking towards the group after ducking under the yellow caution tape.

a small smile formed on her lips as she recognized him, her eyes following carter's movements as he approached the group.

chad's aggressive demeanor was shown as he forcefully grabbed carter by the collar of his jacket and slammed carter's back against the side of a nearby car. "where the fuck were you?" he demanded, his intense gaze fixed on him.

"what? when?" he asked, his confusion evident as chad continued to hold him against the car.

"last night!" chad repeated firmly, showing no signs of loosening his grip. he glanced down at chad's hand with a wince.

"i had econ!" carter responded defensively, although he was lying through his teeth.

carter continued his defense, attempting to convince chad that he was telling the truth, "even ask elena! i texted her!" he pointed out, hoping that elena could vouch.

just as carter finished speaking, elena tried to stop this conversation, calling out to chad. "chad—" she tried to say.

chad remained unconvinced, his frustration evident. "bullshit, man!" he exclaimed, "you disappear, and my sister almost gets killed!"

"dude." carter held his words and sounding honest, maintaining a calm tone. "i was in a study hall with a hundred other people. you can ask any of them."

elena looks him me and then at chad, "he's telling the truth, chad. he texted me last night, saying he was at econ."

chad finally releases his grip on carter's collar, his expression still annoyed. "fine, man." he mutters, accepting elena's backing.

he was so focused on his thoughts that he didn't immediately register what chad had said. however, once the words sunk in, carter's eyes widened in shock. "oh, my god." he muttered.

"anika." elena spoke softly, her lips forming a frown as she glanced over at the covered body of her friend. "and quinn." chad added, his voice filled with sadness and disbelief.

carter took a few steps forward to join the group and to apologize to mindy by saying, "mindy, i'm so sorry..." but her harsh tone stopped carter in his tracks. "stay the fuck back!" she demanded, her glare fixed on him. "you're at the top of my suspect list."

carter looked at her, a mixture of confusion and hurt on his face. "i had econ!" he tried to explain once more, hoping that they would believe him.

chad averted his eyes from carter's gaze, confirming that he also didn't believe him. he felt his heart sink as he realized his friends thought he was lying.

elena stood silently next to carter, her eyes shifting between mindy and him.

carter continued to defend himself, his voice filled with disappointment and frustration. "i had econ!" he repeated, his shoulders slumped as it became clear that his friends didn't trust him.

elena turns towards carter, a concerned expression on her face. "i believe you." she says softly, her eyes meeting his.

mindy becomes annoyed as she overhears elena's words. she gives elena a glare and demands, "take him somewhere else."

elena glances at mindy, understanding the request, and nods her head. she turns to carter, gesturing for him to follow her.