Murderville - Audrey Jensen

Chapter 28 - Surviving

(Warnings : Nothing really, light mentions of blood

Word Count : 1012

Song : Quiet Day, Fort Lean)

Vicki watched in the light of the early morning rays of sun as busy adults rushed by her. The wailing of sirens could be heard as more and more help arrived at the scene. Her friends were all being tended to, sharing isolated moments of peace together. The girl herself was next to her cousin and Audrey in the middle of the operation, looking around in happiness.

This is what surviving looks like.

Almost all of the people she knew were covered in blood and injured in some way. All wore the same sad but relieved expression on their face, barely talking above a whisper.

"You got your classic showdown at the lake, tying together the past and present" Noah smiled, it was just as he had thought it would be, except a lot more terrifying.

"And Survivor Girl in the back of an ambulance, just like somebody predicted" Audrey nodded, arms folded over her chest.

"Exactly!" Noah tilted his head "Except today, we're all sitting in the back of the ambulance together. Well, not literally, 'cause then we wouldn't all fit, but you know what I mean"

"I do" Audrey agreed "I'm just glad I saw Em run into the woods. I almost lost her"

She turned to Vicki, taking one of the girl's cold hands.

"And you" she added.

"My little saviour" Vicki lent against the girl, making Audrey beam proudly.

"You were a genuine crime-fighting hero tonight, Bi-Curious" Noah joked.

"Right back at you, Virgin" Audrey replied.

The three embraced in a long group hug, glad that they were all still around to do so. Audrey let out a small noise of pain, making the other two frown.

"Are you okay?" Noah asked.

"Not really" Audrey shook her head, admitting defeat.

"We gotta get you checked out, both of you" He decided, pulling both girl's over to a nearby ambulance "Come on. Excuse me, sir!"

The EMT turned around, instantly noticing Audrey's wounds and Vicki's weak demeanour.

"In you get" He motioned to the pair, making Vicki groan.

"Hospital trip round two" she deadpanned "yay!"

***

After returning home from their brief hospital trip to a very distressed Marie, both Vicki and Noah wanted nothing more than to have a shower and lay around.

Vicki found comfort in washing away the blood from her head wound and any lake water that still clung to her. For once, she wasn't that afraid of the water.

Last time she had drowned she was alone when she came back. She had wandered through life uncertainty, unsure of where she was meant to be and if she was even meant to be alive.

But now, she knew she had a place, and people that loved her probably too much for their own good. And maybe, just maybe, they would stay.

Sitting on her bed with damp hair, girl listened to Noah's voice through her open door from her bedroom, barely able to hear the words over the relaxed music she was playing.

"Hey, guys, this is Noah Foster, local student and survivor of the Lakewood Slasher murders, guest podcasting the final chapter of Autopsy of a Crime for your former host...the now deceased criminal mastermind behind the killings, Piper Shaw"

Vicki smiled, knowing all too well that the boy was loving this.

"So having made it to the end of our very own slasher movie, I think we're all processing what we've lost and how to move on. Staring death in the face has a way of making you wanna be a little more forgiving"

"You got that right" the girl muttered, moving off of her bed so she stood in front of her very first painting, the first thing she had done when she moved in.

It didn't seem right now, the painting expressed a time in her life which she had moved on from. Being pulled out of that Lake had changed her almost, like a rebirth.

"No more fear" she clenched her fist before moving to grab her paints. She listened to the rest of Noah's talk as she worked.

"Maybe we'll find that the loss of someone we loved may lead to the promise of someone new. Maybe we'll see this as a second chance to do thing differently and make a change for the good. Or to wipe the slate clean and re-invent ourselves as someone new. At the end of the day, we're all just grateful that it's over and that the Lakewood Slasher is dead. But there's still one thing I can't figure out. Piper Shaw confessed her crimes in classic villain fashion...but she didn't explain who attacked her and Will Belmont. I mean, sure, she could've banged herself on the head and made up the story, but Will confirmed it later. Much as I love a good Hollywood ending, I can't help but wonder...who was wearing the mask that night? Am I just overthinking it? Or is there more to come?"

"God I hope not" Vicki lent back, looking at her handy-work proudly. She had fixed the painting.

The weight on the figures ankle was still there, but now a hopeful golden string of light was wrapped around their wrist, pulling them back to the surface. Floating to the right of the sun was a little tugboat where the string was held in the hands of a few black figures. They were pulling her back up.

"Nice" Noah commented form the doorway, making the girl turn around "Very optimistic"

"I thought I'd take a page out of your book and do the whole hopeful thing" the girl joked, wiping at the smudge of yellow paint on her cheek.

He walk over and placed one arm over her shoulder, still staring at the painting.

"Fist bump?" He held out his fist.

"Obviously" she chuckled, the boy making a little explosion sound as he hit her pale fist.

"We're gonna be okay, aren't we?" He asked after a moment of silence.

"Yeah, I think so" Vicki nodded, grinning "Everything's gonna be okay"

Oh how wrong they were.