Chapter 39/Episode 3: What If?

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No, I can't let this happen to mom. I have to stay. I crawl out from under the table and stand up, moving the tablecloth ever so slightly as I do it.

"4...3...2-There you are, Max. I was afraid I would have to kill yet another person."

"I'm here, so let her go." I say confidently.

"Don't do this Max! Just get out of here."

"No, Max is trying to save you. She's being a true everyday hero." He laughs. "Don't worry, I'll be able to take your picture later. We'll have all the time in the world." That's so fucking eerie.

"Just let her go, ok? Take me instead." He throws her to the ground and runs up and grabs me, then he drives the barrel of the gun into the side of my skull. It's cold and painful, but that's not really my main problem here.

"Good. Any objections?" They're silent. "So we're all on board with this? Excellent, this was easier than I thought." Chloe crawls out from under the table and over to Mark's feet. She lunges something into his left ankle. "Oww, fuck that hurts! You're gonna die, bitch!" He pulls the trigger and a bullet flies out, landing in Chloe's forehead, once again. He moves his arm and pulls the trigger again, sending a bullet straight into mom's forehead.

"Mom?! Chloe?! You killed them you bastard!" I starts to cry. No Max, you have to keep it together. I have to be strong.

"We have to go, the cops will be here soon. Get her keys." He pushes me onto her. Oh my god, they're dead, and I can't do anything about it. I search her pockets and pull the out. I'll get revenge for you two, I promise. I grab her necklace and put it in my pocket. "Give them to me." I get back up and hand him the keys. I look down and see he still has that thing in him. By the looks of it, it appears to be a steak knife. That has to be pretty fucking painful. Maybe I can use that to my advantage. "Walk." He says while putting the gun closer to me. We walk outside and go to the truck. He gets into the passenger side, so I guess I'm driving. I get in and put the key in. The truck roars and I back out of the driveway. "Just drive." He says. I drive down the road, with Mark still pointing his gun at me.

"...Why are you doing this?" I ask quietly.

"I couldn't let someone like you get away from me. You're so innocent and perfect, you are any photographers dream model. Plus, I had to find you again before you lost your innocence, as everyone does eventually." He has some sick obsession with innocence. How does someone even develop something like that? "You should be flattered, Maxine. Even someone as exquisite as Rachel couldn't beat your innocence. She was too good to be true. I should have known that someone that beautiful was bound to not be very innocent."

"So you just killed her?"

"I didn't. Nathan did, remember?" He says it like he didn't mean it. Of course he didn't, he knows that I know that he was the one that killed her. "And if you don't do as I say, you'll end up in the same situation, but we won't have to do that, will we? I really don't want to. I came all the way up here just to get you again, you're my prize, Maxine." Fuck that. I am not a deer and Jefferson the hunter, or something like that.

"It's Max, not Maxine."

"You certainly have guts, talking back to someone who's holding a gun to your head." We drive up to a large parking lot. "This is good. Pull in here." I drive into the empty lot and park in the middle. "Have a nice nap, Max." He raises the gun above me and hits it against my head. Everything goes black, for a second. Then I see Chloe.

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