Sweet Like Candy (The Series)

Chapter Ten: War

War had broken out in Oak Hills. Myself, Carter, Mallory and Jennifer against Penny, Silas, Minnie and Louis. I felt like it was the battle between good and evil; David Vs. Goliath. There was a sense of urgency surrounding that night. The night had already claimed Harper. Who was next? Which side would reign victorious? I didn't have an answer as I gathered myself up off the floor. The wooden floorboards started to scorch my hands, as the flames from downstairs began to magnify. I scattered to Isaac's bedroom door, where Carter, Mallory and Jennifer were in hiding. The door was locked, so I decided to repeatedly knock and bang on it until one of them opened it. Carter did after about four knocks, as I exhaled a relieved:

"Thank god. Thank god!", as I threw my arms around Carter, entered the dark room, and locked the door shut behind me. The room was dead silent. One could never have guessed that an inferno was raging outside the doors and walls of that room. When I entered the room, I walked over to Mallory and hugged her for a solid thirty seconds. We felt safety in a dangerous place, which was very strange. I glanced over Mallory's shoulders and saw Jennifer Hudson Richards - a woman who's face I had ever only seen on the news. She seemed smaller than on the television. Much smaller, actually. Jennifer walked over to me - wearing a plain gray tee and skinny denim jeans, and stretched her right hand out, introducing herself to me. She didn't need to do that. I knew exactly who she was. I think everybody in the US does really.

"Thank you for coming", I smiled. "Shame about the circumstances", I laughed, as Jennifer bounced back a "it's nothing I haven't experienced before". "How are you? Y'know, after what they did?", she was concerned, her eyebrows burrowed. I sensed a kindness to Jennifer. I saw myself in her. She was obviously referencing my unsolicited, horrendous rape. I felt numbed from it but I didn't want to dwell on that in the house. I wanted to get the fuck out of there - I think everyone did. No, actually, I knew everyone did. I didn't answer Jennifer's question. I rebutted with a determined, "How are we getting out of here?". Carter came up from behind me and grabbed my hand in support and sighed, heavily "There's no way out. The windows are double panned and the fire is downstairs". It felt like they were all accepting defeat in that room. I wasn't ready for that. We could still leave through the front door. I believed we could, anyway.

After a few moments of defeated silence and pondering, Jennifer piped up with a lightbulb moment idea. "Phoebe!", she addressed me. "I looked into your family before I came here and didn't they fake their own deaths in a fire?", she questioned, her eyes lit up with hope. I nodded. "Why don't we give them a taste of their own medicine?", Jennifer asked, rhetorically. "I'm not following. How exactly do we fake our deaths?", I asked, frantic. "From my experience with killers and all the shit that comes with them, I've gotten to know the workers at the New Quay Morgue over in Louisiana. I can get them to send four severely burned bodies. You can't ID a badly burned body. It's near to impossible. And one of my best friend's works in media. I could get her to report our deaths. This is what I do with my business. I've faked my death before. Trust me", spoke Jennifer, incredibly confidently. I wanted to believe every word she said so, naturally, I did. "But, how do we actually get out?", asked Mallory, who was very timid throughout the conversation. "We run".

Carter and I entered Isaac's en suite bathroom, and grabbed four towels as fast as we possibly could, and soaked them under the sink faucets. We hoped the water of the towels would deter the fire's flames from our bodies. I exited the bathroom and handed Jennifer the largest towel, considering it was her idea. She rejected the offer, stating, "You have a kid to think about", emphasizing her kindness. Mallory, Carter, Jennifer and I all had our drenched towels, so we exited the bedroom, with Carter in front, me behind, Mallory third and Jennifer last. As we left the room and opened the door, jet black smoke and red burning flames greeted us. We were all determined to get out, so we rushed through the flames, only receiving minor wounds. The stairs were the trickiest part for me, considering my vagina was still bleeding and painfully swollen from my assault. I, slowly, crept down the stairs, leg by leg, as Mallory and Jennifer skipped me out. Carter, Mallory and Jennifer all managed to escape the burning house without a scratch. I reached the end of the stairs and raced towards the exit, when I felt a hand grab me back - Penny. That bitch. She wanted to drag me back in and die in there. I, however, had other plans. I kicked Penny forcefully in the nose, which forced her to lose her grip, and I escaped the inferno of my former home.