Dead End >> c.h au

Chapter Thirteen

        “No!” Sally shrieked. “No, Mikey!” She and Calum had been transported to the ballroom again, leaving Michael behind. They both pounded on the wall.

                “Looks like I’m winning so far,” Leo said behind them.

                Sally spun around with fire in her eyes. She had never hated something so deeply and so completely as she hated Leo. “You bastard.”

                Leo blushed. “How sweet,” he mumbled.

                “You already killed two of my best friends,” Sally continued. Her entire being radiated power. She felt unstoppable. “Why the hell did you take Michael, too?”

                “Well, I’m going to end up taking all of you eventually,” he shrugged. “I just figured I’d do it gradually.”

                “You’re disgusting,” Sally spat. She moved towards him but Calum held her back. He was shaking with both grief and fear. He had just lost another best friend, but he needed to stay strong for Sally. If he could save her, he would.

                “You didn’t honestly think you would win, did you?” Leo asked. “Oh, that’s adorable. They always think they’ll get out. But, you can never beat me. As long as the hotel’s here, I’m here. And I’m not planning on going anywhere else.”

                Leo vanished as soon as he finished speaking. Sally dashed forward and clawed at the space he had just occupied. She cried out in frustration. She punched the walls and fell onto the ground heavily. She cried and yelled. She expected Calum to be doing the same, but he wasn’t.

                Calum was staring in front of him with tears in his eyes. Ashton and Luke were standing in front of him, and this time Michael was with them. “Mikey…”

                Sally looked up and gasped when she saw them. “Oh my god,” she cried. “You’re—you’re here. How…?”

                The boys flickered between normal, healthy colouring and the infamous pale blue of the dead. Sally bit her lip to keep from crying out. That confirmed her suspicions. Michael was dead, too.

                “We only have three minutes before Leo comes back,” Luke explained and hurried across the marble floor to the bar. “Cal, come here, I need your help.”

                “I can’t wait to watch that bitch burn,” Michael said with gritted teeth.

                Ashton knelt down in front of Sally and placed his hand over hers, but it went right through. “Hey Scooter,” he smirked sadly. Sally couldn’t speak.

                “Ash, get the lighter,” Luke called from the bar. Calum was standing next to him placing liquor bottles onto the counter.

                “Why do you need the lighter?” Sally questioned. She looked back to Luke and Calum and saw Calum pull his shirt over his head. “What’s going on?”

                “As long as the hotel’s here, Leo’s here,” Michael clarified. Sally was still confused.

                 “Yes, thank you for reminding me that we’re going to die no matter how hard we try,” she choked.

                Michael didn’t even react. “No, that means we can win.”

                Sally drew her eyebrows together in confusion. “What?”