By now, everyone had heard about Quinn Rembarc and her boyfriend's disappearance.
Everyone was looking for her on Phoenix's orders.
No one had found her yet. All of the places that Phoenix had told them to go were empty.
"Let's regroup at Wonderlust Restaurant. We can figure out the next step there." Phoenix reported into her walkie-talkie.
Five minutes later, everyone had piled into the back booth of the restaurant.
"So, now what?" Tanner asked.
"I have no idea. We've checked everywhere." Phoenix slumped her shoulders.
"Not everywhere." Kris pointed out.
"Everywhere that he would be." Phoenix sighed.
"That's not true. What about the theater? Billy's stupid, he's unoriginal. I wouldn't put it past him to take the same spot where Daniel had captured you." Crystal raised her eyebrows.
"So, are we going?" Mimi asked.
"Yeah. It's the only place that we have a lead on." Phoenix stood up.
"Hey! Cancel my order for my milkshake!" Mimi ordered to the waitress.
Phoenix led the group to the side entrance of the theater. She had been going to this place for years. She knew exactly how to get inside without being seen.
"Follow me. Stick close to each other." Phoenix instructed.
It was the same tunnel that Eric and Quinn had walked down before. Phoenix knew exactly where to go, and she led them all to the lobby of the theater.
"Now what?" Mimi whispered.
"Split up into groups of three or four. Try to search the whole place. If you see anything, use the walkie-talkies." Phoenix whispered back.
Mimi, Kris, and Crystal split into a group and checked behind the stage where they normally sat during shows.
Tanner, Manny, Ram, and Slade went into the boy's bathroom in case they had stored Quinn and Eric in there.
Ella, Mona, and Rebecca checked the girl's bathroom.
Phoenix checked the stage and the dressing room. The lobby was clear. She knew that for a fact.
The dressing room was filled with costumes and dust. There were fresh spiderwebs in some of the corners but Phoenix ignored them. The only thing that had her attention was the blood trail that she had been following since the lobby.
A literal blood trail.
There were tiny traces of blood like a path from the lobby to the dressing room, and Phoenix was still following it.
"They have to be here somewhere. If not the lobby or the dressing room, where else?" Phoenix thought to herself.
The trail led back to the lobby.
"A circle?" Phoenix questioned out loud this time.
Apparently Kris, Mimi, and Crystal had the same idea of following the trail. They were in the lobby looking quizzically at the trail as well.
"It's a full circle." Mimi pointed out.
"Duh, but it doesn't make any sense." Phoenix sighed.
"What would Quinn do? She was obviously the smartest." Crystal asked.
"Obviously?" Mimi muttered to herself.
"This blood is fresh." Kris looked at the blood carefully. "It's wet."
Mimi snickered.
"Could you be serious for once?" Phoenix rolled her eyes.
"So, what does the difference make if it's fresh blood?" Crystal asked.
"It means that the blood is new. So, if Quinn or Eric we're hurt, they were just here." Kris explained.
"The secret passage." Phoenix blurted.
"What?" Mimi wondered aloud.
"Billy just took them down the secret passage. That's why it's a full circle. He was probably hiding them somewhere else, and realized we were here, so he took them away!" Phoenix cried in excitement that she figured it out.
"Glad you're happy you figured it out, but shouldn't we go after him?" Kris pointed to the door that led to the passage.
"Guys, come to the lobby, and follow us. We're going to go into the secret passage." Phoenix reported into her walkie-talkie.
"Alright let's go." Crystal led the way.
The passage had a line of blood going all the way down. Phoenix's heart jumped to her throat when she saw Quinn and Eric slumped against the side of the tunnel.
"Run. It's a trap." Quinn moaned as she tried to sit straight up.
They both looked terrible. Cuts and bruises lined their faces, and their clothes were tattered and cut in some areas.
"It's a trap? How?" Kris investigated the area.
"Billy got Alice and Daniel out of the cage, and they're all here. You need to leave right now. They don't want to kill us." Eric spoke quickly. He didn't have a fat lip like Quinn.
"You guys are in pain." Phoenix pointed out.
"We're fine. Now go." Quinn managed to get out.
It was too late. Tanner, Manny, Slade, Ram, Ella, Mona, and Rebecca were already running towards them.
"I got Quinn. Slade and Manny, help Eric." Tanner ran to their sides.
"No guys. Run!" Quinn groaned.
Tanner had already picked her up. Mimi have her a dirty look.
Two metal walls slammed down on either side of the group.
They were trapped.
"That doesn't seem too comforting." Mimi looked around.
Tanner put Quinn back down on the ground and looked at the walls.
"Stainless steel. We won't be able to get out unless someone lets us out." Tanner reported.
"Well, that's not good." Phoenix sighed hopelessly.
"I tried to tell you." Quinn grinned.
"Well at least we'll die together." Mimi groaned.
"We're not going to die." Eric stood with some difficulty.
"Oh how very wrong you are." Billy yelled from the other side of the wall. He must've pushed a button because the walls lifted to reveal Billy, Alice, and Daniel surrounding them. They wouldn't be able to leave without going through them.
"I thought we were done with you all." Crystal rolled her eyes.
"You thought wrong. I outsmarted all of you." Billy laughed happily.
"Shut up Billy." Alice raised her eyebrows.
"Yeah. Of course." Billy shrank back into a corner.
"Why do you care about having us all captured so much?" Mimi asked.
"You guys are the one thing holding Wonderlust together." Daniel narrowed his eyes.
"Awe thanks." Ram grinned.
"We need to destroy you that way Wonderlust has no hope." Daniel exclaimed.
"You can never destroy us." Eric croaked from the corner.
"Really? Watch us." Daniel laughed.
