“Your choice,” Noelle said with a shrug.
Kiran hesitated. The four of us stared her down as we waited for her to make a decision. Finally, with a heaving sigh, she drew her stun gun out of her pocket. It was about the size of an iPhone, and when she hit the button to test it, a sizzle of blue light appeared between the two wires, releasing a comforting electric crackle. I just hoped Kiran’s reflexes were fast enough if Ariana jumped out from behind a curtain and tried to slice and dice me.
“All right,” she said resolutely. “I’m in.”
LIFE’S LITTLE SURPRISES
We didn’t bring the umbrellas. Big mistake. Within five minutes of walking I was soaked through, my hair dripping ice-cold water down my back, and as hard as I tried to shield my cast from the rain, it was getting wet too. I tried not to think about what the consequences of that might be as my feet sunk into the two inches of mud along the side of the road, making awful sucking sounds each time I lifted them.
Noelle tucked her sopping wet hair behind her ears, then held back a low-hanging branch and waited for us to pass her by.
“So much for these shoes,” Kiran groused, teetering along in her heeled boots. “My stylist is not going to be happy with me.”
“You should’ve worn sneakers,” Noelle admonished at a whisper. The rest of us had changed into loose black sweatshirts and running shoes, while Kiran had insisted on going designer-chic.
“Well, I didn’t know we were going on a wilderness hike, did I?” Kiran demanded. “God. This MT couldn’t have just met us at a Starbucks like a normal human being?”
For a moment I swear Noelle considered letting the branch snap back in Kiran’s face, but thankfully she restrained herself. As we neared the house, the wind kicked up, howling through the woods around us and turning the wet leaves on the trees upside down. A low rumble of thunder sounded in the distance. I stopped in my tracks, blinking the rain off my lashes as I looked up at the turrets of the house. With its gargoyle details, the rain pouring off the eaves, and the dozens of windows shuttered and curtained, it looked like something out of a nightmare.
“Are we sure about this?” Taylor asked.
“Let’s just get it over with,” Noelle said, tromping ahead.
We all exchanged wary looks but followed. It was, after all, what we did—followed Noelle. Except for Ivy. I wasn’t exactly sure what she was still doing here, unless it was due to our friendship, or perhaps her own morbid curiosity. She and Cheyenne had, at one time, been best friends, but I was sure she hadn’t been back to this house in years.
“Where exactly are we going?” Kiran asked as we came up even with the side of the house. It seemed like most of the curtains were drawn on the first floor as well, and there wasn’t a light to be seen. If MT was in there somewhere, he or she clearly preferred the dark.
“It said to go to the back garden and take the path,” I reminded her. “Keep walking.”
A sudden crack of lighting lit the night sky, followed quickly by a clap of thunder.
“What was that?” Taylor gasped, grasping my cast.
“Thunder,” I replied automatically.
She rolled her eyes. “Not that, that.”
She pointed a quaking finger at the house and I saw something move. A curtain fell back into place. My heart slammed against my ribs. Another crack of lightning and a face was illuminated at the next window. A pale, staring, panicked face.
“Oh my God,” I said.
“What?” Noelle snapped, doubling back.
“I think I just saw Sawyer,” I hissed. But when I looked back at the house, there was no one there.
“Sawyer? Where?” Ivy asked.
“At the third window on the second floor,” I said tremulously, pointing.
“Maybe he’s MT,” Ivy suggested.
“But what would he be doing here?” I asked. “He didn’t even know Cheyenne.”
But he did know Ariana, I thought, pressing my lips together to keep from saying it out loud. They had both been on those trips to St. Barths for all those years. Had she kidnapped Sawyer and brought him here for some reason? To keep him from warning me? Or had she somehow roped him in to her sick plan, whatever it was?
“You were probably just seeing things,” Noelle said with a sniff. “Come on. We have to get inside before we all die of exposure.”
I was pretty sure it took a lot longer than fifteen minutes to die of exposure, especially on a relatively warm night, but I kept the thought to myself. I wasn’t about to go back to the car by myself, and besides, everyone else was marching ahead. I cast one last look at the now-empty window and tried to clear my mind.