14
Olivia and Marty were startled by the pounding on the door. Marty opened it and all of the kids crowded in. Finn slammed the door behind them. They all tried to talk at once but somehow Olivia got them calm enough to hear that there was someone in the kitchen who wasn't supposed to be there, that Matt had been beheaded in the closet while playing spin the bottle with Santana and Kylie was strung up on the front porch, banging against the building like a grotesque wind chime.
"Oh my god!" She and Marty looked at each other. It was happening again. "The Sheriff!" Olivia called knowing that she was going to spill everything now no matter what. "The phone's dead," Marty screeched. Banging the phone against the wall.
If it was possible the panic level began to rise even higher.
"I pulled the cord from the wall."
Finn and Puck scrambled to the floor for it. They got it plugged back in but the lines were still down.
"It could be the storm," Marty said but nobody believed it.
"What are doing here? You're Sterling's nephew aren't you?" Olivia asked spotting Brody for the first time. "The storm was so bad, I drove over to see if you all needed anything-"
"Oh god. We'll go for the sheriff. I think Marty and I have some information that he needs anyway."
"We've got to find some place safe. Some place safe we can all hole up together. We've got to follow the scary movie rules." Kurt was babbling.
"Scary movie rules?" Mercedes asked.
"Like don't have sex?" Santana asked. Artie's hand flew to his mouth. "Oh no, oh no. Brittany!"
"When?" Santana asked.
"No, I have a list of rules." Kurt couldn't seem to gather his thoughts. "I hate scary movies. I hate them but I get suckered into watching them sometimes." He glowered at his friends. "So I just made a list of don't ever do this if you find yourself in the middle of a horror movie list."
"Like, stay together. Don't ever split up. Especially don't break up into pairs and explore basements or secret passageways with only a flashlight. Don't try to go after the bad guy. And if you think the bad guy is dead. Kill him again and again and again and again."
Blaine wrapped Kurt up in a hug. "Where can we all go? Kurt's right. We need to barricade ourselves in one safe place until this is over."
"The game room."
"No!" Santana shouted. "He was in the closet. He was in the closet with us. He…"
"The great room is big enough for all of us. It's near the door. All the windows are already shuttered tight because of the storm. We block all entrances and exits to the room." Wes and David took over. "We go together. Does anyone need anything from their rooms?"
"Blankets," Mercedes whispered. "We should get blankets and…" She faltered.
"Food." Finn said. "We'll need some food."
"Okay, we'll stop in the kitchen. We'll all go together. Everyone grabbed onto two people. We go as a blob."
The group crept downstairs, the flashlights bouncing eerily off of the walls and windows. They stopped first to strip the blankets from the beds of several bedrooms. They made their way down the staircase. And finally met up with Artie sitting like a ghost in his wheelchair, in the foyer.
"The elevator's not working." They had left him behind. They felt horrible.
"Stick together!" David commanded. The group opened up to envelop Artie. Then the group stopped right in front of the kitchen door. After a moment of hesitation they barged in.
"Everybody grab something. Hurry!" Wes yelled. And everyone began emptying the cupboards until Mercedes shrieked and pointed to the tabletop. The table Kurt and Blaine kept bumping their hands into during their fight in the darkened house. The words Help Me had been scrawled on the table top in blood.
"Oh god, there was somebody in here. Somebody who needed our help." Kurt felt like his stomach was in his mouth.
Without any command the group collectively ran from the room and into the great room where people started piling furniture against the doors leading to the billiards room. Olivia and Marty waved from the foyer.
"We'll be right back with the sheriff."
Brody had disappeared.
Finn and Puck slammed the door leading into the foyer and pushed two couches against it.
Blankets were strewn along the ground. People threw foodstuff down on the couches.
Puck picked up one of the cans. "Lima beans? Who chose Lima Beans?"
There was a small chuckle.
Everyone settled themselves in small clusters on the floor wrapping themselves up with Blankets. There were no divisions between schools anymore. Everyone was mixed up together.
Kurt was still holding tightly to Blaine's shirt and he tried to whisper for Finn-his step brother- to come over those were the two people he most had to keep safe. Blaine and Finn. He could feel the heat of Mercedes pushed up against him and he gave a half-smile. If he could just keep them safe until tomorrow.
Blaine wrapped his arms around him.
"I didn't lie to you. I really did have a headache. I really did nap. I don't know who Jesse was meeting but it wasn't me."
Kurt nodded. "I know." He also knew that no longer mattered. Then something else occurred to him.
"Jesse," He said out loud, his voice breaking. He wasn't upstairs. He wasn't downstairs.
"He's missing too." Wes said gravely. No one mentioned the possibility that it could be his blood in the kitchen. "Brittany and Jesse are missing. Matt and Kylie…" Wes voice faltered too. And the group fell into a brooding, terrified silence.