Sleep was finally possible, as strange as the situation was. Waking up, I had finally managed to calm myself down.

"I need to get back to my body," I mumbled, stretching my arms. I felt weakened, and still tired.

"Ya' finally woke up," Arty spoke. I was laying on the ground, still surrounded by darkness.

"The only way to get out of here is through Jerry, so until he wants you-" Cammy began to say

In that instant, I was surrounded by a bright glow. My eyes were closed for a brief moment, as my heart began to race. When I woke up, I was in Hayesville again.

"There she is, pretty comfy in there, isn't it?" Jerry asked, towering over me. I flung myself from his presence, running into the Mustang. We were outside of my trailer.

"Someone is going to see you," I hissed. I was back in my body.

"What are y'all gonna do, call the police?" Arty mocked. Sensing my phone in my back pocket, I realized trying to call Sheriff Lund was a pretty reasonable option.

"What is going on?" I asked.

"I had to get rid of you for a bit so I could get out of your trailer, and now, we're going to continue the little streak goin' on, starting with your friends," Jerry replied, tugging on his overall strap.

"What?" I breathed, getting to my feet. I was blocked on both sides by Ozzie and Gus, who were both covered in blood. I looked around, hoping one of the neighbors was seeing this. It was just my luck the street lights by my trailer had burned out years ago.

"I suppose it's relieving to know you and Willy didn't go on any joyrides in that Mustang of yours, 'cause that'd make possessing him a little more awkward,'' Jerry started. I narrowed my eyes in confusion, "I can't grip the steering wheel with these hands, so you are gonna be the designated driver for tonight,"

"I sure as hell am not," I retorted, crossing my arms, "I may hate it here, but I'm not about to help you go out on a killing spree,"

"It's not like everyone wasn't expecting it eventually. Plus, your little Aaron might be able to fight for your freeing,"

"Don't touch my friends,"

"I like how you call them your friends, when they really treat you like garbage,"

Jerry had a point, but I wasn't about to tell him that. "I can see by the look on your face you agree with me,"

"You'll have to go through me before you hurt anyone else,"

"I think you're forgetting that I have complete control over you, thanks to Luke. The whole process is a bit confusing, so I'll spare you the details. Now, get in the truck and drive,"

Jerry pointed to my neighbor, Mr. McMillan's semi, which was parked in his backyard. He had been a friendly neighbor to Luke and I, but tended to avoid my Dad.

"I don't have the keys-" I started to say. Siren Sara interrupted me by tossing me a key lanyard.

"He lived alone; an easy kill," She spoke. I shuddered, turning over the keys in my hand. A large, pointy charm was attached. This could be useful.

"Now, drive," Jerry ordered.

"I don't think I want to," I sneered back, "I'm not going to help any of you,"

"Vic, Vic, Vic, you've left me with little to no choice but to force you into this," Jerry continued, maneuvering towards me. I stood in front of the Mustang, trying to prevent myself from moving out of his way. I caught a glimpse of Luke, who was watching from the porch. His eyes looked glazed over, and I couldn't read the expression on his face. While I was distracted with Luke, Jerry took the opportunity to use Willy's heavy arms to smash through the windshield of the Mustang. I screamed, trying to shove him out of the way.

"This is my car, you idiot!" I shrieked, maneuvering my body in front of him. I figured I had some bit of leverage over Jerry, seeing as he didn't want me dead quite yet. "You guys can move, why don't you just walk?"

"You see Vic, without enough souls, we're practically useless. We don't have the power to right now," Jerry replied, leaning over me awkwardly. I tried to push him off me, remembering there was a huge difference between Willy and Jerry.

"Just get off my car, okay?" I begged, kneeing him between his legs. Jerry pushed back in pain, grunting.

"You better hold up, 'cause I've got eight lives I can end right now, and a car that I can blow up if you fail us," Jerry threatened, shifting his legs awkwardly.

"I'll do what you say, but don't even think about touching my friends," I spoke, walking towards the semi. I wasn't about to promise Jerry anything, due to the fact I know he'd break it. I needed to eliminate any sort of gain Jerry could have on me. He already killed half my family off, so there wasn't much else he could take. Opening the back of the trailer, I backed up as Jerry and his crew entered.

"I can't believe it's been this long, it feels like only yesterday you were celebrating tu cumpleaño ocho," Tito spoke.

"That was Liv's birthday, not mine," I replied.

"Ah, well, ya' were the one who tripped and hit her head on the stage," Arty added. I remembered that. It hurt.

Shutting the trailer door, I entered the driver's side, having to haul myself in with the door handle. Luke followed me. I had never driven a semi truck, and I doubted I knew what I was doing. I couldn't see out behind me, and my side view mirrors weren't much help either. Starting the engine, the truck shook to life. It felt terrible driving my dead neighbor's truck. It was his, not mine. I was always one to respect property. I stomped the parking brake, letting the truck begin to pull forward.

"Luke," I spoke quietly, just in case Jerry and the others could hear me. Luke didn't even look at me, "You know this isn't your fault,"

"Yes, it is, Vic," He whispered back.

"No, it's not. Regardless of what Jerry tells you, none of this is your fault. He's manipulated so many people in the past. You didn't know any better," I explained quietly, pulling onto the road. The semi took a lot of steering, and was very hard to control.

"I didn't listen to you and now Dad is dead," Luke began.

"Luke-"

"I didn't listen to you, and now your friends are gonna get hurt. I didn't listen to you, and now Hayesville is as good as gone,"

"Stop. Stop that right now. You didn't know any better, and that's okay. None of this is your fault,"

"You don't understand, Vic, I'm bound to them now. Whatever they do, I'm involved in. Jerry has complete control over me," Luke spoke, his eyes welling up with tears, "I don't want to hurt anyone. I don't want to be a murderer," I drove slowly down the highway, finding it easier than looping through the thin neighborhood roads.

"We're going to fix this. How did you bring them back? There has to be a way to send him away again,"

"Jerry told me what to say and do, and I did all of it. I'm so stupid, I can't believe I listened to him over you," Luke choked.

"He's tricked all of us,"

"I'm sorry,"

There was a loud pounding behind me, causing me to jump. Looking back at the road, I jerked the steering wheel to the left to enter Chris's neighborhood. I glanced behind me, seeing a peek-window. Jerry stood there, glaring through it. I opened the window.

"Ya' almost missed the turn, idiot," Jerry sneered. I rolled my eyes.

"You can spot this truck from a mile away, you should've picked a smaller car,"

"You should've picked a smaller boyfriend," Jerry grunted. I snickered, much to Luke's disgust. I heard the trailer open from the back, as I parked the truck.

"Luke, I've got my phone, we can try and call for help," I spoke, not moving in order to avoid suspicion.

"Who're we gonna call, Lund? Evan? The US army?" Luke replied. I paused.

"You're right. We still gotta find someone who knows a thing or two about dark magic,"

I watched as Jerry and his crew sneakily made their way around Chris's trailer.

"Are you not gonna stop them?" Luke asked.

"They've got complete control of Willy and the rest of the animatronics. I don't want them to die,"

"But what about your human friends?"

"What human friends?"

Luke widened his eyes at me. "Even Aaron?"

Another sinking feeling formed in my chest.

"You know he likes you, Vic,"

"I know. Remember what Jerry said? About trapping the souls before he absorbs them?"

Luke thought for a moment.

"Yeah, that could be beneficial, right?"

In that instant, Luke's phone began to ring. Jerry peered through the window again.

"Calling for company, are we?" He asked.

"No sir, it's Chris," Luke replied softly, showing his phone to Jerry.

"Pick it up, and put it on speaker. Vic, if you say anything, I'll start by finishing off Cammy," Jerry threatened. I nodded, pursing my lips. I didn't want to risk losing anyone. Luke picked up the phone, pressing the speaker button.

"Hey, Luke?" Chris asked. Luke looked towards Jerry for permission to continue.

"Yeah?" Luke replied.

"You sound worried, dude. But anyways, I tried to call Vic, she didn't pick up. Are you near her?" Chris spoke. Jerry motioned for me to speak.

"Chris?" I asked.

"Tell Vic I really need to apologize," Chris started. I glanced towards his trailer, hoping he hadn't spotted us. The longer I could keep him alive, the better. "I had some time to think about what she told me about the animatronics. I can't believe I attacked her like that. It's just, with everything going on I really freaked out. I lost Liv to some guy she's known for about a day, and I didn't want to lose her too. She's been one of my best friends, and the thought of losing anyone else right now made me panic. So, it's my fault,"

"I'm sure she'll forgive you," Luke replied. I watched Jerry closely.

"Aaron convinced the group to give the animatronics a chance. If they make her so happy, they can't be that bad, right?" Chris laughed. Luke gulped. I got the sense Jerry was extremely happy with Chris's decision. "I mean, c'mon, Vic dating a serial killer? I know she's a little weird, but I know her better than that" He continued, "I mean, Jerry Willis of all people. That guy is a piece of garbage. A big, fat, slobby, psycho. To think he'd have any sort of chance with someone as smart as her, I mean, he wouldn't stand a chance!" Chris laughed loudly. I glanced at Jerry, who growled lightly. I sensed a very, very dark sense of anger radiating off of him. "I still don't get the whole hype about a robot, but then again, we are talking about Vic here,"

"Oh, he's mad," Sara spoke, standing next to Luke in the window.

"How can you tell?" Luke whispered anxiously back. I noticed the other cultists moving away from Jerry, signaling my suspicion was correct.

"The last time he was this upset was after getting kicked in the, um, area, by a kid he ambushed," Sara replied. I tried not to laugh.

"You still there Luke?" Chris called over the phone.

"Y-yeah, one sec," Luke replied, turning his attention back to Sara. "What happened to the kid?"

Sara cocked her head in annoyance, before drawing a finger across her throat. Luke gulped.

"Back up the truck, Vic," Jerry spoke quietly in my ear. I did as I was told, hoping Jerry was too frustrated with Chris to even bother with him. Luke's eyes glazed over, as Jerry stared persistently at him.

"Um, Vic is at the restaurant right now," Luke started, "Why don't you bring everyone down? She'd probably introduce you to the animatronics,"

My eyes darted from Luke to Jerry, who nodded his head slowly. I opened my mouth, when Jerry interrupted.

"Is what you're about to say more important than Cammy?" He asked quietly. I shut my mouth.

"Sounds good, I'll bring everyone down. Hopefully Lund doesn't get too mad," Chris replied, hanging up.

"No, no no," I began quietly, rubbing my hands over my face.

"Good job Vic, for once, you managed to keep your fat mouth shut," I heard Ozzie shout from the trailer.

"This will definitely be advantageous," Jerry spoke, "Now drive,"

I backed the truck back onto the freeway, which was a lot harder than it looked. Chris must've not been at his trailer, because I didn't see him leave. Pulling back onto the freeway, I kept a close eye on the road, looking for any signs of my friends. They must've taken the back alley near the woods, as there was no sight of them anywhere.

"You're doing an excellent job, Luke, you're making a great start in our cult," Jerry spoke, still glaring through the window. I placed my hand on Luke's leg, signalling him not to reply. Jerry wanted a reply, and I wasn't going to let that happen. I pulled into Willy's Wonderland, feeling hopeful Chris wasn't going to show up. I shut off the truck, and got out with Luke. The trailer instantly opened.

"Alright guys, let's get working," Jerry spoke, dismounting from the trailer. I sulked behind them, waiting for Jerry to bust open the door. "It looks like Tex has taken great care of this place. Left it almost as clean as I did,"

I felt in my back pocket, hoping to try and call Lund while they were distracted. Unfortunately, Jerry was quick to notice.

"Hey, hey, hey, I can't have you calling for help now, can I?" He spoke, plucking the phone from my hands. "I don't think you'll be needing this anymore,"

Jerry smashed my new phone to the ground, as I stood there in shock. Well, there goes that plan. In another swift movement, Jerry busted the front door down with surprising strength. A cloud of dust and asbestos filled the air, making Luke sneeze.

"Let's go find those chickens and get this over with," Tito spoke. Jerry entered the restaurant, followed by the rest of his crew and Luke and I. He seemed to know exactly where Luke was. Putting on a falsetto voice, Jerry kicked the door down to the Super Happy Fun Room. I held my breath. Like deer in the headlights of a massive, animatronic truck, Chris, Aaron, Dan, and Kathy stood there.

"Uh, hi, we tried to find you but-"

"Oh, that's no issue at all," Jerry spoke. Aaron caught my glance, as his expression suddenly changed. I softly mouthed the word 'Jerry', trying to get his attention. Fortunately, Aaron seemed to get the hint something was wrong.

"You must be Willy?" Chris spoke.

"That's me, you must be Vic's friends," Jerry replied in an over-exaggerated New Jersey accent. Arty shoved me forward, as Jerry placed his hand on my back.

"Yeah, I'm Chris, this is Aaron, Dan, and Kathy," Chris explained, completely oblivious to Luke and mine's terrified expressions.

"Well, we've been introduced," Aaron started, not taking his eyes from me, "We probably should be going now, Vic, you and your brother should tag alone,"

"I-"

Before I had the chance to say another word, Jerry's entire crew had Chris and his friends surrounded. Dan sighed loudly.

"Trust Vic, you said, trust Vic,"

"Dude, I am so sorry," I spoke, running my hands over my blood stained face.

In about five minutes, all of us were completely immobile. Like statues, Jerry had us lined up along the wall. All of us, with the exception of Luke.

"Now, first things first, I am not Willy," Jerry spoke, pacing in front of us.

"Then who the hell-" Dan started.

"My name is Jerry," Jerry interrupted, stopping in front of Dan. Dan was silent.

"Vic, you are one freaky girl," Kathy whispered. I rolled my eyes.

"Now that we've become acquainted with you, let me introduce my friends," Jerry started, motioning for the rest of his crew.

"Let me be the first, my name is Aurthur Sims," Arty spoke, moving forwards. This was the first time I had heard of any names other than 'Jerry'.

"The name's Oswald Turner," Spoke Ozzie from the back.

"Sasha Todd," said Sara.

"Gustav Vaughn," added Gus.

"I'm Camilla Henry," said Cammy.

"Carlos Sanchez," spoke Tito

"Kevin Donorhy," finished Knighty. I found their names fairly simple to remember, seeing as they had such a close resemblance to the animatronics' names.

"So, care to tell us what we're doing here, old man?" Dan asked, obviously pushing Jerry's temper.

"Wouldn't you like to know," Jerry sneered, motioning for Dan to move forward. I had a feeling this was not about to end well. As if under mind control, Dan took two steps forwards.

"Please don't hurt my baby," Kathy begged.

"Hm, I think I'm going to do as I please. You have Vic and Luke to thank for bringing you here," Jerry spoke, motioning towards Luke and I.

"What, exactly, is going on, Vic?" Chris asked with terror in his voice.

"Yeah Vic, why don't you tell your friends exactly what's going on?" Oswald teased.

"It was me, Chris, I brought back Jerry cause' he tricked me into thinking he was a soul that needed help, so now he's back and forcing Vic and I to help him kill everyone," Luke explained. Chris blinked.

"So, how many people are dead?" Aaron asked.

"As of tonight, two, soon to be six," Gustav spoke.

"You don't want my soul, I've done things," Kathy trembled.

"All of your souls are about to be ripped from your bodies, and stored until we absorb you all at once," Jerry explained, walking around Dan, who looked like he was about to cry. "We don't have all night, let's get this over with, shall we?" Jerry asked. I began to hear police sirens in the distance. I breathed a sigh of relief, hoping she brought the SWAT. Jerry paused. "Ah, looks like we have company,"

"You'll never get away with this," I growled, trying to move myself from the position I was in.

"Oh, I nearly forgot about you. You had been so nice and quiet just a minute ago. " Jerry replied, approaching me. I shut my eyes as he placed his hand around my neck and squoze. In a bright flash of light, I was back in the darkness of Jerry's mind.

"He sent you back in here already?" Ozzie asked. I got to my feet, brushing my legs off.

"He got sick of me again," I smiled in reply. The other animatronics, as I could see, were all standing by the strange projection of Jerry's vision.

"You doin' okay?" Gus asked. I nodded, joining their group, watching the screen.

"The Sheriff better have her backup, 'cause she ain't gettin' nowhere with that shotgun,'' Willy spoke, placing his hand on my shoulder. On the screen, Jerry turned to face Luke.

"Sir?" Luke had asked, "What happened to Vic? Where is she?"

Jerry groaned loudly.

"Do you not have a brain? I literally told you she's in my conscious mind right now, hanging out with the rest of the animatronics," Jerry explained.

I turned my focus back to the projection as Sheriff Lund suddenly burst through the door. Yep, she's alone.

"Jerry Robert Willis, you are under arrest for violating Hayesville's Safe Persons law," She growled.

"Well if it isn't Eloise Lund," Jerry replied, turning his body to face her.

"Don't think about pulling anything, I know very well what you're planning on doing," Sheriff Lund spoke, cocking her shotgun and aiming.

"If that damn woman pumps me with lead, I swear," Willy started.

"Back away from the kiddos," Sheriff Lund warned.

"Or what, old woman? You shoot me, and I swear by all the demonic powers I possess I'll absorb your beloved Vic's soul," Jerry replied, motioning for my motionless body.

"What did you do to her?" Lund screamed.

"Shut up, she's currently being housed safely,"

"You've taken away so much from this town, and now-" Sheriff Lund started.

"And now I'm going to repay the favor," Jerry interrupted, "You, Lund, you were the one who ruined my plan. You SWATted my restaurant, which is probably why the ritual didn't even work. And now, I'm here to take revenge. I'm going to take you out, and never let you back," Jerry shouted. Without another word, Sheriff Lund aimed her shotgun and pulled the trigger, while simultaneously being tackled by Camilla. The bullet grazed Willy's ear, causing Jerry to scream for the sky.

"Well, this isn't going well," Willy whispered.

"Shut up, I'm trying to watch," Sara hissed. I held my mouth, wanting so badly to help out Sheriff Lund. I was stuck.

I watched as Jerry whipped himself towards Lund, glaring at her viciously, as the rest of the cultists forced her to her knees.

"You won't get away with this, Willis," She spat, glaring up at him.

"Sweet, sweet, Eloise, I already have," Jerry replied. In one swing of his arm, he had completely disfigured Sheriff Lund. I shut my eyes, gasping. Her body had completely been cut in half, and blood was spewing everywhere. I heard my friends begin to scream. Sheriff Lund was dead.

"You're sick," Chris screamed. I had never seen him cry before. I felt a slight tugging on my leg, to which I rubbed the feeling aside. It persisted, making both my legs numb.

"What the hell," I muttered, rubbing my thighs. This caught Willy's attention.

"You okay?" He asked.

"Why do I feel like something is, um, nibbling at me," I asked. Willy and Tito looked at eachother. "Is there something wrong with me?"

"Uhm, you probably don't wanna know what's going on," Willy replied hesitantly. I stared at him, horrified.

"Willy, I'll give you anything you want, just please tell me what's happening," I begged, tripping into him. Willy stood me upright.

"If you insist," He started, looking towards the other animatronics.

"This is all you, amigo," Tito spoke, backing up. Willy sighed.

"Jerry is, quite literally, eating your soul out,"

"He's doing what?" I asked, horrified.

"Yeah, the dipstick is eating you," Ozzie restated.

"Jerry stop!" I screamed, hitting my legs. A loud laugh echoed through the darkness.

"If I ever get my hands on you, you'll regret ever coming back from your hiding. You've done nothing but destroy everything Vic holds dear, leave her alone!" Willy snarled.

"Need I remind you that you're in no position to make threats to me, Willy. You'll be following Vic into a sweet, endless slumber here soon enough," Jerry replied loudly.

"I hate him so much," Arty growled.

"We all do. We'll get out of here Vic, don't worry," Cammy comforted. I didn't respond, as I was too focused on the bloodbath going on in front of the projection. My friends were being killed one by one. Dan and Kathy were gone.

"You know, Aaron, Vic made a little trade with us," Jerry spoke to Aaron, circling him slowly. Aaron's eyes were shut, and he was breathing heavily. "Your lives for the animatronics',"

"I know Vic and Luke. They would never do that," Aaron replied.

"You don't need to hide your jealousy. We all know you've had feelings for Vic, only for them to be displaced by her love for a freaking animatronic," Jerry taunted. I bit my lip.

"Vic can do what she wants, you're the one murdering everyone," Aaron shouted in reply.

"Let the last thing you hear be that Vic chose a bunch of machines over your friendships," Jerry sneered.

"That's not true and you know it!" I screamed. Jerry snickered.

"I know Vic better than you ever will. She always finds a way to bargain between the two. You're lying," Aaron spoke. I breathed a sigh of relief.

"Suit yourself," Jerry shrugged. In another swift movement, Aaron was down. I closed my eyes, a terrible knot forming in my stomach. I wanted to play this off as a bad dream. It all seemed too surreal. I'd give anything to wake up. Deep down inside, however, I knew there was no waking up from this nightmare.

"Keep your eyes shut tight, we'll let you know when it's over," Gus spoke to me. I nodded my head, choking back tears. I could still hear what was going on, no matter how hard I tried to block it out.

"Now Luke, we've saved Chris for you," Jerry spoke, nudging Luke forward. I widened my eyes in unison with Luke.

"I-I can't kill anyone, I'm not like you guys," Luke stuttered, backing up quickly. Chris didn't speak.

"Don't worry, Luke, I was once the newbie too. It gets easier once you get past the first one," Carlos spoke.

"These are my friends, and Vic's friends, I can't hurt them," Luke replied.

"I'll give you a choice, Luke, you finish this one off, or I finish Vic off," Jerry growled. My heart dropped.

"Just do it Luke," Chris groaned, "Save your sister and get out of here,"

"Chris," I whispered, holding my arms.

"I can't hurt you Chris, it's not who I am," Luke replied, shaking his head fearfully.

"You changed who you were the moment you joined us. Now make your decision," Jerry insisted. Luke was hesitant, and didn't respond. Jerry grunted loudly.

"All right, time is up, I've made up my mind for you,"

Luke jolted forward, grabbing Kevin's sword.

"What's happening?" Luke screamed.

"Just let me move you about and you don't have to do a thing. It's a free trial," Jerry replied.

"No, stop!" Luke screamed. I gasped, closing my eyes. It was too late. Chris was gone. Luke stopped screaming and backed up quickly, gasping for breath.

"See, that wasn't so hard, was it?" Sasha asked as Chris fell to the floor. Luke breathed heavily, shaking his head slowly.

"What have I done," He whispered.

"Luke," I whimpered. I felt terribly for him.

"I wish there is something I could do," I whispered, a tear running down my cheek.

"Your wishes are very noble, fair maiden. We will avenge everyone you hath lost tonight," Knighty Knight replied. I opened my eyes, looking at him.

"Thank you," I tried to smile.

"They're in a better place now, as cliche as that may sound," Arty shrugged. I nodded my head. Anywhere was better than Hayesville. My eyes were red and puffy, but no tears were shed for my friends. I wanted to cry. I wanted to sob against Willy. But my eyes were dry, and my mouth felt cracked. I was beginning to feel numb, too.

"It's not Luke's fault. He's not a murderer, no matter what Jerry says," Willy comforted. I nodded my head, closing my stinging eyes.

"Why are you doing this?" Luke cried from the corner.

"WE are doing this, because we've waited for too long to get the recognition we deserve. Vic has been keeping me from being at peace for the last eleven years, and now it's her turn to pay for it," Jerry explained.

"But Vic didn't do anything wrong," Luke replied, wiping his eyes.

"She's alive. And I don't like that." Jerry stated, motioning for my limp body on the floor.

"But she didn't hurt you-"

"She destroyed my reputation!" Jerry shouted, "Ever since she escaped from us, my reputation has gone downhill. I can still remember waiting for her to come back. Day after day, until she finally did. Yesterday with you,"

"Please just leave Vic alone,"

"That's not how it works," Oswald stated.

"I'm not about to let her undo any more of my hard work, so let's keep moving. I've got my eye on that Deputy," Jerry continued.

I turned my attention towards Willy.

"I need to do something, there has to be some way to fix this," I started.

"I'm not one who likes to dabble with dark magic, but it's what gave me life, so I know a thing or two about it," Willy began to reply, "You can either reverse the spell Luke cast, or, use a pure soul to cast them back to hell,"

"Wait, what?"

"A soul for a soul. Or a group of souls,"

I paused.

"Would mine work?"

"No, I'm not about to let you sacrifice yourself,"

"If it means stopping Jerry from killing anymore-"

"You heard the weasel, he wants to keep your soul for himself," Ozzie teased.

"We have to get the spell then. I just need to convince Jerry to let me out," I continued, considering my options. Several ideas flew through my mind, but none of them seemed very probable.

"You're his only access to transportation," Arty shrugged. I continued to think.

"Hey, Jerry?" I shouted into the darkness.

"Scared in there yet?" Jerry replied.

"No, I need to talk to you in person," I spoke.

"If you think I'm gonna let you out just so you can rub up to me, the answer is no," Jerry sneered.

"The only reason he's keeping you in here is because he's afraid you're going to ruin his plan," Willy whispered to me, "Why else would he need you out of your body?"

I nodded, considering what Willy said. I felt the back of my pocket for the truck lanyard. It was still in my pocket.

"Can we make a trade?"

In a sudden flash of light, I gasped for air, sitting upright. I was back in my normal, bruised and bloodied body. Jerry towered over me.

"Speak, twit," He said to me.

"If you leave me out here, I'll take Luke's spot," I offered.

"That's not how it works, you see, Luke has been inducted into my team. There's no backing out of that."

"Aye, boss, I hear sirens," Arthur spoke. Both Jerry and I turned our heads towards the doorway. Jerry instantly turned back to face me.

"Right on time,Vic, I'll keep you out so you can watch me tear more of your little buddies apart," He sneered. I blinked, not moving my body. If my plan was going to work, I'd need to get over to Luke. Jerry turned away from me, beginning to talk to his crew. Realizing I wasn't under his control, I inched my way towards Luke, who had spotted me.

"Where's the spell," I muttered as quietly as I could.

"I don't have it, Jerry has it," Luke replied. I glanced over at Jerry, who hadn't noticed us yet. "You'll have to get it from him,"

I backed up from Luke, returning to my spot. Right on time, as Jerry had turned around to face me again. Despite not wanting to do what I was about to do, I reassured myself it was for the greater good of Hayesville.

"Jerry?" I asked, tilting my chin forwards.

"What is it now, rat?" He replied.

"We should talk, alone,"