There was a knock at the door.
Unexpected as all knocks past 12am tend to be. The Trapper furrowed his brow, and Honey still firmly wrapped about his waist, mimicked the deep furrow with much less intensity.
"Who's that?" She asked.
"Not sure," said Evan he took a few steps towards the foyer, dragging Honey along, "Not expecting anyone."
Murderers like Evan weren't often unsettled by twilight visits from unexpected company. Honey on the other hand, was. Even with a brick wall like Evan between her and the door, she thought that maybe someone, Myers, might barge their way through and try to kill her anyway.
Despite logic arguing a man like him would never knock first.
Evan peeled Honey's hands off his hip and made his way up to the front door. Calloused fingers wrapped around the knob while Honey peered out from the corner moulding of the kitchen arch. The tumblers clunked with the roll of his wrist and as the door creaked open.
Evan sighed.
"Move aside, I'm freezing my balls off out here," said someone Honey didn't know.
"Hey, Evan," said another person Honey also didn't know.
"I'm sorry," said Susie, someone Honey did actually know, "I couldn't stop them. They heard about Honey and well..." Susie nervously played with the hem of her blood stained sweater, "here we are."
"So why don't you introduce us," said the first voice again, "Or are you keeping her all to yourself?"
The shadow on the other side of Evan clapped a hand on his shoulder and pushed by in a friendly show of balls.
He was a young kid, a bit younger than Honey with a real nasty attitude colored to his face, deepened by the dangerous shadows cast by a pulled up hood. He was tucked into a layered set of jackets, fabric beneath leather decorated in blood, belts, and studs. The gaggle that followed echoed his style, ducked in hoods like the hooligans they were, all smiles, giggles, and bad intentions.
Honey had the distinct feeling she was about to be mugged.
There were four of them total and two outliers, a woman of unremarkable appearance, the kind of unremarkable that made her easy to miss, especially with the polite quietness that followed behind a rowdy group of high-schoolers. The other was a former high-school star no doubt, classic 80's look, the kind of toned you don't see anymore since Hollywood went a bit overboard with the steroid abuse. He had dark hair, tousled at the bangs, with the eyes of a reporter, real bright and inquisitive with a hint of Great White in there.
Though he spoke to Evan, he was focused entirely on Honey, the first of all of them to notice her.
"Can't avoid us forever," he said with a chuckle, offering the Trapper a devil's grin before stepping inside with the other, clearly-not-a-hooligan, woman.
Evan closed the door behind them.
"You must be, Honey," said the reporter, "McKeever right?" And politely tucked his hands into his pockets, "I'm Jed, this is Amanda," he nodded to the woman beside him, "and that there's Frank, Julie, Joey, and Susie," he pointed to each and then returned the hand to his pocket.
Frank cocked a brow at her, eyeing her naked legs with little less subtly than an air horn in an empty stadium.
Joey didn't seem to care for introductions at all, making himself at home and pulling out two cases of beer from the fridge.
Julie offered a small smile of greeting.
Susie shyly shrugged and Amanda waved an awkward hello.
"I thought I recognized the name when Susie told us about you," said Jed, "the resemblance is uncanny."
"Eh?" Honey asked as Joey shuffled by, arms full of beer.
"Daughter to Caroline McKeever and David de la Paz."
Joey set the beer cans on the coffee table while the rest of Legion folded in around him and took over the couch.
"Granddaughter to Annie Tarrant and Paul McKeever," Jed moved closer to her. "Great granddaughter to Daniel Robitaille. Better known as ... The Candyman."
He stopped just before her, his shadow swallowing her whole, "I've got to say," he said, "I wasn't sure what to expect."
Honey wasn't sure if that was a compliment or insult.
"How do you know all of that?" She asked.
"I'm a reporter," he said with all the charm of a crocodile, "reporting is what I do."
It was a moment steeped in a strangely fabricated tenseness. And then, just like that, the moment passed.
Jed stepped around her to join Legion about the table and Amanda followed in his footsteps. Honey hadn't even noticed the board game they'd smuggled in and began to set up and by the look on Evan's face, he hadn't either.
"Candyman," repeated Evan, mostly to himself.
"A few more times and we're all fucked," she warned with a grin.
Evan replied with a low chuckle.
And with nothing else to do, Honey chirped, "Alright! What're we playing tonight?" She bounded over to the gaggle and threw herself over the couch and right onto Joey's lap.
"Christ, kid!" He exclaimed, struggling to not spill his beer.
Jed quietly snapped a picture.
"Catan," said Julie.
"Really?" Honey asked, not exactly sure what she expected murderers to play in their free time. Maybe Operation.
"You know it?" Julie asked.
"I mean, I've seen the box in Walmart and Barnes and Noble, but I've never played it."
Joey annoyedly shifted to the right, allowing Honey to slip into a small spot between him and Julie.
"We'll go slow, show you how to play," Susie piped up, pulling up the box's lid.
"Beer?" Asked Frank.
"No thanks."
He cracked open his can as Susie knelt on the other side of the table and explained the rules. Honey never saw the look Evan gave him or the subsequent reply of a silent cocky smile.
"So Honey," Frank asked, "how many people have you killed?"
"Oh," she said, "who can keep count."
Jed chuckled as he clicked through the pictures on his camera.
"We heard about your trial," said Julie.
"Got some balls on you to pull that shit with Myers," said Frank, "should have killed her yourself though. Why'd you let her go?"
Honey didn't like the way he made every comment sound like an underhanded threat. "Gotta have a final girl," she said, "that's horror movie 101."
Susie passed the land to Julie, who shuffled them up and began to build the map.
"This isn't a horror movie," said Frank.
Julie shoved his foot off the table.
"Speak for yourself," Jed joked.
"And when was the last time you had a decent trial?" spat Frank.
"There's a very specific method to my hunting," he said calmly.
"Jed had a movie made about him in the 90's," said Julie.
"Stab," said Susie.
"Killed someone opening night," Jed reminisced, "I don't know what it is that makes people want to dress up for movies."
"I saw that movie," Honey said, "it was really bad."
Jed laughed.
"Not far from the source material," quipped Frank.
"Frank's had a bit of a dry run lately," Jed explained Legion's manners, "performance issues."
"Fuck you, Jed," Frank spat.
"I appreciate the offer," Jed said, "but I'm more of a wine and dine kind of guy. Don't take it personal."
Frank leaned forward and snatched up the die, "I'm going to burn your whole fucking settlement."
"That's not how the game works," Julie whispered to Honey.
"You playing?" Susie asked Evan.
"No."
"How come the Entity's always sending you the new recruits?" Frank asked.
"Evan's been here the longest," said Jed, "seems only natural. You're also a lousy host."
"Least I didn't buy my costume from Party City."
"No, I'm sure the Dollar Store sells paper plates for much cheaper anyway."
Amanda smirked.
"Will you two cut it out," Julie chided as Amanda took her turn.
"Where are you from?" Susie asked between the noise.
"Here," Honey said, "well, not here, here, I live in Weeks not too far from the MacMillan Estate."
"Oh," said Susie, "you two grew up together?"
"No," Honey said, "The MacMillan Estate has been abandoned my whole life. He's more of a local legend."
"How'd you end up here?"
"Well, I always cut through the Estate on my way home from work, usually people aren't getting murdered there though. So that was new."
"You just walked in?" Julie asked.
"Well," said Jed, "That's unusual."
Amanda's gaze never shifted from the map as she collected her resources, "But not unlikely."
"Next time I'll be sure to make it a little more flashy," Honey said.
