Chapter 13

The police cruiser pulled up twenty minutes after Chris made the call. The lights flashed across the rooms, cutting through the gloom that seemed to hang in the air.

Chris was waiting at one of the tables, sipping a cup of coffee that he and Jessie had made. After all the things that had happened to them, it had seemed reassuring to have a nice warm cup of coffee. A door slammed, and Chris could hear the sound of the cop's boots crunching on the dirt and gravel outside.

The little bell that was located on top of the door rang when the cop opened it. He stepped inside, shivering. "What the hell is with this weather today? Sure it's close to fall, but it shouldn't be freezing outside yet." He sniffed the air. "Do I smell coffee?"

Chris nodded. "We needed something to help us stay sane. And to clear the stench."

The policeman looked back and forth from Chris to Jessie. "Well, you two don't look like killers to me. You're just teenagers. Anyways, wanna whip me up a cup of coffee?"

Jessie's mouth dropped open, and she stammered, "D... Don't you wanna take a look at the crime scene?"

The cop waved his hand. "That can wait. Let's sit down and chat about what happened first." He grabbed a chair from the opposite table and sat down at Chris's table. "Now, you're Chris, right? Chris what?"

"Stanton. Chris Stanton," replied Chris.

"Oh, OK, Stanton. And you're Jessie, right?" he asked, pointing his finger at Jessie.

"Yeah. I'm Jessie Colton. I'm the one who was with Sandra when she died."

"Well, Stanton, you've got a nice girl here. Very pretty." The cop paused. "Good body too, if you know what I mean. I wouldn't hesitate to... uh..." He banged his hand down on the table. "Bang her... You are a virgin, right? Nice curvy girl like you, I wouldn't be surprised if you have already been stuck. No, I take that back. You aren't a virgin, right? How do you like it? You can tell me. You like giving or getting? Top or bottom? Head or ass? Which do you prefer? Are you BDSM? You into that? Tied up and gagged? I'd stuff it!"

"What the fuck did you say? You sick, disgusting pervert!" Chris shouted. "You aren't a real cop are you? Jessie, get outta here. Don't listen to him. Go out the door!"

The cop's voice seemed to change, reminding Chris of something he had heard before. "Aw, did I make you jealous Chris?" he seemed to growl.

Jessie ran for the door, but a tangled mess of plants seemed to grow up from the floor, barring the way. She scrambled for the kitchen, realizing the back door was open to allow the cold air in. The plant whipped its branch out, catching around Jessie's leg. She fell to the ground, knocking the wind out of her.

"Where are you going, the party's just begun," the cop growled, only it wasn't the cop anymore but the gnarled face of Freddy.

Jessie tried to crawl away from the plant, but it tightened its grip. "No, you're not leaving yet!" Freddy cried, and waved his hands downward. "I haven't nailed you yet!" As he lowered his hands, the nails from the ceiling released from their holding place and shot down at Jessie . Most missed her face, but one stabbed her in the ankle and went through. Her other leg was nailed to the floor.

She screamed out and pain and reflexes told her to reach for her bleeding ankle. She tried to pull the nail out, but it was stuck in too deep for her hands to pull out. The plant started to tug on her entangled leg, and she cried out again because the nail was tearing into her leg from the force.

Chris tried to run toward her, but Freddy snapped his fingers and the kitchen utensils came flying through the wall. Seeing Freddy behind him, Chris ducked, and Freddy was stabbed with the knives. It went fully through, the force of Freddy's powers in full effect.

Freddy fell to the floor, and the plant disappeared. Being injured made his powers falter, and he was unconcious. But the nail was still stuck in Jessie's leg.

Chris ran to her, knowing that time was of the essence and that Freddy would be back. He didn't know how he knew his name, but he remembered him from his dream, and the name seemed to stick in his mind. Chris tried to pull the nail out, but his grasp slipped and he couldn't get it out.

"Don't go easy just because it's gonna hurt me! Pull it out before he wakes up and we're really in trouble." Jessie was wincing in pain, but she had a strength in her eyes that gave Chris courage.

He gripped the nail, and pulled as hard as he could. The nail slipped and and came out with a gush of blood.

"We need to get out of her! Don't worry about my leg, we just need to find a place to go!"

Chris had an idea. The mirror. "I have a place to go. Something happened today at Jack's house, and I was given some strange advice to go back to the dream. I don't know what it meant, but we have to find out."

Jessie was frightened and confused, but she didn't have time to ask. Chris had already picked her up and shoved the door open, enveloping them in the cold night air, heading for Jack's house with a swiftness Jessie had never seen Chris perform before.