"Jesus, Brooke. Snap out of it!" Grace began violently shaking her unresponsive sister. "Please!"
Grace violently shook her one last time before releasing her. She began pacing across the living room until she stopped again in front of her twin. She slapped her across the face.
Brooke's face instantly reddened but her state didn't change. Grace lost it. Tears freely fell from her eyes. "I don't know what to do anymore, Nathan. I don't know what to do."
"Come here. Shhh. We're going to make it through this, Grace. I promise I won't let anything happen to you." Nathan took her in his arms and they stood there for a moment, Grace silently crying into his chest.
Rachel, still sprawled out on the coffee table, called out to them. "Grace."
Grace walked away from Nathan and bent down so she was eye-level with the injured redhead. "What is it, Rachel?"
"There's…a hidden room. In my bedroom. If we could…get to it…we might be able to hide."
"Why didn't you tell us this before?!" Grace asked angrily.
"It's…small. There would have…been…too many people." Rachel was struggling to say her sentences in one breathe.
"Nate, pick up Rachel and carry her up the stairs. I'm going to guide Brooke."
Nathan went to question her but was instantly silenced by Grace's look. There was no room to argue.
The basketball star lifted up Rachel bridal style earning a muffled whimper from Rachel. "Sorry." He mumbled before carrying her up the stairs.
Grace once again stood before her sister. "Brooke. Wake the fuck up!" Grace screamed. "I need you right now!"
Something inside Brooke's mind seemed to register. Her eyes blinked and Grace put her hands on Brooke's cheeks.
"Please, Brooke. Please. Rachel has a room and we can hide. This is our chance. Please." Grace begged.
Brooke's cold stare flickered back to life. "Oh thank god." Grace briefly took her sister in her arms. She then grabbed her hand and dragged her up the stairs. When they arrived, Rachel was on the bed and Nathan was unlocking the latch on the bookcase that hid the secret room.
They all squeezed inside of the room that barely fit all of them. They had to all stand. Rachel was forced to remain standing and she leaned heavily on Nathan. Nathan held onto Rachel and handed Grace the golf club in his hands. "If anyone opens that door, swing as hard as you can."
Time passed and Rachel's eyes began to close. Nathan nudged her. "Come on. Stay up."
"I…can't…I'm so…tired."
Brooke, who hadn't spoken since she had gotten out of her coma-like state, gently lifted Rachel's head so that they were looking at each other. "You're the only skank I know who can fight passing out even though she drank literally all night. This is nothing for you, baby. Stay awake."
Rachel almost smiled but didn't have the energy too. Brooke kissed her and their eyes communicated something they didn't need to say out loud. I love you.
Two hours passed and they all felt cramped. They guessed it was nearly 4 AM in the morning and no signs that the killers knew where they were appeared.
Although uncomfortable, they hadn't panicked until Rachel's body suddenly slumped into Nathan. "Rachel! Rachel!" Brooke sort of whispered and sort of yelled.
She was quickly told to be quiet by Grace. "I am not going to be quiet! Look at-"
"Brooke shut up! It wasn't that. I think I heard something…"
They all were quiet and strained their ears trying to hear a noise. And there it was.
One creak of an old floorboard was all they needed to hear to know that they were about to be found.
"Ah. The old hidden room behind the bookcase trick. I shoulda known…" Derek smiled as he began opening the case. "Shoulda known…"
The smile was instantly wiped from his face by the end of a golf club. Grace swung again and again unmercifully. "You sick fuck!"
Over and over she smashed the club against his skull until the only thing left was a bloody mess attached to a dead body.
Nathan was still in the room with Rachel and Brooke had come out to Grace. "It's okay, Grace. He's gone. You saved us."
"Not so fast."
Grace drew in a breath when she saw John Ryder in the doorway of the bedroom. "You see, Derek here was my apprentice. I didn't even like him very much. You took care of that problem for me. He liked to play games, Grace. He wanted to toy with your 'emotions'. I never understood that. I don't have emotion, Brooke. Did you know that?" John scratched the back of his head with one hand and nonchalantly continued, "I just kill."
He put the butcher's knife he held in his hands and lifted it into the air. Grace screamed and Nathan dropped Rachel and ran in front of Grace. "Would you look at this asshole? Trying to play hero. You won't win. I want to die. That automatically gives me the upper hand." John smirked.
A moment passed and all that was heard was breathing. Then John lunged at Nathan and everything that happened next was chaos. Both twins were screaming and John knocked Nathan to the ground. Nathan tried to wrestle the knife away but John was too skilled.
He pushed the knife into Nathan's thigh, effectively pinning Nathan to the floor. He screamed out in pain. John got up and turned towards the twins.
Grace lifted her golf club in the air trying to look threatening. "Do you want to die, Grace?"
"No."
"Say it."
"NO!" Grace cried out.
"SAY IT!" John bellowed.
Grace began crying again and simply nodded her head 'no'.
John shrugged his shoulders as if to say 'fine' and stepped towards Nathan. "Leave him alone!"
John ignored the demand. He pulled on the knife in Nathan's leg causing the knife to rip at his already horrible wound. Nathan cried out in pain again and was instantly silenced by the knife slicing through his neck.
"Oh god. No…no…" Grace was a wreck.
John then began walking towards Grace. She started backing away towards the wall away from Nathan.
"Say it, Grace."
With his focus on the twin with the club, Brooke held herself together. She couldn't let this bastard get her sister too. She walked to Nathan and refused the urge to throw up. She ripped the knife from Nathan's throat.
Her hands shaking, she began creeping towards John.
"Say it, Grace." John kept repeating himself the closer he got to the girl. Grace saw Brooke behind him.
"I DON'T WANT TO DIE!" Grace screamed at the top of her lungs.
Brooke used as much strength as she could muster and plunged the knife into the back of John's neck. He fell to the floor. His body twitched for a moment before becoming dead still.
Brooke and Grace made eye contact with each other and they both collapsed to the floor, exhaustion filling their bodies.
One year later…
Brooke's body was covered in sweat and she was moving around quite a bit. Rachel woke up and looked over at her girlfriend's body. She figured she was just hot until Brooke screamed out in her sleep.
Rachel quickly shook her awake. "It's just a dream, baby. You're okay."
Rachel embraced her and put her fingers through Brooke's hair in an attempt to soothe her. Brooke's fingers ended up on Rachel's slightly exposed stomach. She traced Rachel's scar.
She finally calmed down and Rachel asked her what she was dreaming about.
"The night. I was dreaming about the night."
"Oh Brooke…" Rachel wished more than anything that she could take that all back. She couldn't stand to see the pain the girl was still going through.
"I think I'm going to go call Grace."
"It's almost 2 in the morning."
"She won't mind." Brooke got out of bed. She leaned back down and brought Rachel's lips to her own. "I don't know what I'd do without you."
Rachel gave her a soft smile and Brooke left the room. She made herself comfortable on their couch and gave her sister a call.
"Can't sleep?" Grace answered.
"No, lil sis. I had a bad dream. I thought maybe you did too."
"It's weird how you know that."
"I'm used to our freaky twin thing by now. Thinking about Nathan?"
Grace sighed. "All the time. Thinking about Peyton?"
"Always."
"It wasn't your fault, Brooke. You know that. It was those sick fucks who I know are rotting in hell right now."
"I know. I just want to live a happy life, Grace."
"You have me. And you have the love of your life. Take advantage of it, Brooke. You're lucky." There was a deep sadness to Grace's voice. She missed Nathan fiercely.
"But why us, Grace? Why did we get to survive?"
"…Only God knows."
END.