Hey guys! I finally got this chapter out! It took forever, but I was pretty busy and had awful writer's block! See there was so much testing at school, and then finals came along. Then I went on a trip to the beach, then Philly, then went to D.C. for a little while. I've been busy. Then I wasn't sure which characters I should have in this chapter. And I'm ranting aren't I? Sorry! You can read the story now. Enjoy! (It's a long one.)

TW: Bloody description of a dead body (it's not that bad, but it's definitely there).


(Seabury POV)

I glanced nervously out my window, the wind had picked up considerably since we left the office. The rain was currently coming down hard, and a constant drum of water droplets could be heard hitting the limousine.

Even Mr. King seemed to be anxious as he rapped at the divider, leaning forward to ask the driver if he could drive a little faster.

"The sooner we get out of this storm the better," he said when leaning back against his seat again.

I tried to smile reassuringly. "Don't worry sir, we're only a few minutes away from your mansion now."

Mr. King glanced at me and sighed. "Yes, I suppose you're right."

Nevertheless, the driver sped up a bit and we arrived outside the mansion in no time.

It was a grand structure, it stretched for thousands of square feet and had a nice mix of cream and pearl white paint covering the brick exterior. The front was graced with four marble pillars. The stone path to the front doors was flanked by freshly cut grass and six triangular bushes.

The limo parked at the end of the stone path and the driver rushed out to open the door for Mr. King. I hurried out myself to Mr. King's side carrying his briefcase and holding a few stray papers.

We walked down the path to the doors and I shifted things around in my arms to open them.

Mr. King walked through with a small smile at me.

I entered after him, ignoring the strange warmth that rose to my face at a glance of the smile that had his voters falling at his feet. I returned a polite smile of my own and took Mr. King's coat.

He sighed in relief once he stepped over the threshold, stretching his arms above him. "Ah, home sweet home."

The foyer, or vestibule as Mr. King liked to say when he was feeling particularly pretentious, was quite big, fit for Mr. King's habit of hosting festivities for his fellow party members and holding charity banquets.

I couldn't help stopping to stand in the center of it all for a moment as I took off my coat. I admired the grand wooden staircase as it curved around from the right and left wings of the house to meet and lead down to where Mr. King was standing.

Two maids then came around the corner, glancing down at us from the banister. They made their way down to us swiftly from the left side of the staircase and were careful not to skid across the carpet. It was a deep red that was a few shades lighter than merlot but darken than scarlet. It muffled their hurried footsteps until they stood before us.

"Welcome back, Mr. King," said one of them, the eldest and primary housekeeper. Despite her age and wrinkled face, she had a rather cheery disposition. She had a motherly air about her which suited her role perfectly. A warm smile greeted her employer as she gave him a slight bow, emphasizing the height difference between her stout figure and the stately man before she took both our coats from my arms.

"I trust that you had a very productive day at the office?" She gave the garments to the other maid, my drab navy coat seeming especially poor next to the grand white fur, then she turned her attention back to Mr. King. Her pleasant smile contrasted deeply with his tired pout.

"Hello, Margaret. The office was boring as usual, and I'm feeling a little peckish after working all day."

"Sorry to hear that, sir. Your dinner is being prepared as we speak. It should be ready in a few minutes. Please, let me prepare a show for you to watch in the viewing room."

Mr. King waved his hand, the bored look on his face only accentuated by a yawn. "That should not be necessary. I had originally planned on watching Mean Girls... but I could use a good nap, I've had a stressful campaigning week." He gestured to me, "Samuel may be led to watch something of his choosing." He paused, "that is if you would like to."

It took me a second to realized he was asking me.

"Oh!" I was very flustered for being silent. "I, uh, yes, I'll just watch something."

With a nod and another small smile—Mr. King rarely smiled so freely that I supposed he must be quite tired—he dismissed the maids.

As soon as they were gone, Mr. King's shoulders slumped and he yawned widely.

"Ugh, I need to take that nap—" he looked at me— "See you later Sammy," and then he walked up the long staircase to his master bedroom in the right wing.

"Ugh, I need to take that nap," he glanced at me and, to my surprise, clasped my shoulder. "I'll bid you adieu Sammy," he said with one finally quirk of his lips and then he walked up the long staircase to his master bedroom in the right-wing.

Blushing, I tried to regain my composure. Somehow he can always find a new way to make me blush effortlessly. After just standing there and admiring the chandelier above my head, I decided to go to the viewing room down the hall.

Maybe I'll watch some Mean Girls.


(Jefferson POV)

Zeus must hate me.

I was on my way uptown to a photo shoot when the rain started.

Simple rain doesn't bother me that much. However, what started as a little drizzle very quickly transitioned into a thunderstorm.

I was currently lounging in the back seat of my limo, and cursing out the god of thunder vehemently. And Thor too I guess. I don't discriminate between mythologies.

Before you judge me to secretly be a mythology nerd, know that I've recently played Hercules in a movie and did some research to get more in touch with the character.

I groaned for probably the third time in the past hour when we turned into backed-up traffic.

"Ugh! I hate New York traffic! This is why most of the jobs I do are in LA." I grumbled to no one in particular, but the figure across from me lowered the paper they were reading anyway.

James shot me an unimpressed look. "Thomas, the traffic here is just as bad as in LA and you—"

The car jolted to a sudden stop, effectively halting our conversation. We could hear the driver cursing at someone who just cut him off.

James rolled his eyes and frowned back down at his newspaper. "Or maybe not."

I sighed dramatically and draped myself across the black leather luxury seating, I wanted it to be a nice shade of lilac, but I digress.

James glanced down at me over his glasses before continuing to read. "Thomas, please put your seat belt back on. That's not safe," he said, sounding rather tired with this car ride.

I rolled my eyes, "We're not even moving, Jemmy!"

He leveled a glare at me, "I told you not to call me that. My name is James and you know it."

I smirked at him now upside down in the seat, my curly hair gathering on the recently vacuumed car floor.

"Whatever you say—" I winked at him— "Jemmy."

Before he could respond, the car jolted again, more harshly this time as if we were rammed from the back. I let out a small yelp as I slid down more on the floor.

"I'm sorry Mr. Jefferson," the driver said, "Are you alright?"

My head hurt a little, but I was okay. "Yes, yes, I'm fine. Now, focusing on driving!"

"Yes, sorry sir! But this crazy driver hit us in the back!"

Ah, so that's what it was.

"Well, go out and have a word with him! I'll be out in a moment."

James looked down at me in concern, "Are you sure you're fine?"

It was at this moment that I realized our position.

When I had fallen down, James had fallen forward and instinctively reached out for the first stable thing he could find. Which just happened to be, my hair. His face hovered over mine, barely more than a hair's breadth apart.

And… I'm surprisingly perfectly fine with that. Usually, I would go ballistic if anyone, excluding me and my hairdresser, tried to touch my hair.

James however, was a different story. He was a blushing mess and scrambled to get off of me.

"S-sorry Thomas! I just fell and—"

"James, It's fine," I said stopping him from what would have probably been a long apology.

I moved back to get in my seat and smiled at him, "I guess you were right about the seat belts."

He smiled back softly.

That's when we were hit again.

This time we both clutched to the seats at the jolt.

"What in the hell is going on?" I was growing concerned now, and I turned around to see what was happening outside.

I heard muffled noises outside my door that did little to calm my now racing heartbeat.

Looking out the window, I saw a woman run by and a few lanes down a guy climbed out of his car.

My eyebrows rose at that, looking over at James who shrugged in response. So, I opened my passenger door and stepped outside.

My ears were immediately blasted with a loud siren making me wince and clutch my hands over them with a yell for Jemmy to do the same.

It took me a moment to recognize the alarm tone, it wasn't coming from a fire truck or a police car. The blood rushing past my ears turned to ice as I looked around and it came to me. No, this alarm was much louder and much more important than a fire truck.

It was a storm siren.


(Angelica POV)

So apparently when you really need help from 911, they're occupied.

Then again, they said they're stuck saving an orphanage hit by a tractor-trailer, so I'm not really mad at them.

I sighed and ended the phone call, groaning when I saw my phone had only 2% power left.

I looked around for any sign of where we are. My eyes finally found a fallen street sign that read W 162nd St and Fort Washington Ave.

Okay, so we still have at least another block to go to reach Riverside Dr, but maybe we should change course and look for a hospital or something.

"Hey, Angie?" I pulled myself out of my thoughts and looked over at Peggy. We were both supporting Maria as she couldn't walk very well with her ankle.

I raised an eyebrow at her for calling me "Angie," but I let it slide this time considering our circumstances.

"I think we should probably stop for a bit," she said, tightening her grip around Maria's waist as she stumbled a bit.

I didn't really want to stop, we needed to find a safe place for the night just in case we get hit with another storm surge. Then I saw how Maria was panting after making the struggle to walk with her injured ankle.

I relented, "Okay."

We stopped at a bus stop, we all really did need to rest, and Maria's ankle had gotten more swollen and red during our walk. While she tried to hide it, every step had her clenching her teeth in pain.

"We'll rest here for a bit," I said as Peggy and I helped Maria sit down.

The surrounding area was a mess. There were a few other people milling around, some were trying to find help while others tried to provide it. The wave had caused plenty of damage. Some trees came down with power lines being pulled down making it difficult for cars to move past. Most of the buildings were still intact, but many windows were cracked and the supports were damaged.

There was a steady stream of people stumbling out of parking garages like the one we ended up in.

Many of the smaller small businesses were flooded, and many were trying to escape with as much of their things as they could.

There was the constant sound of crying, water rushing, and the distant buzz of a rescue helicopter saving people from skyscrapers.

"Wow… it really is a mess," Peggy said while I nodded mutely on Maria's right.

"Well, I don't think 911 will be any help to us. With all the damage done so far by the hurricane, three civilians aren't their main priority." I said trying to not let my disappointment show.

"We need to find an emergency shelter or something, we can't just stay out here," Maria said anxiously.

We were all afraid of another wave or a building collapsing on us, but I think Maria was scared the most. After all, she saw her driver die before her eyes, and only barely managed to escape the same fate.

"Hey, try to relax. We'll be alright." Peggy tried to comfort her as she propped Maria's swollen ankle up on her lap.

"Yeah, we need to stay focused, I think there is a hospital nearby that Eliza used to volunteer at."

Peggy's eyes brightened, "Yes! I think it was called Morgan Stanley Children's Hospital. They should be able to help with your ankle. Children sprain ankles all the time."

I nodded, "And they're sure to accept us since many people are probably injured now they won't solely accept children."

Maria calmed down a bit at that. "O-okay, well I think I can try to walk again. We can't waste time."

I sent an approving smile at her, I admired her stubborn attitude.

Just as Peggy and I helped her up, we heard the sound of a car engine speeding nearby.

I turned to see roughed-up black limousine speed down the wrong side of the street.

My eyes widened when it skidded and came straight towards the bus stop.

"Move!" I yelled, grabbing Maria's arm as we scrambled out of the way.

It only narrowly missed us as it crashed into the bus stop.

My heart was beating rapidly in my chest and I turned to Maria and Peggy, their shocked faces were staring at the car

"Are you two alright?!" I asked, frantically checking to see if either had been hurt.

"N-no, we're fine Angelica, but what just happened?!" Peggy stammered out, still staring at the crushed bus stop where we were just sitting.

"Some— some maniac just crashed their limo into a bus stop and nearly killed us!" Maria said, looking overwhelmed and frantic.

Then the limo backed up again, and we moved further away just in case the driver tried to run us over again.

We heard a strangled gasp, followed by someone from inside the limo yelling:

"MY HAIR!"

I frowned and looked to Peggy and Maria who both shrugged, as clueless as I was.

"Thomas calm down!" another voice said in response to the previous voice.

"How can I stay calm when our driver just crashed into a bus stop and practically ruined my hair!?"

Wait, that voice sounded familiar… but it couldn't be him. That was just so unlikely. And my luck can't be that bad.

Then one of the passenger doors facing us opened and a disheveled man stumbled out.

It can't be.

But no matter how much I wished it wasn't true, Thomas Jefferson was standing in front of us in a dark magenta suit covered in a pattern of roses.

And I had to do a double-take as I saw his hair, it really was a mess.

"Thomas, wait!" another figure tumbled out after him in less outlandish clothes. He had broken glasses and while not as expensive as Jefferson's, his casual clothing was nice.

"Jemmy, look at this place! It's horrible!" Thomas said looking around with barely hidden horror.

"Ugh, why me?" I mumbled to the sky and the man with Thomas turned and finally noticed us.

He waved awkwardly and nudged Thomas to get his attention.

"What is it Jemmy?"

The man (Jemmy?) nodded in our direction. Thomas turned to look at us.

"AH!" We jumped back at his sudden shout. "Zombies! The apocalypse has started! Kill them, Jemmy!" Thomas screeched before hiding behind the other man who rolled his eyes at the dramatic response.

Peggy, Maria, and I looked at each other in confusion before looking down at our clothes to see that we did look a little "undead."

I rolled my eyes, "We're not zombies Thomas." I said in annoyance and Peggy raised an eyebrow at me as if to say, "You know this spoiled brat?"

I waved my hand in response as if to say, "It's a long story."

Thomas moved from his place behind the other man and glared at me.

"That is exactly something a zombie would say! And how do you know my name?" He pointed an accusing finger at me.

I can't believe this man…

"Thomas cut the crap. It's me, Angelica," I said, done with his childish behavior.

With that, he straightened up and walked a little closer to get a good look at me.

After a few seconds, his eyes widened, and then his lips curled in his signature smirk.

"Well, well, looks like we meet again, Miss Schuyler," he said looking me up and down.

"Although, I think I preferred your old look."

This arrogant son of a—

"Wait, you two know each other?" The other man intervened before I could strangle Thomas.

"Yes," and "Regrettably," were the respected answers.

"Wait, Angie is this the man you punched in the face when you were in Paris?" Peggy asked, her eyes lighting up in recognition.

I smiled at the somewhat fond memory, "Yes Peggy, this is him. And please don't call me Angie."

Jefferson frowned, "Really? That's all you told them about us? We used to be very good friends if I remember correctly."

I glared at him, but before I could protest the other man stepped between me and Jefferson.

"Okay, well now we know you two know each other. However, the rest of us have never met, so I'll start the introductions," he said smoothly stopping an argument that was sure to start.

He smiled at us and held out his hand, "I'm James Madison, and Thomas here is my client. I'm his manager for his acting career," James said professionally.

"And he's my best friend!" Thomas said putting his arm around James, who shot him an annoyed look, but I could see him smile slightly.

I cautiously shook his hand, "I'm Angelica Schuyler and that's my sister Peggy and our acquaintance Maria…" I frowned. "I now realize you never told us your last name."

Maria blushed and softly said, "It's Re—Lewis, my name is Maria Lewis," she said avoiding everyone's confused and slightly concerned glances.

"Well… we are so sorry about the bus stop incident, I think our driver was injured," James said, looking back at the limo.

"We should check on him," I said and walked up to the driver's door.

I knocked on the window, "Sir? Are you alright?" I said loudly hoping he could hear me.

"Is he injured?" Peggy asked in concern.

I squinted inside. The windows were tinted darker than most cars but I could make out a slumped-over body in what I assumed was a suit. His head was lying limp against the headrest.

"I'm not sure, he isn't moving. Just lying lifeless against the steering wheel." I responded, knocking again. "Sir? Nod your head if you can hear me." There was no movement in the car.

I tried the car door, but it wouldn't budge.

"Peggy can you hand me the—"

"Here," I turned to see Peggy on my left holding out the emergency hammer/flashlight we used to get out of her van.

I smiled, "Thanks," and I returned my focus to the car door and with one hard hit, I broke the window.

"Jesus!" Thomas exclaimed jumping back. "Warn a guy before you break a window next time."

I rolled my eyes but decided to ignore him as I carefully reached inside the car to unlock the door.

Click.

I pulled back my hand wincing as I got a small cut on the outside of my wrist.

Then I opened the door and what I saw made bile rise up in my throat.

Shards of glass covered the front of his body, many were lodged in his face and abdomen.

There was blood, so much blood, staining his white shirt and making it stick to his skin. His chest was sickeningly wet with the dark liquid.

But the most horrifying part was his face.

It was contorted into a look of shock with a large shard of glass sticking straight out of his mouth. Several other smaller bits of glass stuck out of his cheeks and forehead, marring his skin and causing blood to slowly trickle down his face.

His eyes were blank, almost glassy, as they stared off into the distance.

"I… I think he's dead." My voice wavered as I cautiously stepped back from the gruesome sight.

Maria gasped, a hand coming up to cover her mouth and Peggy put a comforting arm around her as she supported her weight.

James cautiously walked forward and held two fingers up to his neck.

There was a heavy silence as they waited for his verdict.

He finally looked up, a grave look on his face. "No pulse."

There was another heavy silence.

I took a deep breath, trying to shake myself out of my stupor. "Well, there's nothing we can do for him now."

"But we can't just leave him there!" Maria protested, her voice turning shrill.

Peggy rubbed her arm, trying to calm her. "I know. You're right but... we can't take him with us."

"Maybe we can call 911?" James suggested, averting his eyes from the scene.

Peggy shook her head, "Their lines are being overrun with calls. We barely managed to reach them earlier."

I sighed, it felt wrong to just leave him here, but we couldn't stay here. "I hate to say it, but it's probably best we just move on and get somewhere safe. Emergency responders can't do anything for him now."

I had to remain resolute. Today I saw more death than I ever wanted to after my mother... but we needed to stay focused. We couldn't save the man and if we lingered here we could get run over by another car or something worse. It wasn't safe being out in the open. Still, I think I was handling this a bit better than the others. I guess being a lawyer I had learned to get used to this: making judgments and tough decisions about someone's life, or their potential lack thereof.

Nevertheless, I have never faced a situation like this before.

I wish we could do more.

James coughed into a handkerchief before finally glancing back at the body. "I'll call his emergency contact as soon as we can get decent cell service. Maybe they can notify his family."

We nodded, at least we could do that.

"The 911 dispatcher said that some emergency responders would meet us on Riverside Drive in the Washington Heights," I informed Thomas and James, "but they probably won't find us any time soon and I don't think we are high on their list of priorities."

I glanced between them, "Did either of you have any destination in mind? Or know of a safe place where we could go?"

"Well, we passed a hospital a little while earlier, we can all ride in the limo?" James offered.

I smiled. "Thank you, I think we can all fit." I gave the limo a quick once over. It was a bit banged up in the front, but everything else seemed intact.

"I'll drive," Peggy said. She moved to take the driver's seat but then her eyes locked onto the body once more and she paled as realization flashed across her face.

"James," Thomas called out as he stepped over some of the broken glass to get to the front seat. "Can you help me... move him?"

James nodded quickly and rushed forward to help Thomas move the body out of the seat. They put him down carefully, leaning him up against one of the bus stop poles left standing.

"I call shotgun," Thomas said walking over to the front passenger side.

I nodded and helped Maria walk get into the back of the car while James went in on the other side.

Eventually, all of us were seated in the limo, I was on the left behind Peggy with Maria next to me in the middle and James was sitting on the right behind Thomas.

Peggy put the car in reverse and carefully backed away from the ruined bus stop before getting on the road and heading the way the limo came through.

After a few minutes of James giving Peggy directions, I remembered Eliza.

I pulled my phone out of my pocket and tried to turn it on, but the screen remained black.

Dammit, it's dead.

"Hey, do either of you have a phone I can borrow?" I said looking at James and Thomas.

Thomas frowned, "Why?"

I frowned back, "Because I need to call my sister, and my phone is dead."

"Maybe I don't want you on my phone," Thomas said.

"Why not?" I wasn't really following the turn this conversation took.

"Because you would probably go through my texts and photos for blackmail material," Thomas said as if it was obvious.

I rolled my eyes. "Really, Thomas? I'm not that petty. I just need to call my sister. Not everyone is as unnecessarily annoying as you." I mumbled the last part, but he still heard it.

Thomas turned in his seat to fully face me, "Excuse you, but I'm not the unnecessarily annoying one."

I furrowed my eyebrows in confusion, "What do you mean by that? All I wanted to do was call my sister. You're the one who accused me of being petty!"

"Well, you said I'm annoying!"

James tried to interject, "Guys, is this really necessary?" But neither of us heard him.

"Because you won't let me use your phone to make a quick call!"

"Well, you always get angry at people for no reason!"

Peggy turned on him, "Don't you think that's a little—"

"I get angry at people for no reason?" I exclaimed, cutting her off.

"Yes! And then you punch them in the face!"

"You were being sexist!"

James tried again, "Now really—"

"I just asked why you were so interested in becoming a politician when you could be a model! That job would be way more stressful!" Thomas said cutting him off.

"And how do you not see what was wrong with that comment!?" I asked incredulously.

"I was trying to compliment you!"

"That's what you call a compliment?!"

"Hey!" James cut us both off loudly.

"Here, take my phone," he said reaching across Maria to hand me the phone.

"And can both of you stop it. I'm trying to drive through a good deal of wreckage right now, and you both are very distracting." Peggy said.

"Sorry Pegs," I said blushing a little in embarrassment.

Thomas just pouted and looked out the window, refusing to say anything.

He is such a child sometimes.

I sigh and thank James before dialing my sister's number.

It started ringing and I waited, really hoping Eliza would answer.

After a few more rings, I finally hear her voice, "Hi—"

"Thank god! Eliza are you—"

"You've reached Elizabeth Schuyler, she is currently not available right now. Please leave a message after the tone."

Well, at least her voicemail isn't full. I waited for the beep before leaving a message.

"Hey Eliza, it's me, Angelica. I was just calling to see if you're okay. Peggy's with me, and we're both alright. Please call back this number as soon as you can." I say.

I pause before adding, "I love you," and then hung up the call.

I handed the phone back to James and look out the window, avoiding the eyes I can feel watching me.

I hope she's alright…


(Philip POV)

"Ah," I winced and my arm twitched as pressure was applied to the wound.

"Sorry, sweetheart, just try to hold still okay?" my mom said as she did her best to wrap my wounded arm.

"Yeah, sorry. I'll be still."

We were sitting in the dim light of my cell phone. After the lights went out, we made our way to the nurse's office. A few other faculty members that were still at the school were here with us tending to their own injuries.

"This is the second time this week I've been in a nurse's office. I guess trouble seems to find me easily huh?" I tried to say this in a light tone to lift her spirits, but my mom just looked up at me with a tight smile before returning her attention to my elbow.

I winced again as she then started to press an ice pack on the swollen area of my right arm.

"So… what now?" I asked trying to break the silence.

My mom didn't answer immediately, still focus on my arm, before she looked up and sighed, blowing some air through her lips to move a stray piece of hair that escaped her messy bun.

"Well, first we need to make you a makeshift cast for your arm to make sure the bone heals correctly."

"Then… I'm not sure. I guess we can try to call 911 again and then either look for a way out or get some blankets for the night."

"Well, we can't just stay here," I said getting agitated and a little fearful. I just wanted to be home in a pillow fort ignoring the storm. Not stuck in an Elementary school without power.

My mom smiled softly at me, "I know sweetheart, but we don't really have much control over the situation. We're quite lucky to be alive right now."

I shrugged, but then immediately regretted it as pain shot up my arm.

"Hey! No moving!" my mom said pressing the ice pack down a bit more.

"Right, sorry."

My mom frowned before standing up, "Stay right here, I'm going to ask the nurse about broken arms." And with that, she wandered over to the nurse who was tending to another person who seemed to have injured their wrist.

With my good arm, I reached over to get my phone from my right pocket, maybe I could call someone for help. As soon as I opened my phone, I saw multiple texts from my dad along with a few missed calls and voicemails from him and my aunts.

Oops. Probably should call them back, so they know we aren't dead.

I got to my contacts and call my dad.

He picked up immediately.

"Philip?! Th-thank god! Ar-re you o-okay?!" he says this in a rush, his words breaking apart.

"Yeah, yeah I'm fine Dad," I rush to assure him.

"Wh-where a-are y-y-you?"

"I'm with Mom at her school. We're locked in and the power went out." I say stumbling over my words a little. I'm so happy to hear his voice.

"O-okay, is sh-she alright?"

"Yeah, yeah she's fine," I say looking over at her as she helped the school nurse tend to a man's injured wrist.

"Where are you, Dad?" I asked in concern at the loud sounds in the background.

"Ph-Philip? C-can you hear me?" he sounded confused, maybe he couldn't hear me clearly.

"Dad? Can you hear me?"

"Ph-Philip? Hello? Ar-are you—"

The call suddenly cut off and I pulled the phone away from my face to see the screen display the words: Call Failed.

I frowned and looked at the top left corner of my phone to see that I had no service.

Great, so I can't call anyone.

I sighed and looked around the room. People were sitting on some beds, many were covered in dust from the broken cement. Others were rushing around looking for medical supplies to help anyone that had been injured. A few were trying to call people on their phones like I was but to no avail.

How are we going to get out of here?

I stood up from the bed and walked to the office.

There were some people standing around the computers, trying to get one to work.

I hear some static and turned to see a woman on a walkie-talkie.

"Are you at the doors? Over."

There was more static before a voice responded.

"I'm in the back of the Cafeteria. The doors are locked, but we should be able to manually open them from the inside. Over."

Well, that's a relief.

"That's great. Do you need any help? Over."

"Well, we do need a metal crank that is kept in one of the drawers of my desk in the main office. We need it to open the doors. Can you send someone to bring it to us? Over."

"Of course, someone will be there in a few minutes. Over and out."

She put the walkie-talkie in a holster on her belt and looked around at everyone in the room. "Hey, can anyone here help me look for a crank?"

I caught her eye and smiled slightly. "I could help."

"Me too," said a voice from behind me.

Wait, I know that voice!

I turned around quickly to see Theodosia walking through the door.

"Theo! What are you doing here?" I asked suddenly trying to remember if my hair was a mess or not.

Theo looked up and after the initial shock fell off her face split into a smile. "Hey! Philip, right?"

She remembers my name! She remembers my name!

I try my best to school my facial expression but by the look in her eye, I don't think I was successful.

Then she was suddenly frowning down at my chest. "Oh my god, what happened to your arm?" She rushed forward to get a closer look at my makeshift cast. I try to wave off her concern with my good arm. "Oh, it's nothing. It's got hurt when the tree fell, but I think all the blood is from scrapes."

She held my arm up carefully and I bite back a curse. Theo looked back at me sympathetically when I winced, "Sorry, but I can take a look at it if you want?"

She straightened back to her full height and I noticed how close she was, there were only a few inches between us.

I tried to will away the steady growing blush across my face and nod. "Y-yeah that'd be cool."

"Hey lovebirds, I could use some help to find that crank."

I turn to see the woman from before looking at us with a smile and feel my face betray my embarrassment as it heats up.

"Right, sorry." I quickly apologize and start to search through some drawers.

"So… What are you doing here?" I ask trying to keep the conversation flowing.

Theo shrugs as she searches through another drawer, "I volunteer here after school some days. I usually help give out food for the after-school clubs and such. I've got to get in those service hours you know?" She said the last part with a small smile before looking back at me. "What about you? Why are you here?"

"My mom. She works here as a teacher. I came by to see her since she was working late today." Theo smiles at me, "Aw, that's sweet of you Pippy." I groaned playfully, "Damn, I thought you forgot about that." She smiled mischievously, "Nope. I have an excellent memory."

"Language Philip," my mom said as she walked into the room.

"Sorry Mom," I say as she walks over to us.

She looks down at the drawers we are looking through and looks back at me with a raised eyebrow. "What are you two searching for?"

"A crank, they need one to open the doors," Theo responds.

"Hey, aren't you that girl from Philip's school?" my mom asked frowning in thought at Theo.

"Yeah, Philip got in a fight on the first day defending my honor," Theo said with a smirk at me.

"Ah yes. I remember now. Theo right?"

"It's Theodosia actually, but you can call me Theo."

"Oh, well it's nice to meet you, Theodosia, my name's Eliza. I'm Philip's mom." Eliza said with a smile holding out her hand.

"Nice to meet you too," Theo responded with a smile shaking my mom's hand.

"Hey, is this it?" I ask the woman that was on the walkie-talkie before, holding up something resembling a low rider metal bike crank.

"Yes! I think that's it." The woman said with a smile pulling out her walkie-talkie again.

"Hey Frank, we found it. Over."

There was some static before a response came through, "Great! Bring it, and we should be out of here in no time. Over."

"Alright, I'll be there soon. Over and out." she put the walkie-talkie away and I handed her the crank.

She walked out and I looked to Theo and my mom with a hopeful smile. "Looks like we'll be out of here sooner than I thought."


(Madison POV)

Now that the two of them stopped arguing, the car ride was quiet as no one was really in the mood for small talk. Well, the woman that had been arguing with Thomas was talking to the driver, I think she said they were sisters, but other than that it was silent.

It was eerily quiet outside, the wind had died down and now it seemed people were just trying to find a safe place to stay the night. There were no more screams of agony or fear, just an odd silence.

That's when I got an alert on my phone.

Everyone, but Peggy, turned to look at me, dread and fear showing clearly on their faces at what the alert was warning us about.

With a sigh of relief, I saw it was only a traffic notification from my Waze app.

Then I frowned when it said that the roads to the hospital were blocked off due to flooding.

"Well? What is it, Jemmy?" Thomas asked.

I looked up to see everyone was still staring at me, again excluding Peggy of course as she was driving. "Uh, the good news is it isn't another storm surge warning." Maria and Jefferson sighed in relief, but Angelica still frowned.

"But?" she asked knowing she wasn't going to like the bad news.

"But… the bad news is we won't make it to the hospital. The roads are flooded."

Thomas groans in front of me. "Well, that's great. What are we going to do now?"

"We still need to find a place to stay. Do either of you know a place close to here?" Peggy asks looking at us in the rearview mirror.

"Well, you know that mansion where they film that reality TV show, The Royals, is near here," The woman beside me, I think her name was Maria, says quietly.

"That's true! I think it's on a hill right? That would be a good place to stay in case the flooding gets worse overnight." Angelica says nodding as she thinks it over.

"Okay, that sounds good and all, but wouldn't that be breaking and entering?" Thomas said.

Angelica rolled her eyes, "It's not like we're going to loot them. We just need a place to stay the night and it's our best bet."

Thomas glares at her but thankfully lets the subject drop.

"Okay then, I'll get Waze to give us directions," I say googling the address.

(Time skip)

A little while later, we pull up to a grand mansion with another limousine in the driveway. "Wow… it looks much bigger off-screen," the driver, I think she was Peggy, muttered offhandedly as we all got out of the opened her door and stepped out, helping Maria to her feet. I rushed over to their side to help as Thomas and Peggy got out of the front.

The mansion was grand, it was a little bigger than Monticello and had a nice mix of pearly white paint covering the brick exterior. We walked out of the wide driveway to the front steps. The stone path we were walking along was flanked by freshly cut grass and six bushes that were probably once neatly trimmed but now looked a mess due to the strong wind and debris.

We approached the front door and I noticed that a few of the window had broken. Thankfully, other than that the place seemed mostly undamaged from the storm.

Thomas walked up and rung the doorbell.

We heard a distance tune ring throughout the house and waited for someone to answer.

After about two minutes, he rang it again.

Still, no answer.

"Alright, Angie hand me the hammer." Peggy held out her hand and her sister handed her the hammer from earlier.

"Woah, woah, woah. Let's put away the hammer. It's a big house. It might take some time for someone to answer the—"

"Hello?"

We turned to see a woman at the door, most likely a maid if her black and white dress was anything to go off of. I smiled and tried to seem friendly. "Hello, we were wondering if we could stay here for the night? With the storm going on, the roads are flooded, and we have nowhere else to stay."

She eyed us suspiciously before curtly replying, "I don't think we have room for any guests ton—"

"You're kidding, right? It's a mansion. You have room for us and more!" Thomas said this with a raised eyebrow waiting to hear the maid's response.

She blushed and opened her mouth to respond when another voice interjected.

"Excuse me, is someone at the door?"

The maid's blush deepened, and she turned to face someone inside the house.

"J-just some people wanting an autograph. I'll ask them to go, sir."

"We do not want autographs!" Peggy said loudly, trying to catch the attention of whoever the maid was talking to.

"We just need a place to stay the night," Angelica added.

It was quiet for a little while then the person spoke.

"Let them in."

"B-but sir—"

"I said, let them in. God knows we have room to spare."

Thomas gave the nurse a pointed look as she reluctantly opened both doors to let them inside.

The inside was even more impressive than the outside.

I was a little in awe at the foyer. The blood-red carpet gave the place a cliche look but somehow fit perfectly as it covered a double-sided, grand, wooden staircase.

I looked to the others and saw varying reactions to the grand display in front of us.

Maria looked around in awe as I had while Jefferson eyed the red carpet with a twinge of distaste. However, Peggy and Angelica seemed indifferent to the decor as if it was expected.

Interesting...

"Sorry about that. The maids are accustomed to fans of Mr. King trying to sneak in for an autograph."

I turned my attention to a well-dressed man that stood off to the side. He had curly chestnut hair and a pale complexion. He smiled politely at us and gestured for us to follow him further into the house.

"Come, you all must be starving."

As he said it, I realized it had been a while since my small lunch consisting of only a croissant and some peppermint tea. And this would likely be my only opportunity to have a good meal for some time.

So with a shrug, I decided to follow the man, but just before he could lead us down a hall, a man appears at the walking to the top of the steps.

"Sammy? Is someone at the door? I heard the bell ring, we really need to choose a new tune. That one is so annoying."

I raised an eyebrow at this and looked to the man apparently called, "Sammy."

He was blushing profusely and avoided my gaze before rushing to the stairs.

The man continued to walk, now descending the right side of the stairs.

"Maybe it could Candy Store! It would be so fitting! The intro has just the right amount of sass and is blunt enough that maybe people will take a hint and leave. We need to get this done imed—"

He stopped short when he finally looked up and saw us.

My eyebrows furrowed when I took in his face, it looked familiar in that way famous people look, but the green made it hard to tell what the man really looked like.

The green mask on his face somehow was the least ridiculous thing about the man's appearance. He also wore a big, white, fluffy bathrobe covered in small black spots over red satin pajamas. The outfit was topped off with fluffy bunny slippers.

For a moment everyone remained still, staring up at the man in shock while he stared back down at us in the same fashion.

Then he shook himself out of his stupor and studied us with a confused glare before breaking the awkward silence with a blunt question.

"Who the hell are you?"


This. Took. Too. Freaking. Long. To. Write! But hey! They're finally in the mansion! Now I can start writing their deaths! Well, that's all for now, bye!

~PJOandHP4life