Edward and Bella shared a light laugh as they took the trip up to the first level of the kitchen in search of their friends. He put a finger to his lips, making her grin when there was nothing but silence.
"Where are they?" Bella whispered as they rounded into the main kitchen area, only to step back abruptly.
A trail of a messy red substance left a sinister stripe the length of the kitchen, stemming from the old elevator, passing by where Edward and Bella stood just inches from the trail.
"What's that?" She asked aloud, panic beginning to creep into her tone. At the same time Edward gasped the words, "Oh man.." His eyes followed what appeared to be blood until it disappeared around a corner.
Bella squeezed his hand tighter and allowed Edward to tip toe ahead of her as he towed her beside the blood trail with him.
"I want to go back down," she said urgently.
"This is a sick joke." He swallowed hard, his stomach in knots and hoping that Emmett would pop out from around the corner with a 'gotcha' like he typically did.
There was nothing, not a sound other than the faint snapping that sounded like mothers were caught we in a zapper. It made the two of them glance at one another while Edward's curiosity continued to pull them in search of the bloody end.
When they rounded the corner it was dark, though the sound they heard was much more apparent.
"Hello..." Edward's voice nearly shook when the word came out and he attempted to make out what lied beyond where he eyes could see in the dark.
"Hit the switch," Bella whispered, prompting him to flick the light on on the wall.
Immediately the noise they had been hearing erupted and the bulb in the center of a now-visible ceiling fan appeared to explode and flicker, revealing Rosalie's mangled body hanging from the ceiling. Emmett's bloody corpse lay slumped on the ground beneath her, the gash in his throat unmistakable.
Edward and Bella screamed, and he pushed her back behind him, both in a state of awestruck fear as their eyes failed to believe what they were witnessing.
"Who's that?" Bella shrieked, looking to the right down another hallway at a man in a mask and black jumpsuit.
Edward's eyes followed her stare and he quickly grabbed her hand and headed back toward their only escape route - the basement. "Let's get out of here."
The two of them darted back down the stairwell, panic and anxiety plaguing their every step as Edward pulled Bella with him toward the window they had snuck in through earlier in the night.
He shoved it open, pushing her through first and then hurrying to shimmy through behind her, leaving them both sprinting away from the building into the night.
A part of both of them prayed it was some elaborate joke but they knew better. This was no joke.
"What do we do?" Bella asked, out of breath as they slowed down on a paved trail that typically was used to get quickly from one building to another.
Edward stopped with her to take a breath and process what they had just seen. "We have to go back to the dorms.. or my house. We have to find my mom and get a car and get out of here."
"What about the cops?"
"They'll never make in time for us. We're in the middle of nowhere out here. We have to go."
The two of them began to run again and Edward pulled out a set of keys that opened a gate leading into his mother's office building where a single light was on.
"She must be in there," he thought aloud and shuffled with the keys to open the gate to get to the door main.
Bella looked over her shoulder, her heart sinking when she saw Michael emerge from the trail, stalking to where they were.
"Hurry!" She urged, prompting him to look back as his hands shook. "Edward hurry up!"
"I'm trying." He fiddled with the ring, struggling to get the right key in the hole amidst the pressure of Michael approaching. "Come on!"
"Edward!" Bella bit down on her bottom lip and began smacking his back to encourage him to open it. When she thought it was over for them the gate popped open and Edward pulled her inside, securing the gate behind them just as Michael swung his knife in their direction.
The keys bounced to the pavement a few steps outside of the gate and Michael slowly bent down to pick them.
Edward turned to the door to go inside, pounding his fists and screaming for help with Bella at his side doing the same thing as Michael, now, began trying keys to open the lock.
"Somebody!" Edward shrieked. "Help us! Help!"
"Help!" Bella echoed, crying out frantically as they continued to try to draw attention to themselves.
Edward's eyes widened with relief when Esme suddenly appeared behind the window of the door they were pounding on.
She flung the door open without hesitation as Edward and Bella rushed inside.
Esme slammed the door shut and locked it, looking up as Michael now stood face to face with her behind the pane of glass.
She reached down, searching for the gun she had tucked into her pants, though by the time she raised it Michael was gone.
Carlisle pulled Esme away from the door. "Who was that?"