The moon hung low in the sky, casting a faint glow over East Highland as the clock struck midnight. Most of the town was asleep, but at the Howard household, trouble was brewing. Or rather, trouble was parked in the driveway, completely unaware of the vengeance heading its way.
Maddy Perez pulled up in her sleek black SUV, parking just far enough down the street to avoid suspicion. Beside her in the passenger seat sat Kat Hernandez, who looked equal parts intrigued and horrified by what she'd been roped into.
"You're really going through with this?" Kat asked, adjusting her glasses and glancing nervously at the darkened houses around them.
"Absolutely," Maddy replied, her tone icy and confident. "Cassie thinks she can graffiti my car and get away with it? She's about to learn the hard way."
Kat sighed. "And that involves… draining her engine oil? You do realize that's a felony, right?"
Maddy waved her off. "Relax. No one's going to trace it back to us. Besides, you're the one who knows how to do it."
Kat groaned. "I hate that I took auto shop."
"See? It's your time to shine," Maddy said with a grin, handing her a pair of gloves and a wrench. "Now, let's get to work."
The two girls crept up the driveway, sticking to the shadows. Cassie's car, a silver sedan that had seen better days, sat in its usual spot, looking vulnerable and unaware of the chaos about to unfold. Kat crouched beside the car, muttering to herself as she worked on unscrewing the oil drain plug.
"This is so messed up," Kat whispered. "Like, genuinely deranged."
"Yeah, yeah," Maddy said dismissively, pulling out a pocketknife and heading for the tires. "Keep complaining and I'll add your car to the list."
Kat rolled her eyes but kept working. After a few minutes, she pulled back, wiping her gloved hands on a rag. "Alright, engine oil drained. What's next, your highness?"
"Now we flatten her tires," Maddy said, jabbing the knife into one of the front tires with practiced ease. The air hissed out in a long, satisfying release.
Kat winced. "You're enjoying this way too much."
"You're not enjoying it enough," Maddy shot back, moving on to the next tire. By the time she was done, all four tires were deflated, and the car was effectively immobilized.
"Alright, let's go," Kat said, tugging at Maddy's arm. "Before someone sees us."
But Maddy wasn't done. She turned toward the house, her eyes gleaming with mischief. "I'm knocking on her door."
"What?!" Kat hissed, her voice rising in panic. "Why?"
"Because," Maddy said with a smirk, "I want to see her face when she finds out."
Kat grabbed her arm. "Maddy, this is a terrible idea. The whole point of this was to stay anonymous."
"Relax," Maddy said, shaking her off. "It's not like she'll know it was us."
Before Kat could stop her, Maddy marched up to the front door and knocked three times, loud enough to wake the entire neighborhood. Kat groaned, retreating into the shadows.
Inside, Cassie stirred groggily from her bed. She squinted at the clock—12:15 a.m.—and frowned. "Who the hell is knocking at this hour?"
Lexi, already awake and reading in her room, poked her head into the hallway. "Cassie, what's going on?"
"I don't know," Cassie muttered, throwing on a robe and heading downstairs. She peeked through the peephole and groaned. "Oh my God. It's Maddy."
"Maddy?" Lexi asked, following her. "What does she want?"
Cassie yanked the door open, glaring at Maddy. "What do you want?"
Maddy crossed her arms, looking far too composed for someone standing on a porch in the middle of the night. "Just thought I'd let you know—there's something wrong with your car."
Cassie's eyes widened. "What? What do you mean?"
"I don't know," Maddy said with a shrug, her tone dripping with fake concern. "I was driving by and noticed it looked… off. You might want to check it out."
Cassie shoved past her, sprinting toward the driveway. The sight of her car stopped her in her tracks. The deflated tires, the slight puddle of oil glinting beneath the engine—it all hit her at once.
"No! No, no, no!" Cassie wailed, dropping to her knees beside the car. "What happened? Who did this?"
From the porch, Lexi crossed her arms, her expression somewhere between annoyed and amused. "Are you serious right now?"
Cassie turned to her, tears streaming down her face. "This is a disaster, Lexi! My car is ruined!"
Maddy, who was still standing by the door, bit her lip to keep from laughing. "Wow, that's rough. I hope you have insurance."
Cassie buried her face in her hands, sobbing loudly. "Why does this keep happening to me?"
Lexi sighed, leaning against the doorframe. "Maybe because you keep making terrible decisions?"
Cassie glared at her through her tears. "This isn't my fault!"
"Sure," Lexi said, rolling her eyes. "I'm going back to bed. Good luck with… whatever this is."
As Lexi disappeared inside, Maddy took a step closer to Cassie, crouching down beside her. "Hey, don't cry. I'm sure it's fixable."
Cassie sniffled. "You think so?"
Maddy's smile was all teeth. "Definitely. Just, you know, not tonight."
With that, she stood and sauntered back to her SUV, where Kat was waiting, looking thoroughly unimpressed.
"What's wrong with you?" Kat asked as Maddy climbed into the driver's seat.
"Nothing," Maddy said, grinning as she started the engine. "That was fun."
Kat shook her head. "You're evil."
Maddy smirked, backing out of the driveway. "And don't you forget it."
The next morning, Cassie stood by her car, still distraught as a tow truck loaded it onto its bed. She had no idea who was responsible for the vandalism, but she was sure of one thing: somehow, Maddy Perez was involved.
And across town, Maddy sat at a coffee shop, scrolling through her phone and smiling at the video Kat had secretly filmed of Cassie sobbing by her car.
"Victory," Maddy murmured, sipping her latte.
