Masked Mayhem (Fright Nights)

Chapter Twenty-Three

When the cops witness you trying to commit murder your charges are apparently taken very seriously. Adam might have been able to talk himself into getting out on bail the first time around, but he won’t get that lucky again. The judge denied his bail all together, he’ll be rotting in a cell for a long time, which is better than what he deserves honestly. If it were up to me that bastard wouldn’t be breathing anymore, but knowing he’s in for a lifetime of suffering makes the girls happy. Zoe has found some peace knowing he’s getting exactly what he deserves, and that’s all that matters to me.

His death might have satisfied a dark need in me momentarily, but he deserves to suffer. Adam deserves to spend every day in a hell hole because of what he’s done. I hope they have him scrubbing prison toilets, and I hope a big mean bastard takes an unfortunate liking to him. He deserves to be someone’s bitch.

With him out of our lives, and Jess out of that nightmare, we’ve all gotten back into our regular routine. The last few weekends at Fright Nights have been fun, but tonight is the last night of the season so the guys and I have been planning something special for Zoe. Over the past year the four of us have had a lot of conversations about things we want to try, what we’re interested in or not into at all, and there was one specific fantasy Zoe mentioned a few times that intrigued all of us.

Tonight, we’re making it happen.

As the last of the other volunteer's head to the parking lot I stay behind and make sure they all leave. It’s not unusual for us to be the last ones here so no one will think twice about it tonight, but we want to make sure we’re completely alone before we put our plan into motion.

When the last car becomes fading taillights in the distance I join the others. After months of talking about this and weeks of making plans it’s finally happening. Zoe is confused about why we’re still here, but after last year’s night in the haunted house I think she knows we’re up to something so she’s going along to see what we’re up to.

Standing at the entrance to the corn maze Liam lays it all out for Zoe. “There’s only one rule, you get a three-minute head start and whoever finds you first gets to fuck you, Little Minx. ”

Excitement lights her eyes as she realizes we’re serious. She told us all how fun being chased sounded, but we’ve taken it a step further with our setting. Why chase her through the woods or the house when we have an entire corn maze at our disposal? Add in the masks and the spooky atmosphere and this is the perfect arena. She’s not just going to be chased, she’s going to be hunted.

“What if none of you find me?”

“Oh, we’ll find you, Red.” Reynolds has a feral expression that matches my own. We’ve talked about this multiple times, but now that the moment is here I’m more excited than I’ve ever been.

She smiles with a challenge in her eyes, Zoe wants this just as much as we do, but she isn’t going to make it easy for us. We don't want her to, what’s the fun in that?

When Liam starts the countdown we all pull our masks back over our faces as she turns and disappears into the maze. This is it. She gets three minutes to run from us, then all bets are off, unless she uses her safe word.

There’s nothing around us except complete silence, so we all listen to every step she takes as she runs. Every twig that breaks, the leaves that crunch under her shoes, every sharp intake of breath. She can run as far as she wants, but she’s not going to escape us. When her three minutes are up we all nod to each other before taking off after her, our girl knows her way around the maze pretty well... but so do we.

There are lights around the edge and sporadically placed through the maze, but not enough to chase away all the darkness. Plenty of shadows lurk through the cornstalks, adding to the intensity of the night. We all take different paths when we go after her, splitting up to cover more ground, but also because we all want to be the one to find her first. Picking up my pace I follow the path before me, listening for any sign of my prey, because that’s exactly what she is right now.

Right, left, right. On and on I go, deeper into the maze. Stopping at another intersection, I hold my breath and strain my ears, listening for any clue to point me in the right direction. There’s the softest rustling up ahead, so I take the path to my right and make my way further into the maze.

“Zoooeeeee.” I call out her name, dragging out the syllables as I round a corner. She knows we’re coming, but I don’t want to just stumble on her out here, I want her running. I want her heart pounding when I pin her beneath me.