Carnival World Boxed Set (Episodes 1-3) Page 10

  “Water’s getting lower,” she whispered to him.

  “Yeah. Don’t think we can even get out now by standing on each other’s shoulders. Even if they weren’t waiting for us with rocks and who knows what else.”

  Maddie glanced back towards Nicole, who was whimpering like a hurt animal. Her head was just barely above water. It wouldn’t be long before she went under for good. If Maddie didn’t need to conserve her own energy, she would’ve helped Nicole. But as it was, she could barely stay afloat herself.

  “Nicole!” She yelled at the girl. “Float on your back.”

  With her boobs she should be fine, she thought. Unless they’re fake.

  It didn’t look like Nicole heard her or was paying any attention. Maddie really wanted to help her but she was afraid the girl would panic and latch on to her. Then they’d both go down. Maddie was too tired and freaked out to remember how to deal with a drowning swimmer. She looked over at Justin. She could tell he was battling with the same dilemma.

  “Water’s still draining,” Ryan said, as he began bouncing up and down.

  “Darien! Can you touch bottom?” Maddie asked. He was the tallest of them all.

  Darien arched his head back. His mouth was barely above the surface. “Yeah! I’m on my toes!”

  “So am I!” yelled Ryan.

  It seemed to still be draining. Maddie waited. She counted to ten then went down to touch bottom. Her toes touched but the water just covered her face. The suction sensation stopped. She glanced around at the others.

  The water level was just at Darien’s neck and Ryan’s chin. It was just over her head, and Justin’s, but they could touch the bottom with their toes. She gazed over at Nicole. She was the smallest, next to Summer and Sam. She still struggled. The water was well over her head.

  “What happened?” asked Justin.

  “Summer! Help!” Sam’s voice echoed off the pool’s walls.

  “Sam!” Maddie yelled.

  Summer moaned in Darien’s arms, as if she’d heard her brother’s cries and was trying to respond.

  “Okay, we’re getting out of here.” Ryan swam to the wall. “Burton, boost me up.”

  “Why you?” Darien asked. “Summer’s hurt!”

  “And what do you think’s going to happen when we try to leave? I go up first and find my sword.”

  “Your crowbar, you mean,” Justin sneered.

  “Whatever! I find it and guard the pool. After I’m up, Justin, you give Burton a boost up. Then Darien can pull the rest of you up, starting with Summer.”

  “What about Sam?” asked Maddie.

  “When we’re safe we go after him. There’s no other way!”

  Reluctantly, Darien nodded. “All right, let’s do this.”

  “I’ll take Summer,” said Maddie.

  Darien passed the girl to her. She was mumbling now, her eyelids fluttering as if she was struggling to wake. The bump on her head didn’t seem too bad, but what did Maddie know? A whole helluva lot of nothing. She gently cradled the back of Summer’s head and floated on her back, praying to God that they got out of this alive.

  Darien went under again and boosted Ryan up to the pool’s ledge. Ryan’s fingers gripped the edge and he scrambled to the top. He disappeared for a moment, then peered over into the pool, the iron bar grasped tightly in his hands.

  “Come on!” Ryan yelled. “Let’s go.”

  Justin swam over and pushed Darien up. Darien pulled himself up and waved Maddie over. “Give me Summer!”

  By the time Maddie and Justin hefted her up to Darien’s waiting hands, Summer was muttering about Sam as she was pulled clear of the water.

  Maddie turned around to get Nicole, then paled. “Oh my God.”

  Chapter Five

  Nicole tried to never be a bother. Her mother had taught her that.

  No one likes a shrew. Behave. Obey people in authority. Go with the group.

  All things her mother had said to her over the years. Words she lived by. But now she was with a different group. She didn’t want to belong to this one, but she hadn’t really wanted to be part of Katie’s clique either. It just happened. Encouraged by her mother, of course. Now she was with this group and they didn’t want to hear her complain or cry.

  They wanted her to be quiet.

  They wanted her to shut up.

  So she did what they wanted.

  Mother would be so proud.

  She didn’t complain when she couldn’t tread water anymore. She didn’t cry out as she sank into the icy cold depths. She was so cold by then that she barely felt a thing, anyway. As the water took her, she never made a sound.

  Isn’t that what you wanted, mother dear?

  When Darien heard Maddie scream, he whipped around.

  “Nicole!”

  The twins scrambled to the dark shape beneath the water and dived down. They came up with her between them, then dragged her over to him. She was limp as they hefted her upwards.

  Darien pulled her up and laid her down next to Summer, who was just starting to sit up. When she saw Nicole, her eyes bugged out.

  Darien’s stomach roiled over as he looked down at Nicole’s prone form. Her eyes were closed. Crouching next to her, he touched her skin. Her body was like an ice-cold rag doll.

  “Hey, don’t forget us!” yelled Justin from within the pool.

  Darien moved on automatic. He was numb inside. It took everything he had to go back and pull the twins out, Maddie first, then her brother.

  They both immediately went to Nicole’s side. Maddie started pressing on her chest while Justin blew air into her mouth. They looked like they knew what they were doing. Darien had taken first aid before, but he’d never been able to save that stupid dummy, let alone a human being.

  Was she dead? She couldn’t be. He told himself she was all right. She had to be all right. What would his dad say if she died on his watch?

  Ryan gripped him by the shoulder and said, “Come on.”

  Darien stood dazed for a moment, not understanding what Ryan wanted.

  “We need to help Sam.”

  Darien looked down. Summer was trying to get to her feet. Seeing Nicole lying as still as a corpse was bad enough — what if Sam were hurt? That thought kicked him into action.

  He put a steadying hand on Summer’s shoulder. “No, wait here. I’ll get him. I swear.”

  He turned to Ryan. At that moment he wished he had Buzz with him. Buzz was the Crooks High defensive captain. He was a middle linebacker who doled out the hits and often got penalized for it. Buzz got into a lot of trouble off the field, too. But Darien always knew if there was trouble he’d want Buzz by his side. He wasn’t here, though. He had Mulvaney. He’d never considered Ryan a tough guy, even though he dressed like a punk. But he knew how to handle that sword/crowbar thing.

  “Let’s bust some heads!” Darien yelled like he was back in the locker room.

  Together they charged into the office.

  Now Darien saw it, really saw it, for what it was. The paint was nearly gone on the outside. The wood was all dry rotted. The place was nearly as decayed as the carnival. It was just another trap, a trick.

  The door to the other room was ajar. Inside was clean, or at least not as dirty. Darien could see now that it was a deception meant to fool them. The carpet was worn bare in several places. He heard sparks come from the TV and video game. The Shanks kept it just clean enough to make people think everything was normal. The air was hot and smoky, cloying. And the odor that hung in the air was one of death.

  Sam’s screams came from the next room. “Help me! Someone help me!”

  Darien and Ryan charged into the back room. Into what Darien could only describe as Hell. It was as he’d always pictured it — stifling hot, black with flames, and evil menacing monsters all around.

  The back room had walls black with soot. The smell of burning wood and burned flesh stung his nose. On the far side was a massive box made of metal sheets and old chicken wire.
Darien realized to his dismay that it was an oven.

  Below, stacks of wood smoked and threw off bright orange flames. The firelight bounced off the soot-colored walls in a way that made them seem to move and wriggle, like they were in the stomach of some beast.

  The Shanks were near the oven, and they had Sam. They were trying to push him inside.

  Turning, they snarled at Darien and Ryan just like animals. Now they looked less like humans than big, fat feral hogs. The searing heat hit Darien in a wave. The pool water evaporated off his skin in tendrils of steam.

  Darien froze. It was like the other night, with the demon dogs in the carnival. A combination of fear and confusion made him immobile. His mind just couldn’t accept the reality of what was in front of him. The scene was something from a nightmare.

  Sam’s voice, so small, so frightened, broke through to him as he called Darien’s name.

  Sam flailed around like a fish on a hook in Mrs. Shank’s grasp. He was fighting hard to keep from being shoved into the gaping black maw of the monstrous oven.

  A surge of anger swept away Darien’s distress and shock. He forgot the insanity and the fear. He just wanted to crush those two evil maggots under his foot for hurting little Sam. For striking Summer in the head. For Nicole’s drowning.

  “Let him go!” yelled Ryan. He was already well ahead of Darien. He had never slowed down. Ryan held the bar tight in both hands. His eyes were cold, even in the blistering heat.

  Although Ryan’s fierce intensity freaked Darien out, he was glad of it right now.

  Mrs. Shanks held Sam up in front of her like a shield. Mr. Shanks shrank next to his wife’s side. The old man gazed at Darien and licked his lips.

  “Now now, little morsels,” said Mrs. Shanks. “Let’s not be hasty. Wouldn’t want to hurt the dear little one, would we?”

  Ryan moved in lightning-quick with his iron weapon. The first strike hit Mrs. Shanks perfectly on the elbow. She howled and dropped Sam in the process.

  Darien saw his chance. Just like so many games before. When an opening formed in the opposing line, he took it. Sam dropped to the floor, just in front of Mrs. Shanks. Darien rushed in and scooped him up. The boy was light in his arms and he rushed out with him as if Sam was a football and this was the championship game.

  “Burton, watch out!” Ryan yelled.

  Mr. Shanks came out from behind his wife with a dark-stained meat cleaver. Darien didn’t need to be told what it was stained with. Blood always dried dark.

  Mr. Shanks swung and Darien heard the blade whistle just above his head. He pivoted away, Sam clutched tightly to his chest, his arms up in defensive mode.

  Ryan grunted and thrust his iron bar forward. The tip rammed into Mr. Shank’s nose. There was a crunch and he howled in pain. It was the same noise the mutated dogs had made when Ryan pulverized them.

  The Shanks staggered back, arm in arm. They stared at Darien and Ryan with animal hate in their eyes and ravenous hunger.

  Ryan charged again and swung.

  The Shanks jumped back but they came too close to the oven. The flames leapt up and enveloped their greasy clothes. The flames ran up their backs and across their arms in the blink of an eye, eager to burn flesh. The Shanks shrieked and ran around. Mr. Shanks tripped over a pile of firewood and it went up like dry kindling. The flames reached into the corners of the soot-covered room, devouring it whole.

  “Get out! This whole place is going to go!” Ryan was already turning to get the hell out.

  Darien dashed out after him, still hugging Sam close to him. The Shanks screamed and squealed as they spun around like tops. A sizzling sound filled the room, as did a smell that made Darien sick to his stomach.

  The two boys tumbled back into the front room with Sam. Ryan kicked the door closed on the Shanks and their screams. White and gray smoke seeped in through the cracks in the door and flames licked the wooden frame. Finally, they fled the office for the safety outside.

  Darien ran back to the pool with Sam in his arms. The second they were in view, Summer jumped up and ran over to take her little brother from him.

  “Thank you,” she said to him as she hugged Sam tight to her chest.

  Darien looked down at Nicole’s still, unmoving body. Maddie and Justin were still working on her. How long had it been? Too long, he was sure. Even if she was revived, she’d be brain damaged, wouldn’t she?

  His shadow moved over her and Maddie glanced up at him. Tears welled in her eyes and she looked to be fighting them back.

  A sick void grew inside of him. Time slowed. Every second, every breath, took forever. He could count the nanoseconds it took for his lungs to fill with oxygen, then to exhale the carbon dioxide when he breathed out. Something Nicole couldn’t do.

  Then her face twitched, and she made a gurgling noise. Justin quickly turned her over just as pool water came pouring from her mouth. She struggled to cough more up. Justin rubbed at her back to help her.

  Dizziness overwhelmed him. He stumbled and almost collapsed on top of her. Instead, he dropped to his knees and wrapped Nicole in his arms as she heaved and coughed and then cried. Summer was crying too. And so was Sam. He saw Maddie wipe away a tear, as did her brother. Ryan had disappeared for the moment.

  “I got you,” he said to Nicole in a soft voice. “I got you.” He stroked her wet hair.

  But he didn’t cry.

  Ryan leaned against the wall and sucked in air. He was going to vomit, but he fought it back. Ravioli and crackers wasn’t much but it was all the sustenance he had in his stomach and he didn’t want to lose it right now.

  He’d always hated throwing up. It made him feel worse than whatever it was that was making him retch. Since junior high he had managed to keep from vomiting. It hadn’t been easy. Teenagers could be very creative when it came to gross stuff, and he’d eaten something rotten once. But this was different.

  He’d just killed a person. He’d just killed two people.

  That wasn’t something he could just swallow back down and hope for the best.

  Maddie came up behind him and rubbed his back. “You all right?”

  Ryan took a few more deep breaths. He focused on his Sensei, the man who had taught him kendo. The man wasn’t even Japanese but Scots Irish. But Sean Deleon was as Zen as any man on the planet. He’d lived in Japan for half his life before coming back to his hometown to teach the art of the sword. Back in the Shanks house of horrors, Ryan could hear Sean’s words in his head.

  Ignore all else. Focus on what must be done.

  And that’s what Ryan had done. He hadn’t thought about it. It was either those two murdering bastards or Sam. No choice. Not even close.

  “Yeah,” he answered. “I’m good.”

  Maddie smiled. There was a look of pride in her eyes. “You’re a hero, second day in a row.”

  “You and your brother did okay too,” Ryan replied.

  He looked back at the motel office. The room was filled with gray smoke. Flames were shooting out the back. The heat was already too intense to stand too close.

  “We should get out of here,” Maddie said.

  “Not yet,” said Ryan.

  “Why?”

  Ignore all else. Focus on what must be done.

  Ryan said, “We cleared the level, we have to collect our prize.”

  Maddie’s face scrunched up and took a step away from him. “What? That doesn’t make any sense.”

  Clearly, she liked Ryan’s bad boy persona more than his geeky undercurrent. But ignoring his inner nerd had nearly proven fatal before. He wasn’t going to do it again.

  Ryan wandered over to one of the motel rooms, which were detached from the office. The fire would probably spread but they had some time yet. There was something to the Shanks that deeply concerned Ryan. Their act seemed a little too practiced; as if they’d known strangers would be walking down the road looking for answers.

  He tried the first door he came to and it swung open.

  “D
amn, I hate being right.”

  Inside was a hoard. Mostly clothing. But there were bags and other small items. He doubted there would be much food. The Shanks would have been thorough about that.

  “Get the others. We need to scavenge what we can before the fire takes it.”

  “Where did this come from?” She looked around the room with her eyes wide.

  Ryan jerked his head back to the pool. He wondered what other lethal surprises the Shanks had sprung on the unwary.

  “Others weren’t so lucky.”

  “Others?”

  Ryan shrugged. “It’s not a pretty picture.”

  From the amount of stuff crammed inside the room, Ryan guessed the Shanks must have waylaid hundreds of people. How long had they been doing this? Ryan couldn’t even guess the answer. Because he had no idea how long here had even existed. Decades. Centuries. Eons.

  Before Maddie turned to gather the others, she touched Ryan’s arm and searched his face with a kind of desperation. “Will we ever get home?”

  Ryan matched her gaze. He wanted to tell her yes, they’d make it back. But the truth was, that was just another question Ryan couldn’t answer.

  CARNIVAL WORLD

  Episode 3

  Chapter One

  Summer wrapped a wool sweater around her body and shivered. She was still a little damp but she shook more from nerves and fear. For the second time in as many days they had just avoided death. Just three days ago, she and her brother Sam had been back home with their mom and their normal boring life. A visit to the carnival had sent them, and five others, somehow to a place which looked like their hometown Crooks but it wasn’t.

  The other day they had fought off monster dogs in a ruined and desolate carnival. Less than an hour ago Summer had nearly died in a motel swimming pool along with the others and Sam had almost been roasted alive. It had all been a sick trap laid out by the Shanks, the old couple whom had greeted them with open arms, promising them refuge and rescue. The motel had seemed at first normal, or at least close to it. But it proved to be anything but normal.

  It had all been a lie. A terrible heart rendering lie.