CHAPTER FIVE.

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"HEART OF GLASS"

THE LIFE WAS ACTUALLY A GAMBLE THAT WAS PLAYED WITH POSSIBILITIES. What if's would fill your brain no matter what you chose. It was in human nature to be curious, and not taking the money and run. Yet, people sometimes forgot a simple fact; what was bound to happen would always happen.

However, that fact scared many people, especially those who were control freaks just like Amy. Because if your fate wasn't in your control, then what made you different than a machine? Getting a tad bit of the sea of hope, Amy repeated to herself that she was the one pulling the reins.

Amy was bound to die, (everyone was) but her case was more different than the rest. More precisely, she was doomed to get killed. Her grandmother was hit by a car, her father was killed in a camp, and her uncle was killed in a mall.

She was the next.

Fear was a funny feeling. It was a poison that would spread in your body and toxicate you until you turned to nothing but an empty skull. It would dance in your veins like a friend, and put bizarre thoughts to your head. The thoughts would be out of character, and even you couldn't recognize yourself.

Her feelings were in the arms of the wind that was running towards her. All were about to hit her in the same moment, stunning her with their intensity.

"You are not listening!" Deena yelled, and for a second Amy thought she was talking to her. But raising her head, she saw that Deena was pointing her finger at Matthew's chest accusingly. "I know what I saw!"

A muscle in Matthew's jaw moved slightly. "You are insane." He commented, breathing sharply. "You are claiming to see Ryan Torres who was shot by my uncle, and expecting from me to be a witness."

"We both saw it!" Deena defended herself, gesturing herself and Sam. "And you saw it too!"

"As if lying about seeing Ryan isn't enough," Matthew raised a brow. "And now you are trying to make me doubt myself. You are total chaos, Johnson."

Deena bit the inside of her cheeks, glancing at the rest of the group. "Fine, have it your way."

With that, she held Sam's hand, dragging her away from the ambulance. Matthew waited a few seconds to calm himself down, his nostrils widening as he deeply inhaled. Crystal patted his back in a weak attempt to encourage him.

Amy stared at her fingers, even though she had wiped the blood of the worker off a few times she could swear she was still seeing it. She grimaced at the dry blood that was stuck on her nail.

"We should not be this close to the police station in a stolen ambulance." Simon sighed, slightly shaking his head.

"That's the whole point. We are hiding in plain sight." Kate stated.

"We also have Matthew with us." Crystal reminded, running her fingers in her long black hair.

"Just like Bundy." Everyone turned their head to Josh, Deena's brother, and sent him confused looks. "Ted Bundy, when he was stalking his victims, I mean."

Simon and Kate shared a look, Amy was already a nervous wreck, and talking about a serial killer wasn't benignant. "Okay, didn't he get caught though?"

"Well no. Well yeah, but-"

"He did eventually." Amy explained, her caramel eyes glued to the ground.

"Figure this out." Simon interjected, putting a hand on Kate's shoulder. "I'm going to take a leak."

Kate furrowed her brows, looking at Josh. Amy raised her head, jumping to the floor. "I need to walk a little."

Crystal grabbed her hand. "I'm coming with you."

"Relax, Crystie." Simon held Amy's free hand. "I don't bite." Then, he turned to Amy with a goofy smile. "Unless she wants to."

He sent a suggestive wink to the blonde, who in return retreated her hand and slapped his arm. "Fuck off, Kalivoda."

He parted his lips to reply but her deathly stare halted him, and he made a smart choice; he kept his mouth shut. They walked in side by side in harmony, their breaths blending in the balmy air. Stars whispered the vows to Amy's ear, flickering expectantly so that she could notice them. She raised her head, searching for the shiniest one, after finding it she turned her attention to the nearest star to it.

Would stars inject her soul before she drew her last breath? Would she join her father up there, above the universe? Or would she go to the infinite nothingness before her body rotted? Would the nurses in the hospital become stars too?

The answers were startling, as startling as not having any answers. All she could do was to hope. But it wasn't enough because the pool of her hopes was poisoned by desperation, only a drop was sufficient to tarnish the pure water.

"Are you okay?"

She was so fucking tired of hearing those words.

Yes, yes, she should have at least felt content that people around her cared about her feelings, but still, they sounded like liability, like they were asked to get an 'I'm fine' answer not otherwise.

Amy inhaled, getting as much air to her lungs as she could. Pretend, pretend, pretend. "Yeah."

"I mean, you have been through a lot." He cleared his throat, pushing his golden locks that fell to his forehead to back. "I would understand if you weren't."

His tone was genuine, and Amy almost believed the world hadn't abandoned her yet. (But it did.) No matter where she was; at the bottom of the world burning with hell's flames or among the stars on the edge of the sky, she was standing alone. And, she hoped she wouldn't standing alone when the shadow of death covered her small body.

"Just take your...leak so that we can go back." She hurried, leaning against a wall.

The breath that scamped through her parted lips meddled with the air, forming a small fog. Simon turned to corner with stoop shoulders, leaving Amy alone with her bitter thoughts. She tried to close her ears to the sound he was creating, making a wry face.

The police siren made her jump out of fear, the car stopping next to her. "Amy?"

She narrowed her eyes, leaning forward to see clearly. "Hi, uncle Nick."

"You should go home right now." He said with a stern voice. "I mean it. Go get Matthew and go home."

"Will do, sir." She saluted, a tight smile on her face. With one last rather worried gaze to her, Nick Goode drove away. Her smile disappeared immediately. "Simon, aren't you done yet?"

The only response she got was silence. Amy furrowed her brows, her forehead wrinkling. "Simon, this isn't funny and I swear if you don't respond to me I'll come over there."

She licked her dry lips, taking a breath for encouragement. "You have already traumatized me when you mooned yesterday so don't be an asshole-"

Her sentence was interjected with a deafening shot. The sound echoed in the empty street, hitting her ears over and over. Amy took a few steps forward as if her body was in a trance.

Deena Johnson stood at the front, a gun on her hands. Sam was next to her, horrified. Kate was shouting but the words never reached her ears. She felt like she was put underwater, watching everything from down.

"Run! Go!" Simon yelled, getting up from the ground. A girl who seemed like their peer lied next to him. "Amy! Move!"

Amy wanted to move, her senses were screaming at her to do something, anything, but her body was planted on the ground. Realizing she wasn't planning to move her body soon, Simon grabbed her hand, dragging her with him.

She was practically thrown into the ambulance, Crystal clinging to her arm to steady her. Matthew was in the driver's seat, driving as soon as Deena yelled at him.

"Were you fucking sleeping?" Kate asked Amy, her hand on Simon's arm.

Simon squeezed her hand on his arm with his free one. "Don't." He softly warned.

Kate ignored him, all her focus on the blonde. "No, seriously, where were you?"

"Fuck off." Crystal spit with venom, taking a step forward to shield her friend. "She isn't his babysitter."

"He almost died!"

"Was I supposed to take a leak next to him?" Amy questioned, pressing her nails to her palms, marking crescent shapes on there. "I called out to him a few times."

Kate's expression softened, sitting back. Amy understood the tension, and honestly, she couldn't blame the raven-haired girl. If it were her friend, she would die of fear and try to blame someone too.

"She was dead." Sam stated, playing with her hands. "It just..."

"IT DOESN'T MAKE SENSE!" Sam threw herself to the couch as she remarked, totally freaking out. They were in Deena's house. (Amy's own house was a few steps behind.) "Bullets didn't stop her."

Kate rolled her eyes, not hiding her annoyance. "Amazing explanation."

Simon was also freaking out as he locked all windows and doors, constantly looking out of the window. "Who the hell was that?" Deena demanded, taking a step towards him.

"How the hell should I know? She just- I-" He stuttered, lost on words. "She was hot! I don't know! The bitch seemed normal!"

"Yeah, I had to break it to you, but normal bitches don't bleed black fucking blood!" Deena argued, her black eyes on him.

"She was hot and normal until she attacked me with a fucking razor blade!"

"Well, maybe, from now on you shouldn't reach hot chicks you don't know just because they look hot!" Amy rose to her feet, her hand formed in a fist.

She just wanted to go home. It was so close to her, only a few steps and she would be welcomed by the warm embrace of her mother and her soft bed. Yet, she never felt this far away from it.

"Wait. A razor?" Josh asked, furrowing his brows.

"Yeah, like old-timey shaving, or in this case, I guess, slitting her-"

"Wrists." Josh completed his sentence. "She slashed her wrists." Amy furrowed her brows, looking at her friends. "Was she singing something? Like an oldie song?"

"Jesus, Rain Man." Simon mumbled, shock written on his face. "How the fuck do you know that?"

Josh hurried to leave, motioning everyone to follow him. Kate was first to move, followed by Deena and Sam. Crystal was reluctant to follow yet Matthew clung to her arm, dragging. Simon walked beside Amy.

"It wasn't your fault." He spoke quietly.

"Huh?"

"This," He said, his hand tracing on his neck where the wound was. "It's not your fault and I'm glad you didn't realize that."

"Why is that?"

"Because I don't want you to get hurt."

His bright blue eyes carried the tenderness she sought, and Amy felt naked under her stare as if he could see her soul. And that scared her. "That is not something you can control." Her voice was as cold as her tawny orbs.

Entering the room, which Amy assumed to belong to Josh, she observed the articles that covered half of the room. She sat next to Deena on the floor, waiting for Josh, and Simon sat beside her.

Josh put an article on the tiny table. "This is Ruby Lane. The girl attacked you."

Amy turned to the picture of the girl towards herself. "Didn't anyone tell her that this hairstyle is out of fashion?"

"She sang as she murdered her boyfriend, her friends and then she killed herself. Slashed her wrists."

"Then how did she..." Crystal trailed off, pointing to Simon.

"Jesus, why didn't I see this on the news?" Kate grimaced, reading the article.

"Because it happened 30 years ago. 1965."

The group fell silent, and Amy felt like someone was drawing the blood in her veins. Josh stood up, getting more articles.

"Ruby is one of the Shadyside's killers, just like Skull Mask." He let the article fall to the table. "I mean Ryan Torres."

The name Leo Winters stood out in the article, and Amy almost vomited. She turned her gaze back to Josh, averting the article.

"Look, 1978. 16 years ago." Amy froze, the Nightwing Killer's article standing in front of her. "Masked psycho murders kids at-"

She stood up abruptly, stumbling on her feet, and almost falling to the floor. "Stop it. What are you trying to say?"

"Camp Nightwing." Kate completed his sentence. "Yeah, my mom's sister was there.That screwed my family up for a long time."

Amy shook her head, eyes prickling with tears. Pretend, pretend- no she couldn't take it anymore.

The tragedy of Louis Winters' was known on both sides of the town despite none daring to say anything. Crystal also rose to her feet. "Your point is? Rather than opening the unhealed wounds?"

Josh swallowed loudly, averting their gazes. "1950, Harry Rooker, local milkman slashes a bunch of housewives. 1935, Humpty Dumpty Killer. 1922, Billy Barker. 1904, Grifter guts girls, and on and on. It happens in Shadyside over and over. Normal people turn into psychos." Josh explained while putting out different news about the people he told.

"Jesus," Simon said as he showed the picture to her. It was a man, black liquid on his eye, long hair to his shoulders. "Look at this guy."

He extended the page to Amy, her eyes flickered the picture with interest and revulsion. "Is that blood?" She asked as her hand trailed on his empty eyes, her hands on her necklace. She shivered due to the picture, a disturbing feeling made its place on her stomach.

"That's the pastor, Cyrus Miller. 1666. He was the first one recorded." Josh explained cautiously. "He, um... killed kids and cut out their eyes."

Sam stood up, leaving the room. Deena shared a look with her brother before following her ex-girlfriend.

"None of this is random." Josh harshly showed a picture to the table from 1666 of Sarah Fier being hung. "It's Sarah Fier. She's turning Shadysiders into killers."

"At the early centuries, people who used science were considered witches." Amy stated with furrowed brows. "Probably, Sarah Fier was someone like that. She didn't fit in the old-fashioned society and, bum, they hung her."

"Do you really believe that?" Kate asked Josh. "I mean no one actually thinks that this witch shit is real."

"Yeah it's something babysitters make up to scare kids." Simon agreed, nodding.

"Witches are not real." Matthew spoke, voice as hoarse as a crow. "Neither is dead people chasing us."

"No, no. Just listen to me. 1666, Sarah Fier was hanged for witchcraft, fact. But ever since she was executed, she's been possessing people, turning them into killers to take revenge on the town." Josh stated.

Matthew scoffed, looking at his friends for backup. "Possessing?"

"It doesn't make sense." Crystal commented.

"It's like the nursery rhyme." Simon realized while Josh nodded.

Simon started to repeat the rhyme. "Before the witch's final breath, she found a way to cheat her death. By cutting off her cursed hand-"

Matthew exhaled sharply, getting to his feet. He gave a harsh look to Josh before leaving the room. Crystal stood up but before she could take a step forward, Amy grabbed her hand. "Let me handle him."

Crystal bit her lip anxiously, nodding. Amy squeezed her hand reassuringly before following Matthew's movements.

"Hey," Amy called after him. "What is it?"

"What- what is it?" He echoed her words. "Do you really believe all this witch shit?"

"I don't." Amy admitted, clicking her tongue. "But I did see a girl got shot, and she should have been dead. But she got up."

"We should stay out of it." Matthew croaked. "Stay out of it, Amy."

"Matt, they are trying to kill us." Amy hinted. "We need to stick together."

"No, Ames, you don't get-"

"I saw her." Sam revealed at the doorstep. "I saw the witch."

As soon as the words left Sam's mouth, everyone was doomed, and the bitchy fate was running towards Amy at its full speed.

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edited: 23.08.2021

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