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It looks like Kendall had the same idea. To my right, I find her corpse…skewered through the stomach by the fence's pointed finials.

Fuck.

Fuck, that could be me.

But the next sound of splintering wood leaves a hole big enough for Tate to reach his arm through and unlock the door. Fear beats my trepidation, and I jump.

six

You Can Jump, But You Can't Hide

Tate

I'malive.

That's what goes through my head when I break through the wooden door and turn the lock. I've never felt this alive in my fucking life, never felt this powerful.

"You should have played the game, Noah," I say as I step into the room. "Now, I'm going to have to spank you, too."

But just as we make eye contact, she leaps from the balcony.

"Don't!"

I race across the room just in time to see her hit the ground on the other side of the fence. She lands on her feet before bending her knees and rolling. I watch, holding my breath, and after about a minute, she finally moves, groaning as she pulls herself into a seated position.

So, she's alive. But there's no way she's uninjured.

"I don't know where you think you're going!" I shout as she uses a nearby tree to bring herself to stand. She limps over to where she lost her shoes and slips them onto her feet. "There's nowhere to run, baby."

She looks back at me once before limping away from the house.

"Fuck!"

"What happened?" Silas asks, stepping out onto the balcony beside me. "Did she—"

"She jumped," I tell him. "She fucking jumped, but it's fine."

"Is it?"

There's hope in his dark eyes. He thinks I'm going to let her get away, but he's wrong. "Yeah, it is, because I know where she's going. See those lights in the distance?"

"Summerfest?" he asks. "You want to chase her down at a carnival? What if she goes to the fucking cops?"

"She has a mile and a half to go onat leasta twisted ankle, probably other injuries, too. We're ahead of schedule as it is. We can still take care of Zach and maybe even beat her there."

"What about the other girl?" Silas asks.

I point to the fence below. "She's a fucking shish kebob. Got off easy."

"Jesus. That's getting off easy?"

"I would have made it last a while." I sigh, shaking my head. "Fucking cunt. I wanted Mia's eyes to be the last thing she saw before she died. She sucked the fun out of it."

Silas rests his hand on the back of my neck. "Tate, I'm—"

"Whatever. I'm not going to let her ruin my fucking day. Do you think you can get the power on and the wifi back up?"

"Yeah, of course."