Page 83 of The Invite (The Massacre Ball #1)

Nessa

I stare at my flushed face in the bathroom mirror, worry and stress trickle into my brain. I’m on edge for an entirely different reason.

Augustus and I are about to meet the others to put our plan into motion. Thank God it’s night time and I’m wearing a mask because otherwise, my eyes would give everything away.

I need to stay alert yet my mind is diverted wondering if Michael and Arjun succeeded raiding the house.

The skintight outfit didn’t allow me to bring the burner phone.

For a minute, I was contemplating hiding it in my skirt, which I’m glad I didn’t.

It would’ve taken less than a second for Augustus to catch it, earning me an interrogation I wasn’t prepared for.

Taking a deep breath, I push the worry to the back of my—

A flash of red snaps my attention to one of the stalls. The familiar helmet rests on the floor, visible through the short doors of the occupied stall.

Huntress .

She must be in there.

The line at her booth gave Augustus and Ace serious competition. I wouldn’t have minded if she had beat the boys in terms of popularity. Call me a feminist because I loved seeing her rock. Excited at being in close proximity with her, I wait to hopefully talk to her. Maybe get an autograph.

I tug another tissue paper from the dispenser just as I hear the flush and turn around.

The door cracks open.

“Hi, I’m…” I blink back in shock and stutter, “Scarlett?”

Oh my Gosh!

Scarlett is Huntress?

She does a double take, seeing me standing there. One second, we’re both staring at each other in stunned silence, the next I’m being slammed against the nearest wall with a hand against my throat.

“Scarlett,” I choke out. She’s freakishly strong.

Her eyes breathe fire as she glares at me. “You’re becoming the bane of my existence, Miss Davenport. Everywhere I go, you’re there.”

“Let…” I slap at her arm futilely. “Go!”

Her grip tightens, cutting off my air. “You will not breathe a word about this. Or I swear to God I’ll put every other threat in your life to shame. You’ve already stolen the only person who mattered to me. I have nothing left to lose. Do you understand?”

I nod slightly.

Squeezing me once, she lets go and storms out of the bathroom.

I fold over at the waist and cough as I gulp in oxygen.

Fighting back tears, I straighten and face the mirror.

Red fingerprints form on the pale skin of my neck.

Shit. I cannot let Augustus see. Even he didn’t hate me as much in the beginning as Scarlett does.

Once she learns of my betrayal, it’ll pour gasoline over her hatred for me.

“Nessa?” yells Augustus from outside. “Everything okay?”

“Yeah,” I yell back. My voice comes out scratchy. “Just one sec.”

My jacket thankfully has a high neck and I zip it up to the top, concealing my throat. I free my hair from the bun, letting it fall down in waves and bring them over my shoulders for further coverage.

A second later, the door shoves open and a hulking Augustus steps inside.

His eyes look possessed as they land on me and soften immediately. Coming closer, he inspects the slight changes in my appearance. My heart thuds as I smile at him. “The bun was giving me a headache,” I explain.

Concern darkens his face as he cups my cheek. “Want me to take you home?”

“No. It’s gone now.”

My stomach knots when he runs a fingertip over the high neck of my jacket, toying with the zipper.

Please don’t pull it down. Please don’t pull it down. Please don’t pull it down.

“Cold?”

“A little,” I lie.

Pressing his palm to my forehead, he checks my temperature. The stark worry across his handsome face makes me want to cry with joy. Why is he so perfect?

I curl my fingers around his wrist and kiss on the inside before reassuring him, “I’m not sick, August. Just hold me close against your body and keep me warm.”

Curling one arm around my shoulders, he presses my face against his chest, and murmurs against the top of my head, “If you aren’t well, you’ll tell me?”

“Of course.” I loop my arms around his waist and squeeze. “I will.”

“Don’t leave my sight from this point on. All right?”

A foreboding feeling rises in my gut and I nod. I put on my butterfly mask and we both stroll out. Once we glide out of the tented room and reach outside, I’m blown away by the atmosphere.

Mist permeates the sky, giving the illusion we’re walking on a cloud. The dark tempo of the music echoes around us, coming from the obscured speakers.

Even at the end of the streetlights is a slit human head or a skull illuminated by the bulbs. It feels like we’re strolling down a medieval city where civilization didn’t exist. The decorations are unmatched.

Every inch of space is filled to the brim by people dressed in colorful costumes, ranging from slutty to Gothic.

Then there are humans masquerading as monsters and creatures from lores and fairy tales, scaring the onlooking crowd. They appear from out of thin air and shaded corners, making their poor targets gasp in fear and laugh.

“Is… is that someone…?” I trail off, screeching to a halt as bile rises in my throat.

On a raised wooden platform in the middle of the street, a man kneels on the ground, his arms tied behind his back with his tongue out and nailed to a bench.

“It’s fake,” Augustus assures.

“But it’s so real.”

I stare at two oblivious girls taking selfies in front of it while a freakishly tall man cloaked in a black coat with a skull jaw covering the lower half of his face stealthily stalks toward them.

They’re smiling into the camera, still unaware.

The blood in my veins thrums with adrenaline as the man keeps coming closer and closer and—

“Boo!”

“Ahh!!!!” I scream in horror and jump at the gnarly masked man who appears in my face out of nowhere. Whipping around, I glue myself to Augustus and bury my face against his chest.

“Cut it out, Ace,” grunts Augustus, rubbing circles on my back. Kissing my head, he coos, “You’re safe, honey.”

The rapid beating of my heart says otherwise.

“Did you tell that to your girlfriend when she sent those two lunatic girls after me?” counters Ace before grumbling, “I had to switch my clothes to get rid of them.”

Pushing away from Augustus, I twist around. Marching toward Ace, I kick hard at his shin.

“Oww!” he hisses in pain.

“Scare me like that again and it’ll be your balls I aim for next.”

His chilling glare does not affect me. Behind me, Augustus laughs and tugs me back into his embrace. “That was awesome, little prey.”

“What’s with the limping, cousin?” a new voice utters.

I crane my neck around Augustus’s side, seeing a shirtless Maverick and Scarlett—in a sensual angel costume—join our little circle. Scarlett and my eyes lock. Hers narrow slightly in a warning. I rip mine away because everything I do seems to provoke her.

“I’m not limping, fucker.”

“Nessa kicked him,” Augustus shares smugly.

“Jesus!” chortles Maverick. “Do it again. I gotta see for myself.”

“Quit it, you all,” snaps Scarlett. “Am I the only one who remembers why we’re here tonight?”

Everyone goes somber. She’s right. Tonight isn’t about fun. Anonymous’s last message gave us the deadline till midnight. We have to catch him before then.

“Relax, Scar,” Maverick mutters, wrapping an arm around her waist. “None of us have forgotten.”

“Let’s go,” orders Augustus.

“I’ll be around,” says Ace, before turning and disappearing into the mob.

Maverick and Scarlett walk ahead of us, while Augustus and I linger behind. Tilting my head, I ask him, “Do you think he’ll be suspicious? He agreed to come very easily.”

“He wasn’t when I talked to him over the phone yesterday. Even if he was, he can’t risk not showing up tonight, otherwise he’ll give himself away.”

“How much time do we have before it’s midnight?”

“Two hours.”

Not much time then. A shiver passes through me when Augustus discreetly presses a knife into my palm.

“Keep it with you,” he orders. His gaze is hard. “Don’t hesitate to use it in case something goes wrong and we get pulled apart.”

“What about you?”

Forcing my fingers to curl around the knife handle, he replies, “I have something too.”

The screams and hoots summon our attention toward the wide ground on our right. Roller coasters, Ferris wheels, and so many different rides blind us with the colorful lights. There are also food trucks and booths with shooting games spread around.

We walk past it all and turn to the left. I gape at the disturbing cemetery. Multiple tombs are spread out. The spine-tingling details are the dead bodies crawling out of their caskets instead of being buried under the ground.

Their expression is gruesome and in agony. Some have their back cut open so you can see their insides. Everyone is in some state of gutted.

A stoned path weaves between the tombs leading to the colossal castle looming behind the cemetery.

If someone stumbles here alone, they’ll have a heart attack because the figures look all too real.

I still when my gaze lands on Capri, standing out like a sore thumb a few feet from us in the middle of the field. A plain mask dangles from her hand as she observes the throng of people exploring boredly. Like she’d rather be anywhere else.

The others notice her too and we walk in her direction.

Her gaze slams into us and a scowl pursues her lips, studying each of us apprehensively. I don’t miss the way her eyes linger on Maverick for a second too long and the nervous bob of her throat.

“Did you miss the memo?” Scarlett mentions the lack of costume, looking her up and down.

“I’m not interested in all of this.”

“Allergic to fun, little liar?” taunts Maverick.

Smirking, she retorts, “Just you.”

A throaty chuckle escapes Maverick and he shakes his head, regarding her under hooded eyes.

“Will you be able to handle tonight, Capri?” I ask her cautiously. She’ll be confronting her sister’s killer tonight. On some level, I can relate to her. “If it’s too much—”

“I’m not sitting on the sidelines,” she cuts me off sharply. “If anyone’s going to make him pay for murdering Amber, it’ll be me.”

“Wolf on board with the plan?” demands Augustus.

Her chin lifts, gaze turning impassive. “He’ll do what’s necessary.”

“Good.”

Capri’s phone chimes and she pulls it out from her jeans. Quickly reading it, she types out a reply, and informs, “Kenny’s at the Ferris Wheel. I told him to come here.”

As seconds tick by, tension builds in my chest and laces around my shoulders. Augustus did a good job distracting me earlier. But now, my mind is plagued with all the worst-case scenarios where our plan backfires.

The truth is on our side but when have the good guys won?

What if today was the last time Augustus and I are happy? What if something happens to either one of us and I never got to tell him the truth about me? Or warn him that the cops are looking into his uncle’s death?

So many tumultuous what-ifs.

Twisting in his arms, I run my palm up his chest, vying for his attention. “August…”

“Hey!”

I turn my head, peering at Kenny. He’s dressed in a nerdy scientist costume with a white coat and black-rimmed glasses.

“Sorry I’m late,” he huffs. “I got lost in the haunted house.”

“Have you never come here in the past?” asks Maverick.

“No,” he answers sheepishly. Clearing his throat, he timidly questions, “So Kaid is Anonymous? You guys have proof?”

“He’s the only one without an alibi when Daisy was attacked,” shares Augustus. “He’s also someone Amber could’ve trusted enough to come to school to meet so early.”

“Yeah… you’re right!” Scrubbing a hand over his jaw, he mutters, “I can’t believe he’d hurt women. But why, though?”

“That’s what we’re here to find out,” coldly replies Capri.

“What if he denies it all?”

“He won’t have a choice,” Augustus says ominously.

Kenny swallows, fear skittering across his slim face. “What does it mean?”

“It means, sweet Kenny.” Scarlett invades his personal space, staring him down. “Will you confront him or run away scared?”