Page 151 of The Last Session

“We all have to go, Sol.” I smiled at him. “You realize that, right?”

A slow grin spread across his face. “I see. You’re playing chicken, huh? Because I sure as hell don’t buy this new believer act.”

“She’s right.” Moon set down her lantern. “It was never just Catherine or Thea. It’s supposed to be all of us. We’ve been blinded by fear, Sol. We have to practice what we preach.”

“What the fuck?” Sol whirled towards Moon. “When did this happen? You can’t just make unilateral decisions, you know. We’re supposed to be a team.”

“The three of us came to this decision. Thea, Catherine, and me.” She looked back at Catherine, leaning against the door. “Right?”

“Right,” Catherine replied, her voice gravelly.

So Moon had talked to Catherine about my plan, and she had agreed. Then again, she would always agree with whatever Moon brought to her. She no longer had a working brain of her own.

“Babe.” Sol sighed. “They’re messing with you. They’re trying to get us to off ourselves so they can go free. It’s so obvious. It’s sostupid.”

“None of this is stupid.” A note of irritation crept into Moon’s voice. Steven came towards them, slowly, slipping his gun into his waistband.

“No, I just mean…” Sol puffed out air. “We need to discuss this.”

Steven snatched the gun out of Sol’s hand.

“Hey!” Sol lunged for it, but Steven backed away, training the gun on him. “Moon!” He turned to her, his eyes wide and desperate. “Honey, what the fuck!”

Steven handed the second gun to Moon. She pointed it at Sol. “We’re all going together. You can go by choice, or not. It’s up to you.”

“Babe, please, stop.” He held up his hands. “This isn’t right. She tricked you. Thea and Catherine—both of them tricked you.”

“Go to the edge.” Steven said it in a gruff voice.

“Fuck no. This is ridiculous. I’m leaving.”

“Sol,” Moon warned. “Stop.”

“No, I’m out of here.” He strode towards the door. Catherine jumped out of the way.

Sol was in the doorway when Moon pulled the trigger.

The boom was deafening. I crouched down, hiding my face. There came a low groan, then nothing.

I opened my eyes. Sol was splayed out on his stomach, half in the doorway. The back of his jean jacket was soaked with blood, black as oil in the moonlight.

Karen started murmuring, praying, under her breath.

Moon went to him and bent over him, whispering. Catherine stared down at them both, hand pressed over her mouth.

One down!

I looked wildly around; now that the deaths were starting, they wouldn’t end. There was no way Moon would have them all die first, leaving us for last. Our plan had extended to shrinking the pool of our captors, but there were still too many of them.

And there was just this small platform, a steep vertical fall over the edge. No way out.

Moon stood up, her eyes sparkling with excitement.

“I can feel it,” she cried. “It’s working!”

Joe went towards Sol, bent down as if to check his pulse, then stepped over him and took off down the stairs.

“Go!” Moon shouted and Steven ran after him. She scoffed, shook her head. “So many unbelievers. No wonder it didn’t work.”