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𝙑𝙊𝙇𝙐𝙈𝙀 𝑰𝑰. ── CASUALTY OF YOUR DREAMS!

❛ 𝒄𝒉𝒂𝒔𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒈𝒉𝒐𝒔𝒕𝒔 ❜
─── chapter sixteen! ❫

016. ╱ ✹ ⠀⠀ ❝ dug yourself a grave,
no surprise. . . should've known better,
so now, it's time that you die in it. ❞

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     THIS WAS SO STUPID. At least Kynlee thought it was. After all, if history had taught them anything, trying to track a masked killer via phone call in broad daylight tended to result in an early death. Specifically, in the Stab franchise and the lives of Ghostface survivors.

     When Sam and Kirby explained their and Detective Bailey's plan to the entire friend group, Kynlee and Mindy were the first to turn their noses up to it. Neither of them thought it was a good idea, but the adults didn't seem to care much. They wanted this nonsense to be over with, understandably so, but their plan felt very much like they were willingly walking into a trap.

     Nothing sounded smart about Sam and Tara wandering around Central Park, waiting for the killer to call from somewhere nearby, and then tracing the phone call. Nothing.

     Kynlee was on Chad's right, leaning against the inside of the large undercover white van Kirby was borrowing from NYPD. She was sipping on a smoothie with a bored expression while Chad was eating. On Chad's left sat Ethan and he was munching on a bag of Cheetos. The group had picked up some food before getting to the park. Then there was Mindy next to him, staring pointedly at Kirby, whose desk was inches away and somehow managed to fit.

     "So we're really doing the phone tracing thing—"

     Chad chuckled and shook his head. "Here we go," he muttered to Kynlee, taking a large bite from his soft pretzel.

     Kynlee snorted quietly.

     "—that never works in the movies. It'll be all, "Keep him talking, Sam. Two more minutes, I've almost got him." And then—" Chad silently mimicked Mindy as she spoke, using his hands to fake-mouth her words, "—he hangs up just before we can get a lock."

     Kirby paused in typing, swiveling her head to the curly-haired girl. "I can trace a call in under fifteen seconds," she said, wearing a smug smirk.

     Eyebrows shooting up, Kynlee whistled lowly. "Damn. That's impressive," she commented, lowering the drink in her hand. Kirby gave her an appreciative smile.

     Flickering her eyes from the computer to the blonde, Mindy pursed her lips. "Well, you've got them out there as bait," she mentioned, unfolding her crossed legs and leaning forward.

     Kirby rolled her eyes and averted her attention back to the computer. "Because the killer usually calls from somewhere nearby."

     "And you think they're safe because it's broad daylight in a public place?" Mindy retorted, tilting her head.

     "Look, I am here, okay?" Kirby puffed out her cheeks and let out a breath of annoyance. "And so is Bailey."

     Mindy still wasn't sold. In fact, she was more convinced than ever that this was a bad idea. "This is exactly how our Uncle Randy died." At the mention of his uncle, a slight frown appeared on Chad's face. Kynlee noticed and kissed his shoulder. "Broad daylight. Public place. Yanked into a van. Stab, stab, stab. No more Randy."

     Kirby's jaw slackened, and she wracked her brain for something to say. "Huh," she finally hummed, turning back to her laptop.

     With wide eyes and lips twisted to the side, Chad awkwardly darted his line of sight between the two women. Next to him, Kynlee was rubbing her temple and drinking the rest of her smoothie.

     Leaning forward, Ethan held out his bag of Cheetos to them. Chad shook his head while Kynlee didn't bother responding. Instead, she kept her eyes locked on Kirby's computer.

     "Hey, Sam?" Kirby called into the comm system. "Stay frosty out there, okay?"

     Sam was quick to reply, "We're good."

     A few seconds passed by before the killer inevitably called Sam. She answered with a jab, irritated by this entire charade.

     "You're gonna die, you know."

     "No, you're gonna die, Samantha! Choking on your own blood while I hack up your sister."

     It'd been a while since she'd heard that rough and grave voice. Kynlee hadn't missed it in the slightest. None of the survivors had.

     Kirby was typing rapidly on the computer's keyboard.

     "Unless we find you first." Sam's annoyance was evident in her tone.

     Kynlee idly watched the location of the call beginning to narrow down. Her left foot and knee bounced restlessly and she fiddled with the empty styrofoam cup. She didn't like this.

     The movement caught Chad's eye, and he placed a hand on her leg. Immediately, she settled down and eased up on the bouncing. He ran his palm and fingers across her thigh, drawing random shapes. It was his way of soothing her without uttering a word.

     "For a mastermind, you're not very bright. Waiting for me to call, desperately hoping I'm nearby so the police can grab me? But I'm not nearby. I'm a step ahead. Be seeing you, Samantha."

     Kynlee glanced at her boyfriend and gave him a grateful nod. He returned the gesture and kissed her forehead.

     Out of the corner of her eye, Mindy saw Ethan eyeing the couple with a slight scowl on his lips. Interesting.

     Once the call disconnected, Sam asked Kirby, "Did you get it?"

     "Yep. Geolocation coming through right now." Kirby waited a second until the computer beeped. "He's on the Upper West Side. He's inside an apartment building, halfway across the city."

     "On West ninety-sixth?" Tara's voice came through the other side of the phone call for the first time. The sound of it made Mindy and Kynlee smile. However, their countenances slowly sank when they realized that the girl somehow knew where Ghostface was.

     "How did you know that?" Kirby asked slowly, sitting up straighter.

     There was an unintentionally long dramatic pause. Everyone waited with bated breath for one of the Carpenter sisters to respond. Eventually, the eldest did.

     "Gale."

────

     IT WAS NEVER SAM OR TARA THAT WAS IN DANGER. It was Gale Weathers, and the killer had played the entire group. While Sam was on the phone with Ghostface, they were on the other side of the city, sharpening their knife and readying themselves for the next attack.

     And now, Gale was fighting for her life in the hospital, and the others were riding the self-blame train for not figuring it out sooner.

     There was no way they could have predicted this would happen. There was no way, but that didn't erase the guilt each of them felt. Perhaps if they'd included the reporter on the stakeout, she wouldn't be on the brink of death.

     Everyone, minus Detective Bailey and Kirby, sat in the lobby of Gale's apartment building. They were basked in silence and weren't looking each other in the eye. Each of them was lost in their thoughts, too consumed with what was happening to pay attention.

     Sam was perched on a small square-shaped chair and hugging her arms around her torso. Her gaze was locked on the marble-tiled floor. On the elongated royal blue couch beside her, Tara was curled into a tiny ball and pressed against Mindy, whose arm was wrapped over her waist.

     Kynlee was on the other side of Mindy, leaning into her side and bouncing her leg while Chad was lying down. His head was in her lap and his legs were stretched out, hanging over the end of the couch. He was staring at the ceiling with an emotionally conflicted facial expression. He didn't mind the shaking that was coming from Kynlee bouncing her feet. Oddly, it was comforting. Also, he knew that she was subconsciously doing it to ease her nerves. Lastly, off to the side, Ethan awkwardly stood. He was clenching his backpack straps like his life depended on it and staring at the floor.

     Suddenly, there was a rush of movement, and Kynlee caught a glimpse of Danny rushing inside. Her eyebrows drew together in confusion.

     Maybe Sam had texted him?

     "Hey," Danny breathed out, climbing the stairs two at a time. "Hey. I got here as fast as I could."

     Tara's eyes swept up and down his frazzled composure and she sat up. "Did you?" she questioned harshly, not a fan of the concerned expression he wore as he stared at Sam. The timing was a little too coincidental for her taste.

     Danny swept his gaze to the youngest Carpenter, his face falling. He went to say something when Mindy shakily confessed, "I'm scared, you guys."

     All attention fell on her.

     "I really don't want to get hurt again," she continued, staring at the tops of her knees. If anything were to happen to her or her friends... She already lost Anika. She couldn't bear to lose anyone else.

     Swallowing harshly, Chad took every word his sister spoke to heart. "Neither do I," he choked out, gazing at the ceiling.

     Mindy closed her eyes, realizing how she might have come across in saying that. "I don't want you getting hurt again, either," she added, re-opening her eyes and directing her stare downward.

     "I know. I know," he reassured her, reaching a hand over his head and holding it out. Mindy quickly took it.

     Kynlee felt her chin tremble and clenched her jaw, leaning her head on the wall behind them. The fingers she had in Chad's hair moved to his chest and she held the fabric of her hoodie that he wore tightly. Her other hand stayed in Mindy's lap where it was locked with Tara's.

     Was this ever going to end? And when it did, who would be left?

     "So what do we do now?" Chad asked the group.

     The response he received stunned the young adults.

     "Maybe he gets to win this time," Sam choked out, swallowing harshly. There was a large mass in her throat and she was doing her best to keep herself composed. It was difficult, though. Flashes of Gale's beaten and bloodied body wouldn't leave her brain.

     Every head slowly turned in her direction, astounded.

     "He wants to punish me," Sam continued, standing up. "Me. So maybe I let him," she sniffled, locking eyes with each of her friends, "I'll just give myself up. If this is what I have to do to keep you safe, it's worth it."

     Immediately, her younger sister argued against this. "No, we're not doing that, Sam. All right?" Tara pushed herself off the couch and onto her feet. "You went back to Woodsboro to protect me. Every single day, you make the decision to protect me. None of us would even be alive if it weren't for you."

     Kynlee nodded and stopped bouncing her leg. "I'm fucking positive the only reason I made it last night is because you came back for me," she said, entering the conversation. There was no way in Hell she was letting Sam give herself over to Ghostface just to protect the rest of them. It wasn't happening.

     The twins quickly agreed.

     Tara glanced from her best friends to her sister. "You have to let us protect you this time."

     "No." Sam shook her head, and a few tears fell.

     "Yes," Tara insisted, nodding encouragingly. "We're a team, remember?"

     "Actually..." Mindy was the next to stand with Kynlee following after. "We're a family."

     Clapping happily, Chad jumped up with a wide smile. "Let's go! High Five! Come on!" He extended his hand and kissed the top of Kynlee's head when she placed her injured hand on top of his.

     "High Five," the tattooed girl echoed, jutting her chin in Sam's direction. The gesture made the woman crack a tiny smile.

     Mindy and Tara were the next to join the group hand-holding.

     With furrowed eyebrows, Danny asked, "High what?"

     Chad waved dismissively at the man. "It's an us thing."

     Danny only laughed awkwardly and scratched the back of his neck, not certain if he understood a single word being said. Truthfully, he didn't understand most of what the younger generation said nowadays.

     "He's gonna keep coming after us." Sam pointed out, resting her hand on top of Mindy's.

     For the first time since they arrived at Gale's apartment complex, Ethan spoke. "I-Isn't there somewhere safe we could just hole up in?" He'd been listening this entire time but hadn't felt comfortable to say anything until now.

     Tara glanced at him. "No, he's gonna keep finding us."

     Puffing his cheeks out, the brown-haired boy sighed. "Great."

     Suddenly, an idea popped into Tara's mind, and she straightened her posture. "We could use that, though." She retrieved her phone from her back pocket and unlocked it. The group watched as she scrolled through her contact list, searching for someone.

     Kynlee was the only one who seemed to catch Tara's drift. She knew exactly what the black-haired girl was thinking and she liked it. "Fuck yeah, we can," she smirked, removing her hand from the pile. The rest of the survivors followed in-suit.

     Darting his line of sight between the two, Chad frowned. "What'd I miss?" Somewhere in the last four seconds, he'd missed something. He looked to Sam and Mindy for clarification, but they appeared equally as confused.

     "What are you guys thinking?" Mindy questioned, folding her arms over her chest.

     "There's likely two killers," Kynlee began, shifting her feet. "I doubt our latest Ghostface is working alone and pulling a Roman Bridger. That's the Ghostface that worked solo, right?"

     Mindy nodded, beginning to understand.

     "If we can lure Ghostface somewhere, we can ambush them," Tara continued, finally locating the person she wanted to call. "Two against seven."

     Chad clicked his tongue and made an 'ah' sound. "Beauty and brains," he mused, winking at his girlfriend.

     Snorting, Kynlee shook her head pitifully. "Hilarious," she muttered, leaning into his side. Immediately, he secured an arm around her.

     A ringing was promptly heard and Kynlee turned her head to see that Tara had put a phone call on speaker. From where she was, she could scarcely make out Detective Bailey's name.

     It took six seconds before he answered. "You got a lot of nerve, calling after stealing a police vehicle." Detective Bailey's voice echoed throughout the lobby, and Tara turned her volume down two notches.

     Sam cleared her throat. "Yeah, about that—"

     "Look, I'm sorry, but we need your help." Tara cut her sister off, getting straight to the point. "We need your keycards. Gale gave you copies, right?"

     "What?"

     "Gale gave you copies of the two keycards, right?" Tara repeated, raising an eyebrow.

     Kynlee huffed, growing impatient. "We need those copies."

     A scoff came from the other end of the line. "I'm getting my ass chewed out for not dropping the case and now you want me to do what?"

     Tara wet her lips and placed a hand on her hip. "We want to lure Ghostface to a secure location and trap them inside."

     "And then what?" Bailey asked hesitantly.

     "We execute them." Kynlee and Tara replied in unison.

     Mindy eyed the pair flirtatiously and nudged Tara with her hip. "I've never been more attracted to you both," she murmured, winking at Kynlee.

     Jaw slackening, Chad peered at his sister. "Dude..." He gave her an 'are-you-fucking-kidding-me-right-now-that's-my-girlfriend' expression.

     Rolling her eyes into the back of her head, Mindy sighed.

     The two wore slight smiles but were more preoccupied by Detective Bailey's nonverbal response. He had yet to say anything.

     Tara narrowed her stare on her phone. "Are you gonna help us?"

     Finally, he answered, "Let's kill the son of a bitch." There was a collective breath of relief passed around. "Now, I'm stuck here, but the theater's got heavy surveillance and security cameras. We can use that against them. I'll give Kirby the keycards and tell her to meet you there. I'll join you as soon as I can."

     Nodding, Tara swept her gaze over the group. Everyone was in agreeance. "Got it."

     "And remember, travel in public," Bailey advised. "The more people around you, the less chance they have to take a shot at you before you get there."

     At that, the younger Carpenter ended the call.

     "I say we take the subway," Sam voiced, deciding for the group. It was the only means of transportation she could think of that was public and didn't include walking to the theater. "We'll stick close to each other. It's crowded and public. We should be safe."

     Mindy clasped her hands together. "All right. I say we get moving then."

     Inhaling deeply, Kynlee pressed her lips together. Hopefully, this plan was solid and nothing bad would happen. If she knew anything, though, it was that Ghostface was no longer hiding in the shadows. They were willing to step into the light and attack people in public settings. Exhibit A— the Bodega massacre.

     But hopefully, things were different this time.

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❝ you know i'm 𝒈𝒐𝒐𝒅 at 𝒌𝒆𝒆𝒑𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒔𝒆𝒄𝒓𝒆𝒕𝒔,
you know that you're my 𝒘𝒆𝒂𝒌𝒏𝒆𝒔𝒔. . .

and i'll 𝒂𝒍𝒘𝒂𝒚𝒔 repeat 𝒊𝒕! ❞

     love the high five so so much!!

     this chapter is a lil shorter than usual, but we're getting closer to the end! i'm very excited to wrap things up and conclude this story.

     i hope everyone is having a great day!

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˒⠀𝑹𝑬𝑴𝑰𝑵𝑫𝑬𝑹. . . ▬⠀⤸

Thank you all for taking the time out of your day to comment on this story. It means a lot and helps the story be spread to a broader audience &&& allows me to grow as an author. All I ask is that people vote on each chapter, please. As a creator, it takes time to write and develop stories. So please, vote on every chapter. It means a lot more than I could ever express.

Don't forget to vote & comment!

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˒⠀𝑪𝑶𝑷𝒀𝑹𝑰𝑮𝑯𝑻. . . ▬⠀⤸

❝ All Rights Reserved.
No part of this publication may be
reproduced, distributed, or transmitted
in any form or by any means, including
photocopying, recording, or other
electronic or mechanical methods,
without prior permission of the author,
except in the case of brief quotations
embodied in critical reviews and
other noncommercial uses permitted
by copyright law. ❞

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