I never assumed that I would be in Stine's home. I told myself to not step foot inside - unless that Frankie had invited me. But here I was. In the narrow hall lit up by only a single lightbulb. It looked abandoned. Haunted. At least that I was not alone. King was joining the ride. He wanted to see Frankie as much as I did. We wanted to be sure that she was okay. I would not sleep tonight. Not until I saw that she was fine.

King was holding a flashlight and held out his hand. "If you want, you can hold my hand."

"Thanks, but no thanks. We do not want the readers to ship us." I shuddered. "They had better not create dirty art of us. I will write a complaint."

"How will they know that it is you complaining?"

"If they are true fans...then they will know. Then again, real fans do not use foul language and make characters naked. I swear that I will kick the next person who says a bad word."

You will never believe what occurred next. A naked guy - whom we thankfully censored - appeared from one of the rooms ahead of us and sprinted to us. He was crazy - crazier than Stine - and gripping something. A gun. A handgun that he was aiming at us. I was about to hurry off, when King grabbed my arm. I told him to let me go and that we had to leave.

"He will not harm us, Nikki. Just let him run past."

"Are you out of your mind?! He has a flippin' gun! And is naked!"

He pulled me close. "I have been here multiple times. I know what to expect. It is why this flashlight was in my bag. I carry it in case that I visit Stine. Trust me. I have seen tons of weird stuff here. His house is weirder than mine."

The nude dude rushed past us and leapt out a window, breaking the glass in the process. It was then that I saw his chains. Rusty chains around his neck. On his wrists and ankles.

What have I gotten myself into?

"Why is he wearing...chains?" I demanded. I heard the fear in my own voice. "Why was he even here?"

"Not a clue."

"You have seen him before - right?"

"More times than I desire to. But I do not know why he is here or has chains. I believe that Stine does not even know. He never mentions it."

"Of course not. No one should know that he is a psycho so he is not sent to the asylum. He wants to keep doing what he is doing."

King adjusted his glasses. "I have known Stine for over a month. I can assure you that he is sane."

My eyes darted back to the disgusting hall. "I am going to pretend that you said insane."

We continued our journey of the house. Ew. It smelled like that someone died. I would not be shocked if there was a corpse - or corpses. I pinched my nose and gazed around. How could Stine and Frankie live like this? If I were from CPS - Child Protective Services - I would get them out of here and place them in my care. Scratch it. Frankie would stay with me. Mom could adopt her. We would be sisters! Stine can go to an orphanage.

What is that, readers? You assume that she is my sister separated at birth? You think that is the plot twist? No. But I wish. It is bad.

I was bent on dragging Frankie out of this terror house and confronting her parents - if you can call them that. Now I knew where Stine got his demeanor. This family was broken. They lived like animals. Pigs. Animals live better! I was happy that Stine forbade me from coming in. It would not have gone well.
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After telling my mom of my departure, I followed Stine and Frankie to their house. I hugged myself. It creeped me out as much as when I first saw it. I was happy that my buddy was with me. You would not want to head in this house by yourself. But I did not even head inside - because of Stine. He signaled me to stop and explained that I could not go in because their parents were not in the house. He claimed that it was his parents' rule.

"I doubt that," I said. "I can understand strangers. But I am not a stranger. I am Frankie's friend."

Frankie had gone in the house and poked her head out. "She can come in - and she will. I need her assistance."
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I covered my mouth to keep from gagging. I was sick to my stomach. How could anyone eat in a dump like this without crying for help? Pieces of the floorboards were missing. Someone's leg could get stuck. The walls were blue and peeling. I thanked King for coming along and took out my phone. I wanted to call CPS.

King must have noticed because he said, "Who are you calling?"

"CPS."

He stopped in his tracks and forced me to do the same. "Child Protective Services?"

"Yes. Stine and Frankie should be removed. I may hate Stine, but even he does not deserve this."

He grabbed my wrist. "You cannot contact them."

I was a little surprised by his statement and quirked an eyebrow. "Why do you not want me to call CPS?"

We suddenly overheard low growls. The sounds of life. But it was not human. Sounded more like a dog.

I wrapped my arms around one of his. "Do they have a dog by chance?"

"Not that I know of."

We tiptoed to the room where the sounds were coming from. King whispered to stay behind him and poked in his head. He shined his flashlight in the dark room and gasped.

"My gosh. It is a monster."