Page 46 of We’re All Going to Die Tonight!

Javi

October 17

2:11 a.m.

We trek over to the road that the Death Van would’ve taken up to the property, but the second we see it materializing ahead of us through the rain, I know this road won’t help us. There’s an enormous tree that has fallen down and obstructs the whole thing, blocking our way.

The tree feels like a bad fucking omen. It feels like the universe is putting a giant Turn Back Now sign in front of us, making this idea feel worse and worse by the second.

I glance at Kaitlyn, wondering how she’d take to turning around and heading back to Thornhill Manor. But I know the answer to that: She’ll refuse. Because once she’s agreed to something, especially something Caulder put her “in charge of,” she won’t back down.

“Wasn’t the road supposed to be winding?” Marlene asks. “We took the shortcut to the house through the woods.”

“That’s true,” Kaitlyn says. “We don’t know how long this would take, but we do know it would get to the highway eventually. And climbing over a tree is better than trying to climb a mudslide.”

“Caulder was right, though. If there is someone attacking us,” I point out, “they’re probably on the road. Might even be waiting for us.”

Kaitlyn considers this. “Then what I said before is still an option: We follow the coastline. If someone is following us or whatever, we’ll be able to hide, and there’s probably some kind of nature trail that leads out of it. You know, like the viewpoints on the beaches back home always have some kind of path to them.”

It’s not my first choice—going back to the house is—but it feels less ominous than the road and the tree snapped over it. We trudge in that direction, and I briefly see the glow of Thornhill Manor in the distance before we’re swallowed by trees.

Over here, the air’s saltier, and you can hear the crash of waves underneath the pounding of the storm. You can also see where the cliff dips and overlooks the ocean, the water inky black beneath us, dappled by the reflection of the moonlight.

“That’s a far drop,” Marlene says, gulping as she glances down.

“Careful,” Kaitlyn teases. “Wouldn’t want to lose your footing.”

Marlene squeaks, hurrying away from the edge. She stays close to me as we continue our trek. We hug the coastline so we know we’re going in the right direction, staying on the paths we can find.

How long has it been? I check my phone, and a Low Battery warning flashes at me. It’s a little after two a.m. My legs are aching from trudging through the mud, but I don’t have a choice. We have to get help.

My thoughts go to Avery and Caulder, hoping that by some miracle the teachers have reappeared, or they’ve magically gotten cell reception. Maybe the Airbnb host showed up on a whim to check things out, and any minute now, some forest ranger’s flashlight will pierce the trail ahead of us. Of course, then I remember the tree, and I accept just how alone we really are.

I look back in the direction of the house, wondering about Caulder. Of all the guys I know, he’s one of the best to have around in a crisis. He never lets himself be thrown off by a bad inning or a shitty moment. But this is so much more than that, and I can’t shake the feeling that he and the others are sitting ducks.

You checked every room, I remind myself. Caulder’s smart. He’ll keep the doors locked. He won’t make any bullshit, rash decisions. After all, I’ve played hundreds of games with the guy, and I don’t think I’ve ever seen him make a single move that wasn’t one hundred percent calculated.

“Shit,” Kaitlyn says from up ahead. “This part’s rained out.”

I come to a stop next to her, and I see what she means. We’ve run into this a few times, a fork in the trail where one side is too slippery to try to pass. Every other time, another path was passable, but this time our only option is to cut directly into the woods. Kaitlyn turns to me.

“What do we do?”

“Let’s try this way,” I say, pointing into what looks like a trail. “We can follow that and make sure we keep the ocean to our right so we don’t get lost.”

This turns out to be easier said than done, as the trail is so rained out that, at some point, it and the woods become one. Not to mention the storm is so loud that we can barely hear the ocean, and we have to move farther and farther away from it to make any progress. Before we know it, we’re definitely turned the fuck around.

At least a layer of fallen leaves pads the mud to keep us from slipping every step, but it’s barely an improvement. We walk in silence, the only sounds the wind howling and the rain striking the trees. After what feels like an hour but is probably only a few minutes, I go to check my phone again only to find that it’s died on me. Shit. I should’ve expected that. Now what’re we going to do? Even if we find service, my phone’s a brick.

“Kait,” I say, trying to keep my voice down so Marlene doesn’t hear. “Maybe we should think about going back.”

As I expected, she shakes her head. “No way. We can’t give up.”

“But—”

“Town can’t be that much farther,” she answers, charging forward. “Something’s bound to open up.”

Jesus. I know I’ve always had a thing for headstrong women, but I was sort of hoping they’d be headstrong about things like, I don’t know, where we’re going to hang out, what food we’re getting, going on spontaneous road trips. Not shit like continuing to push our luck in the woods with a killer.