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“Widow…maker.”

Aw fuck. A woman dressed in black appeared around the corner.

I froze in sheer terror. I’d hated the film, and now she glided toward me, the movie’s character come to life. The long Victorian dress, the hair scraped into a tight bun, a veil covering her face.

“Shit, oh fuckin’ shit!” I wheezed. Hands rose, clad in black leather kid gloves. The rustle of her skirts made the hairs on my arms and neck stand up. A strangled scream escaped me as I spotted the chalky white face in front of me, and I fled. Who the hell cared what anyone thought? That woman haunted my nightmares for years. Nope, I wasn’t hanging around for this.

Asgard

It had been pretty damn good fun. I’d thoroughly enjoyed myself even as my brothers melted down around me. Clowns didn’t bother me, nor scarecrows or shit like that. I’d been with Grim, who’d run from a Mummy, and Twitch, who’d fled from a crazed butcher with a chainsaw. I’d found the centre of the maze and was leaving it when I heard a rustle.

Only one thing scared me stupid, and I’d not told anyone.

As a kid, we banned the film from our house because I’d scream with sheer fear in the middle of the night. Of course, Chap let me watch it when I stayed with him, and my parents would be furious when they inevitably found out.

“Free sweets,” someone murmured close by, and I jumped.

Nope. That was a coincidence.

“Lollipops for good boys and girls,” it came again.

I closed my eyes and kept walking. Hopefully, I was moving away from it. Nanci couldn’t possibly have known about this.

“Cream puffs and cherry pies,” the voice cackled, and my spine tingled. I approached the bend, keeping my back to the corn as I rounded it. There was no one there. I sighed. What an idiot. My mind was playing tricks on me.

I saw a flash of yellow through the stalks and paused. Nope. Imagination. Turning a corner, I noticed a man standing at the far end. About five foot seven, with pale skin, dark hair, and a long nose, he gazed at me. He was slender, with a gaunt-looking face, and he was dressed in dark clothes.

“Come to me, boy!” he cackled.

No way in hell. I took off at a run as the Child Catcher from Chitty-Chitty-Bang-Bang chased me. I was going to murder Nanci.

Zorro

Demon, Bow, and I were heading out of the middle of the maze. We hadn’t seen anyone else, though we could all hear Chill still screaming. Chill had been screeching for thirty minutes, which amused the fuck out of me. Meadow would have a few quiet nights when he lost his voice. I hoped she was okay; she’d worried the hell out of me earlier. It was unlike her to be so nasty.

“Have you come to pray?” somebody asked softly. Laughing, the three of us turned around, and Bow staggered before shoving me in front of him.

“Nun!” he whimpered. Yup, the nun from the horror movie stood in front of us. She stepped forward; we moved back. Bow had a death grip on me, and I was trying not to laugh.

“It’s only a nun.” I laughed.

“They’re unnatural,” Bow stated and kept shuffling backwards.

“Oh shit,” Demon hissed, and he stopped moving.

I glanced over my shoulder. Okay, that was disturbing. A girl stood in a white nightdress, drenched in blood. I guessed she represented Carrie. Demon shoved me in front of him and got into a shoving match with Bow, who was trying to keep me between him and the nun. Both of them shoved behind me as the nun and Carrie-wannabe moved towards us.

Demon whimpered, while Bow made a strangled noise no man should ever make.

Everything was fine until a cyborg appeared out of the cornrows in front of me. My Achilles heel. It was every brother for himself, and I took off running.

Screw my brothers.

Chill

An hour and a half later, we entered the clubhouse, all talking loudly. Because I’d kept running in circles, everyone had beaten me out and waited for me. I was shocked to find Meadow sobbing in an armchair. Cassian hovered close by, looking terrified.

I rushed over immediately.