"We'll probably end up getting creamed," Shannon said, as if she knew what Laura was thinking.

"Probably."

"What I wouldn't give to have my Sig Sauer about now..."

"That'd be nice," Laura said.

"Even nicer if I'd had it on me when those three fucks broke into the house."

"Think you could've gotten all three?"

"No sweat. Double-tap each of 'em."

"Maybe it's harder than shooting cans."

"Gotta be easier. People are bigger."

This time, Laura laughed softly. "Anyway," she said, "I guess it's water under the bridge."

"God, if I had it to do over again..."

"That'd be nice. Too bad life doesn't work that way."

"It oughta. You oughta get a second chance sometimes."

"Sometimes, maybe you do. But not this time."

"I'd give my left nut for a pistol right now."

Laura laughed again. "That's safe."

"I was speaking figuratively."

"I figured."

"Is there any such thing as a Halloween wish?" Shannon asked.

"I've never heard of one. You can wish upon the first star you see at night."

"A little late for that."

A little late for anything, thought Laura "Just the same," Shannon said, "I think I'll wish for a firearm It doesn't have to be my wonderful little.380 Sig. Any gun will do."

"Oh, sure," Laura said.

"Yeah, okay. If anyone out there is interested in granting my wish, please give me a decent caliber. Something bigger than a.22 or a.25... though they'll do in a pinch. And please give me as many rounds as possible. A revolver might not quite do the trick, if you know what I mean. On the other hand, much as I would love an assault rifle or shotgun, that sort of thing wouldn't be practical under the circumstances. So it should be a handgun, please. If possible."

"What's going on over there?" Royce called.

"Nothing," Shannon said.

"Knock off the talking."

"Yes, sir," Shannon said.

"Gettin' smart?"

"No, sir," Shannon said.

"Want me to come over there?"

"Would you happen to have a handgun we might borrow for a minute?"

Royce laughed. "Wanta commit suicide?"

"Something like that."

"Sorry. Fresh outa guns. But don't worry, we'll put ya outa yer misery pretty soon."

"Thank you, sir."

Shannon waited for Royce to turn away and say something to one of the other guards. Then she whispered, "Well, it was worth a try."

"Oh, of course," Laura said.

"Couldn't hurt to ask. You know what they say. 'God helps those who help themselves.' "

CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE.

"Shouldn't we be going first?" Mandy asked.

Hunter, leading the way along the forest path with Rhonda by his side, stopped and turned around.

"If we're pretending to be your prisoners..."

"Yeah," Bret said. "We oughta go first."

"That's a good point," Rhonda said.

"It's more dangerous in front," Hunter said. "Somebody might come along."

"It doesn't look right if we're following you. If we really were your prisoners, it'd be too easy for us to get away."

"The way it should be done," said Rhonda, "is one of us takes the lead and one of us takes the rear. With the prisoners in-between."

"I don't know," Hunter muttered. He liked having Rhonda walk beside him. She was one of the most popular girls in school and every guy who saw her probably dreamed of being with her... he certainly had. He'd gone to football and basketball games for no other reason than to watch her prance and twirl and leap with the cheerleader squad. But he'd never spoken to her before tonight. Now, they were not only talking to each other but were comrades in arms.

She undressed in front of me...

He'd turned his back and hadn't watched, but she'd done it, taken off all her clothes in the same room with him. And he'd taken off his in front of her.

Afterward, as they left the house and hurried across the back yard to the woods and began hiking up the path, he'd hardly been able to take his mind off the fact that she was naked underneath her robe.

Rhonda Gale herself.

They'd talked quietly as they walked through the woods. Sometimes they'd bumped against each other and a couple of times she'd stumbled and Hunter'd saved her from falling. It had been like something out of a dream.

This whole night's been incredible, he thought.

Horrible in some ways, wonderful in others.

"I'll take up the rear," Rhonda said. She patted him on the upper arm, then stepped around Mandy and Bret.

"If we're gonna do it this way," Hunter said, "let's at least stay close together."

He resumed walking. Instead of Rhonda by his side, Mandy was a stride behind him. It wasn't the same.

Better this way, he told himself. Rhonda was too distracting. I shouldn't be thinking about girls at all, not with everything that's going on. People dead all over the place. Maybe some of us dead before too much longer.

Besides, what about Connie?

She might already be dead.

Dead or not, she seemed like the distant past after all he'd seen and done tonight with Shannon and Laura, with Eleanor, with Simone... especially Simone... and Rhonda. Even Mandy seemed more real and vibrant to him than Connie.

Mandy's just a kid, he reminded himself. She might be cute, but she's too young.

Kind of sexy in a way, but...

Stop it, he told himself.

"Hunter?" Mandy quickened her pace and came up beside him.

"Yeah?"

"I've been thinking maybe this prisoner thing isn't such a hot idea."

"It'll be a good way to get in close."

"I don't want Bret to get in close. I think if we find the place where they've got everyone, we should maybe leave Bret out of it, He can hide when we go in. And then he can run away if things don't go right."

"Things'll go fine," Hunter said.

"I doubt it."

"Then why are you coming?"

"Need to find my dad. And Phyllis, I guess."

"You don't sound too sure about Phyllis."

"She can be a pain in the keester. She's my best friend, though."

"Your best friend is a pain in the keester?"

"Sure."

"Sounds like you need a new best friend."

"Nobody's perfect," Mandy said.

"That's for sure."

"Hey, can I ask you something?"

"Sure."

"That woman back at the house? That dead woman?"

A sudden rush of heat made him feel sick. "Simone?"

"You didn't... do anything to her, did you?"

"I killed her."

"She had all these... handprints and things all over her. Like someone had... you know, fooled around with her."

"Jeez, Mandy."

"I'm just wondering,"

"We had a real fight. After I got her with the sword. I already told you that. And how I had to strangle her."

"Nothing else happened? I mean, I've heard how it can be with guys and how they can lose control over certain things."

He shook his head. "Jeez, Mandy."

"I was just wondering, is all."

"How could you even think I'd do anything like that?"