Dead End: Midnight Hollow by Penn Cassidy (free novel 24 TXT) 📗

because she was acting suspiciously unbothered right now. There was still a very real possibility we were all suffering from one of the biggest drug trips in history, and soon we’d all wake up in the hospital back in Sunset Hollow.

“So you were super serious about the bat stew thing, weren’t you, Pip?” Maddie held her nose between her fingers. Her face was screwed up into a look of revulsion as she stared at the still bubbling cauldron.

“Bat chowder,” Auntie corrected with a cheeky wink, not really answering the question.

Norman looked a bit green around the gills, his eyes locked onto that cauldron before shivering. The bat was still snuggled against his neck, and I wondered if Norman forgot it was even there. Our eyes met and I tried to give him an encouraging smile, but he immediately scowled at me, jaw clenching so tight, I thought his fangs might snap in half.

Fangs. Holy shit balls… Norman had fangs. I wasn’t going to get used to that, even though the look was kind of hot on him, the bastard.

“Okay, now that’s all settled, let’s get Fe down here to help explain. It’s a doozy…” Auntie Pip clapped her hands together in barely contained excitement before lifting a steaming teacup to her grinning crimson lips. She blew on it, then sipped with a loud slurp that filled that awkward silence.

I couldn’t understand why she was acting like this was all completely normal. She looked utterly thrilled, actually. Norman was currently staring at my neck from across the table like it was the juiciest steak he’d ever seen. He was in for a rude awakening if he thought I was about to give him a snack. He kept licking his plump lips every few seconds as he squirmed in his seat. It didn’t help that I was intentionally flicking my hair every few moments to the other side of my shoulder…just to torture him. He deserved it.

“Knock it off, clown freak. I can see what you're doing,” Freddy whispered into my ear, leaning over from the chair to my left. His voice was tight, but he paused mid sentence and leaned even farther into my space, inhaling deeply. “Did you change your perfume, Redrum? Smells like…crisp apples mixed with…nutmeg?” He was practically on top of me, his nose buried in the small space between my neck and shoulder.

I shuffled in my seat, hating and also loving the way his nose skimmed my sensitive skin back and forth and the way his hot breath heated that one spot that caused me to shiver every time. Memories threatened again, but I shook them away. No way was I going there.

“Are you seriously sniffing her? Dude, what’s your problem?” Michael choked out, his eyes wide on Freddy. “And stop calling her a clown.” He reached over to grab the back of Freddy’s T-shirt and dragged him away from me, even though Freddy fought to get a few more sniffs in.

What the shit is going on?!

At least Michael had come to his senses and was standing up for me. Maybe soon I’d just be regular old October again.

“Come up with something more creative,” Michael said. “We don’t want to set our boy off again.” He nodded at Jason, who in return flipped him off without bothering to look. He was still watching Freddy struggle not to sniff me.

And there went my dreams down the drain again, any hope that they gave a shit quickly vanishing.

The sound of clicking heels had us all turning in our seats, facing the open doorway that led into a dark hallway. The noise of her heels on the wood floors clashed with a sudden crash of thunder from outside. Lightning illuminated the dim room, exposing shadows that cast eerie shapes over the boiling cauldron. A figure appeared in the doorway, nothing more than a dark shadow, until her milky white skin flashed in the light of another lightning strike. Dramatic…but wicked.

“Fe, for pumpkin’s sake, stop frightening our guests. It’s not even midnight yet. Save it for the witching hour.” Pip cackled, the sound causing me to cringe.

Auntie Pip sighed as she took a seat and proceeded to snag a cookie off the tea tray. I couldn’t help but hold my breath, wondering whether or not her death would be the result of her own baking skills. She’d likely poison herself. But it must have not been too bad because she lived, munching on the cookie with a wink thrown my way.

Michael watched her closely, his eyes shifting back and forth from her to the tray, before he grabbed one for himself. He glanced around nervously when he realized my creepy auntie wasn’t the center of attention anymore. We all watched him slowly bring the baked good to his mouth, cringing on his behalf. I wanted to smack the cookie out of his hand.

“Don’t die,” Freddy half joked under his breath, but his brows were scrunched together in concern as he worried his bottom lip.

Michael chewed slowly, then a loud crunch echoed around the room. He paled and coughed as he reached up and pulled a piece of bone from his mouth. He swayed in his seat, tossing the bone on the table with a clatter. I hid a chuckle behind my other hand as he grinned weakly at Auntie Pip so her feelings wouldn’t get hurt.

“Ah, that’s where that little bugger went. A nice touch though, adds that healthy, crunchy texture.” Pip beamed proudly and ate another cookie without missing a beat. Michael just nodded eagerly, fighting a cringe before bringing his napkin up to his face to spit the rest of the cookie out of his mouth.

Auntie Fe sighed from the doorway, shaking her head while making a clicking noise with her tongue. Dramatic entrance forgotten entirely, she walked over to the cauldron to give the bubbling whatever it was a stir.

She stared at a still cooling rack of cookies next to the pot and tsked.