Page 15 of Psycho

Chapter Eight – Ash

The man working at the gas station eyed me up and down. I did my best to wipe off the blood from my neck, but every so often another drip dribbled down and stained more fabric. This gas station wasn’t like the one that I stumbled in while running from Ray. This one was more high-end, with cleaner floors and whiter lights, not to mention a bigger place all around. The man behind the counter was an older gentleman, but not quite as old as the one who I’d asked to use his phone before.

I wasn’t going to ask for a phone this time. Kelsey was…hopefully safe and back in the dorm. I really hoped I didn’t leave her at that party only to have her get so drunk she slept with the whole frat house. I should call her, to check in, at least, but talking to my friend right now, even if she was in dire straits, was not the first thing on my mind.

Numero uno? Getting home.

And I didn’t mean home with Mom. I meant home with my Hillcrest boys.

The man noticed that I wore a hoodie—and since the hoodie hung longer than the slip, it looked like I was basically walking around naked under it—and he commented, “Can I, uh, help you, Miss?”

“How far is Hillcrest from here?” I asked. My feet already hurt. I’d been walking for at least an hour, quite a few miles before I stumbled upon this gas station. I really hoped he’d be able to tell me how to get back, or just point me in the right direction.

I really, really hoped I didn’t walk in the opposite direction. Backtracking my steps would suck.

“The college, you mean?” he asked, still eyeing me up and giving me an incredulous look. I’d gotten beeped at a few times, but no one stopped to offer to help me. At this point, I wouldn’t accept help from anyone.

The metal dagger was heavy in my pocket. This was my mistake. I had to make up for it, and if my feet grew bloody, so it would be.

“The university,” I corrected him. I knew I was probably far, since we were partying in Stanton, but as luck would have it, it wasn’t too far.

“It’s about forty-five-minute drive from here. Do you need a map?”

I shrugged. “I have no money.” A forty-five-minute drive would be…a lot longer of a walk, but I could handle it. I think.

“Can you call someone?” the man asked. “You can use my phone.”

A nice offer, but this wasn’t going to be a repeat of last time. “No. I just need to know where to go. I can get back myself.”

The man ran a hand through his hair, shaking his head somewhat, as if he didn’t believe this, couldn’t believe me. Couldn’t blame him, considering how I looked. “Alrighty then. You’re going to want to head north. I’m sure you’ll see signs once you get closer.”

My eyes flicked to the clock hanging behind the counter, noting the time. “Thank you.” I said nothing else, not stopping even as he called out to me. If that man knew that I held a bloodied knife in my pocket, he surely wouldn’t have been so forthcoming. Cops would’ve been called, and then I’d be fucked. As it was, I should stay off the main roads, just in case a cop did happen to roll by.

Being questioned by a cop while having a murder weapon in my hoodie and slightly smelling of rotting flesh was a no-go.

Once I emerged outside, I tilted my head towards the sunny sky. North. I could go north, thanks to the sun’s position. I might arrive a bit late, when it was dark out, but that was fine. Better late than never.

Better alone than with Ray.

As I walked down the residential streets, tugging down the hoodie as I walked to at least try to cover more of my legs, I couldn’t help but wonder why he wasn’t following me. Surely he wanted to.

No, you know what? He wouldn’t follow me, not yet. I hadn’t bought myself forever with my antics, but I did buy myself some time. Ray would make his presence known again, and the next time he did, it would be both spectacular and bloody. I had to be ready for him…I had to make sure the guys were ready for him.

The truth. I had to tell the guys the truth.

It was something I mentally prepared myself for as I walked along. The hours crept by, and the wind tousled my hair. I was lost in my own head, wondering just how to break it to them. I’d have to tell them the whole truth, how I’d gotten involved with Ray, what Ray was capable of… what happened in that murder cabin. I’d have to tell them that Ray was the one who hurt Will.

And Declan? Ray had claimed that he only stabbed Will in his apartment. Ray liked to control, liked to play games, but I didn’t know if he was smart enough to purposefully get me to doubt Declan.

What if what Ray said was true? What if Ray hadn’t hurt Declan? If that was the case…then Declan was more conniving that I thought. There was a darkness in him I hadn’t seen, something I was oblivious to. Was I truly so blind? Was I so stupid? I guess I’d find out, because I had to confront him over it. I had to ask, had to know the truth.

If I spoke my twisted truths to these guys, they had to be truthful to me, and to each other. That would be the deal I’d make with them. No more secrets, no more lies, from anyone, to anyone. Everyone would come clean.

My feet ached something fierce, but I knew it was only a matter of time before they hurt worse. Walking barefoot, without socks to protect them, would probably scar my feet after it was all said and done, but like I said, this was a pain I deserved. My walk of atonement. This was me pushing through my weakness, refusing to give up even when all hope seemed lost.

God, this walk would be so much faster with my skateboard, but again, that was beside the point. I couldn’t skate my way back to Hillcrest. I had to fight to get back, nearly kill myself while doing it. There was no other way.

The colors of twilight coated the world by the time I started seeing street signs that pointed to Hillcrest, and my feet had long since blistered and started to peel. A few spots were probably bloody, and my legs wanted to give out when I put pressure on them, but I had to keep moving. I had to get back.

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