Page 74 of Dead End

I smiled to myself as I took the black dress off the hanger and laid it on my bed. It was the same flowing princess dress I’d stolen from the theater. When I’d first put it on, I’d done so with the intention of returning it soon, but when I stumbled into the hall that day and all those theater people were clapping, I knew the dress was forfeit. We’d call it payment for my lost pride.

Under the dress, I wore a black lace bralette, matching lace panties, and stockings with garters. There was just something about nice lingerie that I’d always found appealing, and now that I had four men who would actually get to see it, it was all the more fun. I stared at myself in the mirror. My lips were black, and my liner was winged. I looked like some kind of gothic fairy princess, the dark orange of my hair contrasting with my pale skin and onyx dress. This was my vibe. This was perfect.

I knew I’d have to face the music and join the others downstairs. I wished I had some kind of nose plug, because the second I opened my door, I staggered at the stench. Someone really needed to have a talk with Pip before I was forced to move into the greenhouse.

I glanced to my right at the door that never used to be there. The portal lay behind that door, and I could hear the knocking every once in a while. All that power was just shoved behind a door. It was overwhelming just to think about it. There was an entire world just on the other side—our old lives.

I knew in my heart that I never wanted to return to the mortal world. This place was the home I never knew I was yearning for. My parents were buried here, my aunties were here, and my heritage was all around me. I finally felt like I was exactly where I needed to be, and all the tiny holes that had been ripped into me over the last year were starting to fill—pun fully intended.

I padded down the hall and down the stairs with a smile on my face. When I entered the kitchen, all my guys were sitting around the table with cups of coffee. They looked up as I entered, eyeing each other a moment later. I knew what they were seeing—a happy October with a smile on my face.

Maddie squealed from the kitchen, running over and pinching the skirts of my dress between her fingers. “Holy fuck, Tobs! This dress is gorgeous; where’d you find it?” Then her eyes went wide, and she burst out laughing. “Oh my god, is this the theater?”

I shushed her with a palm over her mouth and glanced at the aunties, whispering to Maddie, “Dude...”

“Sorry,” she mumbled against my palm, her eyes alight.

I wasn’t ready for my aunties to hear that particular story. There were just some things I needed to keep to myself if I ever wanted to look them in the eyes again.

Pip was bustling around in the kitchen, covered in flour and flakes of dried herbs. There was a cauldron bubbling over the stove, with a large wooden spoon stirring itself. Auntie Fe was sipping a mug of tea and flipping through what looked like a newspaper. They were both dressed even more outlandishly than usual, in long dresses of purple, orange, green, and black with frills, lace, and buttons, and matching witch’s hats. They really did look like true cottage witches.

Maddie didn’t look too shabby herself. Her festival outfit was a long black peasant skirt with a thigh-high slit up the side and a blood-red crop top that she dug out of my goth closet. It matched perfectly with her red lips and expertly curled midnight hair. The hair change was starting to grow on me, to the point that I couldn’t even picture her as a bottle blonde anymore.

I looked at the guys and narrowed my gaze on Norman and Freddy, who were smirking at the dress. If it weren’t for the burning lust in their eyes, I would have flipped them off. Jason and Michael were studying me carefully, their eyes running along the narrow bodice where my breasts pushed up invitingly. I wore a lace choker around my throat with a tiny amethyst spider pendant dangling from it. There was approval in their eyes—all of them.

Satisfaction filled me as I took a cup of tea offered by Auntie Fe. Breathing in the jasmine steam, I let myself relax as we all watched Pip piddle around the kitchen.

“What kind of poison are we making this morning?” I asked.

“Oh! Only the most deadl—” Pip spun around mid-sentence with narrowed eyes and a hand on her hip. “You think you’re clever, don’t you?”

Maddie snorted, taking a seat at the table. “Smells like someone threw up in there.”

“Oh, hush,” Pip admonished. “Before I decide to have you test out the cookies I made for the bake sale,”

Maddie snapped her mouth closed, eyes going wide as I said, “It’s a good thing most of Midnight Hollow’s residents are already ghosts.”

A spoon came flying through the air, straight towards my head, and I dodged it just in time, laughing until tears pricked my eyes.

“I’m heading to the festival early. Mr. Hottie—I mean, Baen has a booth set up, and I’m sure he could use some help,” Maddie said.

“Help with what?” Jason teased, his eyes dancing with mischief. “Unbuttoning his pants?”

Maddie’s eyes went round, and she blushed furiously, stammering, “I-I don’t know what you’re insinuating, perv!”

“Sure you don’t,” added Michael, casting a knowing glance at Jason as the two of them bumped fists.

“Well, I was going to invite you guys to join me, but now I don’t think I will.” With her nose in the air, Maddie stood up, took a cloak from the coat rack, and swept out of the room.

“Mads, hold up!” I called after her. I glared at my smiling guys over my shoulder, muttering, “You guys must have a death wish.”

“I love you too!” One of them yelled as I crossed the threshold, and I staggered for a moment, catching my balance as my heart soared. I knew how they felt, but hearing it would probably catch me off guard for a while.

Maddie stood with her arms crossed by the front door, smirking at me. “You know, these walls are mighty thin.”

Rolling my eyes, I pulled the door open, and we walked into the moonlight. “Maybe you should plug your ears then,” I mumbled.

“And miss all the entertainment?” She held a hand to her chest. “Honey, let me live vicariously through you for a while.”

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