Hideaway (Devil's Night 2)

“Are you from another school?” Kai asked. “This is a Thunder Bay party. Are you supposed to be here?”

He didn’t recognize me.

The make-up. I’d forgotten about the make-up I was wearing.

Plus, I was in my pajamas and a sweatshirt, different clothes than at the cemetery.

I started to back away.

The longer I stayed, the bigger chance I’d be discovered. It was time to leave.

“Wait a minute,” he said, stepping toward me. “This is a private party. Who are you?”

My gaze flashed to the people around the hallway, seeing them watching us.

“I can call you a ride,” Kai offered, slowly advancing as I backed away. “Do you have a car? How old are you?”

“Kai, let her go. Come on!” Will called, heading into another room.

I took a step, holding Kai’s eyes and my heart pounding. “Old enough to have seen and heard worse,” I told him.

And he stopped mid-step.

A shot of thrill swelled in my throat, and my legs burned with the urge to run.

He stared at me, his chest rising and falling faster. He remembered. I was scared he wouldn’t. Maybe I’d dreamed the confessional this morning, and it never really happened.

But he cocked his head, and it felt like he was zoning in.

Shit.

I took another step back, past the crowd, and kept going.

“Michael brought me here.” I swallowed, my mouth so dry. “It has nothing to do with you. I don’t even want to be here.”

I stumbled over something on the floor, looking away to find my footing and quickly looking back at him. But he just stayed rooted in his spot, watching me.

Wasn’t he going to say anything?

I continued backing away, afraid to turn my back on him.

And then he took a step.

I sucked in a short breath. “What are you doing?”

He took another step. “Giving you a head start.”

My stomach leaped. “But I don’t…I didn’t want to play!”

“Oh, you’ve been playing with me all night,” he said, a growl lacing his voice. “Run. Because I turn into a very different person when no one’s looking.”

I lost my breath and whipped around, taking off. The lobby. There would be people in the lobby. And desk clerks. I raced to the end of the hall, past the elevator, without looking back and bolted through the Exit door leading to the stairwell.

Bright light blinded me, and I grabbed onto the railing as I ran down the stairs, swung around the bannister, and leaped down the next flight. I heard the door above slam shut, but then a loud gong echoed in the stairwell, and I knew it was the sound of it swinging open again.

I choked on a breath and swooped down another flight, jumping stairs as I did. But I couldn’t not look back. Twisting my head over my shoulder, I searched for his shoes or any movement, but nothing. Not even the sound of steps being taken.

But then, all of a sudden, he landed with a loud thud on the landing one short flight up, having leaped over the railings and two flights.