Sometime after 2 AM, Kat awoke to find that she was leaning on Tai's shoulder. She quickly sat up. Mimi, Sora, and Kari were sleeping on the floor. Tai was awake. "Listen," he whispered, so quietly that she barely heard him. She heard ... giggles. Evil giggles. "Hee hee hee hee," they went. She gave Tai a curious look. He said nothing, but put a finger to his lips. She leaned back and closed her eyes to sleep. Tai pulled her up and pointed to the washer's buttons that she almost pushed. But she was so tired, she closed her eyes and fell over wherever it took her. The next morning, the five went to check out their old room. "What a mess," said Sora. Joey was glad to be rid of them, and they picked up their backpacks and went out to the parking lot. "Where's my Hummer H2 SUT?!" exclaimed Kat. Tai went back into the Super 8. He came out a whole 20 minutes later, and started down the sidewalk. "Bill has a car that we can buy from him," he said as they walked. "The only one in this whole fucking town." "What if he has a tracker on it?" asked Kari. "What if it's an old, ugly piece of shit?" asked Kat. Tai smiled. "No, it's a decent car. There's his house." The only vehicle they could see was a shiny blue 1975 Corvette with a FOR SALE sign on it. Bill only agreed to let them have it for three times more than what it was worth, but they couldn't walk all the way to New York, so they bought it. Sora nicknamed the car "Bill." Joey, at the Super 8, had actually given them the money for the 'Vette, and some to replace the H2 SUT, even though the girls didn't buy it. But why would they tell him that? They were only taking back roads, although Tai told them that they had nothing to worry about because they "had Tai with them." That night, they stopped the Corvette at the side of the road, for Tai was tired, and would not let any of the girls drive. Not that they could, because it was a manual. So, they sat there, while Tai rested his eyes. "What's the light up ahead?" asked Kat. Tai did have his eyes open. "A city." "How did Joe know we'd stop at the Super 8 in Peabody?" "Because it's at the end of I-95, and it's the only thing you can afford." He turned the key. "Let's go." The next day, they pulled into a bp for some gas. "We're in Bridgeport," Tai stated, looking around. To Kat, he said, "Get out and open the gas cap." She did, and he came around and proceeded to fill the empty tank. "Are we supposed to find Joe here?" Kat asked. "No, but he would come here if he was looking for us." "Pardon me, but this isn't exactly a small town." "Then we'll go to the most logical place Joe would go to." The tank was full, and Tai swiped a credit card, got in the Corvette, and started it up. Kat buckled her seatbelt. "Where would that be?" "Why, the library of course. But it wouldn't be safe for him or us to stay there, because no one ever goes to a library, and a 1975 Corvette outside of one would surely command attention." They parked on the side of the road by the library. "What does Joe drive?" asked Sora. "His moped," replied Kat. Tai got out. "Let's quick look around." All five of them went into the gray building. There was nobody there, not even a librarian. Tai went behind the librarian's desk. "Joe was here," he said, holding up a graphing calculator. "How do you know that's his?" asked Kari. "It says 'JOE' on it." "Maybe he's in the john," said Kat. "Anyone check?" But he wasn't. The library was utterly deserted. The girls plopped into the cushy chairs by the magazine rack. Kat woke up later, realizing that she'd been sleeping. The other girls were ripping posters out of all the teen magazines. The sound of shiny paper tearing reverbrated though the room. "Shh!" said Kat. "It makes it feel... lonely in here." "Who cares?" said Kari. "I have a picture of Adam Brody now." They all froze when they heard the front door slowly open and close quietly. It was only then they realized it was getting dark. None of them moved. Five shadows appeared behind the bookshelves. The girls tried to hide. Kat suddenly felt an urge to be a hero. If she put the Tongue Ring in, she could go behind them and ... shoot them. Or kick them. The Dice Tongue Ring was no longer in her mouth; it was tucked "safely" in her purse. Kat reached in her mouth and poked the One Tongue Ring through the hole (which had started to close because she kept no ring in it). She could actually see through the Grim Reapers' cloaks. They looked ... like normal guys. Except for the fact that their faces were all screwy. One looked at her. He had a black wristband. She ran past the bookshelves towards the back of the library. And tripped. A Sickle sliced her ankle. She opened her mouth to scream, and the Tongue Ring fell out. "Motherfucker! Son of a bitch!" she shouted, grabbing the Tongue Ring with one hand and holding her ankle with the other. Blood streamed out of the gash. Sora ran over to her. Then the lights turned on. The Grim Reapers stopped giggling and started screaming like little girls as they ran out of the library. Tai was standing by the lightswitch. "Sorry, I was reading this great Playboy I found, then I had to use the bathroom--" He saw Kat bleeding. "'Choo do that for?" Sora got angry. "It was those fucking Reapers!" Everyone stared at her. Sora never cussed. Tai held up his hands. "Sorry." He came over to Kat, where Mimi and Kari had also come over. "I suppose we'll need to get you to a doctor," said Tai thoughtfully. "Gee, ya think?!" yelled Kat. Tai rolled his eyes and picked her up, carrying her to the bathroom. Then he set her on the counter and plunged her leg in the sink. "Hey, that's cold!" She reached down and took off her KSWISS sneaker. "What are you going to use to stop the bleeding?" asked Mimi from the doorway. Kari had run out to the Corvette and grabbed a towel and a bunch of ponytail holders. Tai shrugged. "That'll work." He tightly wrapped the towel around Kat's ankle and kept it on with the ponytail holders. "Hey, that's tight," complained Kat. The blood was seeping through. "We have to get to New York City," said Tai, picking Kat up and carrying her outside. "Don't you think there's a hospital here?" asked Sora. "Not a good one." Tai threw Kat in the front seat. He went to the driver's side. "Wait for us!" the other girls yelled. Kari was holding Kat's shoe. Tai shoved them in and started the 'Vette. "We're going to have to take the Interstate," he said. "That's a good thing," said Mimi. They weren't 10 minutes on I-95 before-- "I thought I-95 ended in Peabody," said Kari. "It's a crazy road," replied Sora, looking at the map. Anyways. Before a cop pulled them over. Tai didn't say anything, but stared out the windshield, waiting for the cop to come to the window. "Do you have any idea how fast you were going?" the cop asked. "Oops," said Kat. "Sorry, the blood dripped onto the floor mat." Tai looked like he was about to strangle them all. He cleared his throat. "Just trying to get to the hospital in New York." "There are other hospitals," the cop replied. "But you were going 42 miles over the posted speed limit." Kat laughed and pointed at the dashboard. "That's because the speedometer was in kilometers per hour! He forgot to change it!" The cop peered in. "This car doesn't have that feature. It's too old." She shrugged. "Well ... it was worth ... a ... " Her eyes fluttered and she fell against the seat. "The hospital in New York is the only one that we have insurance on!" Tai shouted. "Well, that doesn't make any sense," the cop said, furrowing his brows. A car stopped behind theirs on the Interstate. A man came out and walked up to the door. "Johnny Depp!" whispered an astonished Sora. "A Pontiac GTO!" whispered an astonished Kari. "Excuse me?" asked the cop. Johnny Depp waved. "These kids really need to get to New York City. Kat's extremely hurt, more than what it looks." "Why should I listen to you?" asked the cop. "Because I'm Johnny Depp. You may have seen me in such films as 'Once Upon a Time in Mexico' and 'Secret Window' but that had really bad writers. I was in 'Pirates of the Caribbean' too. Oh, and I'm the sexiest man over 40 in America." The cop shrugged. "Well, that's good enough for me. I can put on my sirens and the Pontiac GTO can follow me. But you--" he pointed to Tai, "--must drive the speed limit or I will write out that ticket." Johnny Depp ran around the Corvette and picked up Kat, who was awake again. "You can drive my Pontiac GTO." "I can't drive a stick, though." "Neither can I. That's why I paid a thousand dollars more for an automatic. Got the brand-new one with a sunroof too." Kat was speechless. She got in the car and squealed to herself. Then she opened the sunroof and blasted the speakers. "GO!" yelled Johnny Depp, for the cop had started moving, sirens blaring. She slammed on the gas and bolted onto the road, forgetting to check for cars first. Oops. Kari looked back. "Black Mustang!" Johnny Depp jumped in the 'Vette's passenger seat and urged Tai to drive. "So ..." said Tai, as he eased onto the Interstate, "did Joe make it to the City yet?" "Not when I left," replied Johnny Depp. "Who would ever guess that Joe was so popular with the Celebrities?" said Mimi. More Black Mustangs appeared, catching up fast. Four sped around the Corvette, obviously trying to catch up with the Pontiac GTO. Five more quickly passed them. "The Nine," whispered Tai. "I guess it's good that Mustangs don't have V8's." "Mine did," muttered Mimi. "What are you talking about?" exlaimed Kari. "Mustang GT's do have V8's." "We don't care!" yelled an exasperated Sora. Kat was driving as fast as the cop would let her, but the Pontiac GTO could go much faster, she was sure. She checked her mirrors, and passed the cop. She didn't even look back to see his face. Thankfully, he kept his sirens on, because otherwise, she would've rear-ended a lot of people. Soon, a Black Mustang was on her right side. She couldn't see the driver's face. There was a bridge ahead. A bell dinged. For goodness sake's, it was a drawbridge. She looked in her rearview mirror. There were millions of Black Mustangs back there! Or, she was about to pass out again. She laid on the horn and the gas pedal at the same time. Thankfully, cars moved out of the way. Most of them moved into the right lane and slowed down, which wasn't great for the 4 Black Mustangs in that lane. She heard a huge crash behind her. This is just like the fucking movies, she thought, as the bridge drew nearer. It was starting to raise. Soon, she would be going up it ... Sooner than she expected, since she was going so fast. She smashed thought the wooden barriers and felt the car slow down as the incline got a little bit steeper. She slammed on the gas. The edge was getting closer. As the car left solid ground, she screamed and laid on the horn again. The Pontiac GTO hit the pavement hard, and it was no smooth landing. Only then she remembered the Black Mustangs and saw one fall below, because the gap had widened too much now. There were no others. She was in New York. She could see tall skyscrapers and many lights in the distance. Then she remembered her leg, and saw the whole towel was red with blood. It was slowly dripping onto her foot. Wet and warm and sticky. "Where's the hospital?!" she asked herself out loud. "What do I do? What the hell? Why am I driving by myself?" She felt overwhelmed and lightheaded, so she slammed on the brakes and screeched to a stop on the shoulder. Then everything went black. |
| The Cult of the Tongue Ring part seven |
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