Page 14 of All I want for Christmas is Boo
“Lumen, get the fuck out of here,” I ordered. “She’s crazy. Don’t listen to her.”
“Oh, poor Lumen. It’s not me who’s crazy. It’s your icicle lover over there who’s the bad guy. Look.” She tapped on her phone screen.
My insides twisted as Lumen’s expression went from curiosity, to confusion, to shock, then finally, horror.
“What is...”
Billy stepped forward, his mask still on, but his eyes bright with glee. “Neve’s old boyfriend didn’t kill your family. He did.” He swung his arm toward me, pointing his finger. He was close enough I lunged forward, grabbing his finger and bending it back until it cracked. He screamed and dropped to the ground.
“Asshole!” He pulled his mask off and tossed it on the ground.
I swung my foot out in the direction of his face. It collided with his nose in a loud crunch! He fell back with a loud scream. My fight with Billy distracted Neve enough to stop showing Lumen the video.
“Billy! Are you alright?” Neve ran to him.
“No, you dumb bitch! My nose is broken. Get me a towel or something.”
“Dumb bitch?” Neve pulled back and stood. “Go get something from the kitchen. I’m not dumb, Billy.” She spun back to us and shook her head. “That wasn’t very team-like of you, Tobias.”
“I’m not on anyone’s team. I’m here for myself.”
“What’s that even mean?” Ruby sneered. “Neve, I want to leave. You had your fun. Let’s get the money and go.”
“There is no money,” Lumen said. Our attention swung back to her as she trembled in the corner. “I don’t know who told you that.”
Billy swore and stood, rushing to the kitchen with his hand over his face. Ruby stepped forward, her fists clenched.
“What do you mean? Neve said?—”
“Neve lied,” I said. I knew there wasn’t any money. I’d spent the better part of this year learning all about Lumen and her family. Her family was in debt when they died. I knew that, and so did Neve. Which was why I agreed to be blackmailed. I needed to see Neve’s real intentions.
Ruby, Lumen, and I focused on Neve, waiting for her to expose the truth. The room was silent, other than the music playing in the background. The festive music contrasted with the tension in the room. Neve reached behind her, sliding her backpack off her shoulders.
“I did lie. I know you have no money. I also know that my life was ruined by you. Not only is the love of my life in jail for the rest of his life, but my career is ruined, and I was ostracized. I was run out of town for corrupting the community. I was turned into a monster, just because I was doing a viral trend.”
She unzipped her backpack and carefully removed a slick, black handgun.
A small scream came from Lumen, while Ruby gasped.
“Babe, what are you doing?” Ruby raised her hands cautiously. “This wasn’t part of the plan. Where did you get that?”
“It was Kane’s. I took it when they were raiding his house. I didn’t want him getting more charges. It’s not registered, so it’s perfect for this.” Neve raised it, pointing it at Lumen’s chest. “Tell the room you lied.”
“What?” Lumen raised her hands too. Her body trembled with fear. “What lie?”
“At the trial. You said Kane killed your family. He didn’t.”
“I didn’t know that!” Lumen cried out, her gaze flickering to me for only a second before returning to the gun in Neve’s hands. “I just found out about...”
“Your boy toy doing it? I don’t believe that. I think you’re both in cahoots, which is why I brought him here too. Tonight, you both die.”
She turned quickly and pulled the trigger. Something behind me exploded and I dropped to the ground as the bang went off, deafening the room. I whipped my head around, looking for what she hit. The TV was black and had a giant hole in the middle. It was smoking and fizzling.
“Fuck,” Neve yelled.
I leaped and tackled her, smacking the gun from her hand. It slid across the room. Ruby ran to it, picking it up.
“Help!” Neve screamed. “Don’t let him rape me!”
