Chapter 44
“No…” Bianca whispered, looking from Krystle to Brianna. “No, please, you can’t do this!”
“Oh yes, we can!”
“We can, and we will!”
With identical sneers, they both began to advance on Bianca. Brianna reached into her jacket and pulled
out sheathed knives. She unsheathed one,
letting the cover fall to the floor. She
held it out towards Bianca in a threatening way and then tossed the other over
Bianca’s head to Krystle. Bianca leaped and made a mad grab for the knife, but
it was out of her reach. Krystle reached
out to catch it… and missed.
Acting on pure impulse, Bianca took advantage of this slip up and
lunged for the knife. She grabbed it, knocking
Krystle off her feet in the process.
Krystle tumbled backward, hitting her head hard on the corner of the
mantelpiece of the fireplace behind her as she fell. She collapsed in a heap against the hearth
and slumped over, unconscious from the blow to her head. Removing the knife she had recovered from its
sheath, Bianca turned on Brianna. The
two young women, formerly best friends, came at each other, knives out.
Brianna jabbed her knife at Bianca, and Bianca brought her knife
swiftly down, letting it slice into Brianna’s arm. Brianna screamed in pain and rage and
retracted her arm, keeping a tight grip on the knife.
“BITCH!” she screamed in fury, lunging at Bianca. Screaming, Bianca darted out of the way. Brianna stepped back, and Bianca held her
breath. Was she giving up?
No.
With a roar, Brianna lunged again, but this time, she went low,
grabbing Bianca’s legs before she had the chance to move away and brining her
crashing to the floor. The knife
clattered out of Bianca’s hand, and she was defenseless. She cowered on the floor, looking up,
watching Brianna advance on her, the knife ready to stab into her body.
She knew this was the end.
AJ had not heard her cry. AJ
couldn’t help her now. It was all over.
But, actually, it was not.
For at that moment, Nick Carter burst into the room. He grabbed the first thing within his reach –
a glass vase with a bouquet of wilted flowers sitting on a plant stand. He raised it over his head, darted forward,
and brought it down with a shattering crash on top of Brianna’s head.
A stunned, dazed expression came over Brianna’ head. The knife fell from her hand, and she swayed
on her feet. Then her eyes rolled back
into her head, and she collapsed to the ground.
“Nick!” Bianca cried in disbelief.
But Nick did not answer her.
Instead, he grabbed the knife that had fallen from Brianna’s hand and
stabbed it right into her chest, over her heart. Bianca screamed as Brianna’s body began to
twitch, then fell motionless. Her chest
rose raggedly a few times, then stopped.
She was dead.
“It’s okay, Bianca,” Nick said softly, reaching out to her. “It’s okay.”
He came over to her and offered her his hand. She took it, and he pulled her to her feet,
then wrapped her in a hug. “I know about
AJ,” he whispered in her ear.
“AJ?” Bianca pulled away
from Nick and looked. There, behind
Nick, was the Gold Light. AJ had come to
her after all. “AJ!” she cried, her eyes
filling with tears.
“He brought me here,” said Nick.
“He said you were in trouble.”
“He heard me,” Bianca whispered.
“He heard me call him.” She
smiled tearfully at AJ’s light. “He’s my
angel, my protector.”
“And I did my job, didn’t I?” said AJ in her mind.
“Yes,” she said back. “You sure did.”
“Come on, Bean, let’s get out of here. You can come to my house and stay for awhile,
if you want,” said Nick.
Bianca nodded. “Okay,” she
said. “Thank you, Nick. For everything.” She felt very guilty then, realizing that she
had thought he was the killer.
How could she have been so wrong?
“Aww… isn’t that sweet?” a voice said suddenly.
Bianca and Nick spun around in horror. Krystle was standing behind them, the knife
Bianca had used gripped tightly in her hand.
“Bianca, Bianca, Bianca,” Krystle said tauntingly. “How dim can you be? Remember how I said I was an actress? Well, I was acting just now. I wasn’t as out of it as you thought. Never turn your back on the bad guy if you’re
not sure they’re dead.” She grinned
evilly. “Oh well. It doesn’t matter. You’ll pay for your mistake now.”
And she advanced on them, the knife raised. Nick started to reach down to grab the other
knife from Brianna’s chest, but Krystle lunged at him, causing him to stagger
back, knifeless. Krystle laughed. “Watch out, Carter,” she said tauntingly. “I’m going to-“
BAM!
Krystle never got to finish that sentence. For at that moment, she staggered back,
clutching her stomach, and collapsed to the floor.
Nick and Bianca’s heads whirled around. There, in the doorway of the living room,
stood Mr. Gunzenmeier, a gun cocked in his hand, smoke billowing from its
barrel.
“Perfect shot,” he said, baring his yellow teeth and twirling the
gun on his finger. “Excuse me, please,”
he said to Nick and Bianca, crossing the room to where Krystle lay.
Krystle was not acting this time, Bianca could see. Her breath was coming in ragged gasps, and
blood was seeping through the cracks between her fingers, which were covering
the bullet wound in her stomach.
“I know it don’t quite fit the pattern,” Mr. Gunzenmeier said,
seemingly to no one in particular, “but that don’t matter. You ain’t part of the pattern. This is what you get, girlie.”
Bianca stared at the old man, realizing he was talking to
Krystle. But what was he talking about?
“This is what you get for tryin’ to steal my identity, for using
my trademark!”
“What… what are… you… talking… about?” Krystle gasped, her chest
heaving as she struggled for air.
“The happy face! You and
your friend there stole it! That was my
trademark!” Mr. Gunzenmeier exclaimed.
Then, leering, he continued darkly, “Nobody likes a copycat. You steal, you pay. You stole my identity. Now you’re payin’ for it, ain’t you?”
And then Bianca realized what he meant.
“You’re… you’re the Smiley Face Killer!”
***
