You creep toward the staircase, hoping Dennis is too distracted to see you sneak by. He is still yelling for Rich to come downstairs. Perhaps Rich is not able to come downstairs, you think. Maybe Rich didn't punch that basement window out of anger, but in an attempt to escape.
Michelle motions you to hurry up. From where she stands, she may be able to see Dennis. You have to hurry. Even if you make it outside, you still need to get the car out of that hole before Dennis realizes you are gone. You can use the shovel resting against the house to free the tires enough to drive out of the hole.
As you reach Michelle, you place one hand on her back to shove her out the door as you use the other to fling it open. You step onto the front porch and whisper in her ear to run to the car, get in and get ready to start it when you tell her to and not a moment before. She nods and you both jump off the porch and run to the side of the house. You grab the shovel from its resting place, run to the car and begin digging out the first of two tires. In the background, Dennis can still be heard shouting. Michelle is in the driver seat, anxiously drumming on the steering wheel. If you had only done this earlier, you would be on the road already.
The shouting is interrupted by the sound of glass breaking, from behind and above. Hunched over and mid-swing, you stop and slowly peer over your shoulder toward the upstairs window. You see Dennis leaning out with whatever he used to break the window dangling from one hand. "WHERE ARE YOU KIDS GOING?" he yells.
You cannot move, frozen in this position. Something really bad is about to happen, you know it, and you cannot move or say anything. You snap out of it when you hear Michelle say, "Uh, we thought we would, uh, just try and get the car out while we, uh, waited for you and, uh, Rich to come down."
"YOU STILL WANT TO MEET RICH?" He asks as he starts swinging the object in his hand. You know what it is before he lets go and before it crashes into Michelle's windshield. Michelle is hysterical. You are not sure she even knows what it is, perhaps she is screaming because something smashed into her car. Looking at the window, you see that Dennis has disappeared. He is coming. You run to the front, to check the item, and find the head of Richard Meinheit resting on the hood.
Something slams into your back, forcing you to the ground. You roll and defensively place the shovel between you and Dennis. Only he is not there. You sit up and see an arm next to you.
"YOU WANTED TO MEET RICH, WELL HERE HE IS!" Dennis is leaning out the window again, throwing more body parts. You jump to your feet and move to the other tire. Michelle starts the car and hits the accelerator. The car lurches forward, but does not break free from the hole. You are yelling for her to stop but she does not. You raise the shovel above your head and bring it down on the trunk. BANG! The sound startles her and she lets off the gas. You lift the shovel when another bang tears through the night and snaps it out of your hand. You jerk around to find Dennis leaning out the window with a rifle.
You throw yourself to the ground on the passenger side of the car. What the hell have you gotten yourself into? This nut is leaning out a window, shooting at you, and there are some guy's body parts all around you. You can only presume that the thuds you heard earlier in the house were those of Dennis hacking away at the body. You hear Dennis whistling and the engine running. The only thing you do not hear is Michelle.
Cautious to not make yourself visible, you open the passenger door. The window shatters as another shot is fired; you lurch forward, throwing your head under the protection of the dashboard. “Michelle?” you ask as you roll over. She has slumped over the middle console, her head suspended just inches over the passenger seat. Blood flows steadily from behind her hair-covered face. You do not need to check her to know she is dead. You lean out the side, protected by the open door, and wretch. Another shot fires and takes the passenger side mirror off. “YOU BASTARD!” you scream, finally cutting loose. You have kept your cool so far, mostly for the sake of Michelle, but now she is gone, and it is just you and the maniac in the window.
As you look around you, trying to determine what your next move is, you see your cigarettes and lighter in the cup holder. Like a starving man unwrapping a candy bar, you fumble with getting the pack open, a cigarette to your mouth and lit. The flash of the lighter sends another bullet through the windshield and into a headrest. You need to get out of here, but how? There looks like there is enough room for you to reach the accelerator, you could try pressing that and hope the car breaks free. If it does, you could turn the steering wheel from the floor until you are out of his range, then move Michelle’s body and drive away. If forward does not work, you could always try reversing the car. You could also crawl to the back of the car; from there, it would be a few feet to the hedgerow. Shielded by that, you may be able to enter the church and find a phone. Whichever course you chose, you need to do it quickly. In your current position, you cannot see Dennis and that gives him the advantage. He could already be on his way outside.
If you decide to make a break for the church, turn to page 53.
If you try moving the car, turn to page 56.
