The Border Part Eight Read Online Free PDF Page A

felt that Tom was a little weirder than she’d realized. “You’re obviously very busy tonight, so I’ll let you get on with everything and I’ll give you a call in the next day or two, okay? Maybe after the weekend…”
    Reaching the bedroom, she grabbed her bag and turned to go back out into the hallway, only to let out a gasp of surprise as she found that Tom had followed her and was now blocking the way.
    “Hey,” she said, forcing a smile, “that’s a really neat costume. Did you get it for Halloween?”
    He paused, before shaking his head.
    “It makes you look like a… You know, what are they called again? Oh yeah, a moose!”
    “A moose?” he asked, sounding a little puzzled.
    “Or a deer.”
    “A stag.”
    “Or a stag,” she continued. “Yeah, that thing on your head is a bit like a stag. It’s cool, definitely, but…” She paused, before stepping toward him, hoping that he’d get out of the way. “I thought you said you had somewhere to be?”
    “I do.”
    “Well then -”
    “And so do you.”
    She paused again. “Uh… I actually was thinking of just going home, Tom. You really tired me out tonight and -”
    “You’re not going home,” he replied. “I have a surprise for you. Turn around.”
    She looked up at the broken pieces of wood poking up from the crown. “I don’t think I’m in the mood for a surprise,” she said cautiously.
    “There’s no need to be scared,” he continued. “It won’t hurt, I promise. In fact, you’ll love it.” He waited for her to turn. “After that, I’ll drive you home.”
    “Well, I…” Figuring that his offer wasn’t too bad, she turned her back to him. “I really appreciate you helping me out.” She waited, hoping that whatever the surprise turned out to be, he’d get it over with quickly. “I should definitely speak to Bob,” she added finally, hoping to keep up the small-talk and avoid letting things get too deep. “I know you think he’s pathetic, but I really think -”
    “Look down at your chest,” Tom said suddenly, his voice sounding a little further away.
    Turning, she saw that he’d backed over to the door.
    “Tom…”
    “Look down at your chest,” he said again, stopping as he reached the doorway. He was rubbing his right foot against the carpet now, which seemed a little odd.
    “Okay,” Candy muttered, turning and looking at her own chest.
    “What were you about to say?” he asked.
    “I don’t remember,” she said cautiously.
    “Something about Bob?”
    “Oh, right. Yeah, just that I think Bob -”
    Suddenly she heard Tom running toward her from behind. She opened her mouth to ask what he was doing, but then she saw his shadow quickly falling over her, following by a heavy impact from behind that sent her stumbling forward until she put her hands out against the nearby wall, and then a sharp pain burst through her back. Gasping, she saw several of the broken pieces of wood bursting out through her chest, covered in blood, as if Tom had bowed his head and charged into her from behind.
    She tried to ask what was happening, but as blood began to flow down her chest, she found she couldn’t get any air into her throat at all, which meant no words came out.
    Turning, she saw her shadow on the farthest wall, with Tom’s shadow bent over behind her, his head pressed against the small of her back. Looking down again, she began to feel weak and dizzy as she saw the top of the crown still poking out through her chest.
    “Behold,” Tom said finally. “The source of all life. The animal majestic, its prize finally claimed. I always wanted to try this, I thought it’d work. The others said it might be silly, but I knew it’d be fine so long as I got a good run-up and really threw myself into it all.”
    Still impaled on the crown’s broken pieces of wood, Candy stared lifelessly at the wall. Just before the moment of death, a few tears had begun to roll down her cheek. A moment later her body began to shudder