Sshh, Be Quiet

Both girls ran towards the two men in an attempt to pry them apart. Lisa, completely ignoring her injuries, leapt onto Matt’s back after he had stepped into the room and she was able to get behind him. She was trying to distract him so he would loosen his grip and Brian could get away. While on his back, she felt something unusually solid come in contact with her thigh. She realized it was the gun, and as she managed to wrap a hand around the handle, Matt reached with his free hand, grabbed her injured shoulder. Just like he did with Brian, he threw Lisa like she was a rag doll. She landed on the floor with a loud thud, groaning as pain shot through her body.

“Stephanie!” she shouted to her best friend, motioning for her to come. “Here, shoot him.” She handed the gun to Stephanie.

As Stephanie turned the gun on Matt, Brian managed to get out of the singer’s strong grip by using his feet. Matt stumbled back into the hallway.

“Can you walk?” Brian quickly asked Lisa.

“I’ll try,” Lisa said, pulling herself to her feet. She groaned. “Fuck. It hurts, but I’ll manage.”

“When I give the signal and get him away from the doorway, you two go downstairs. If I don’t make it, just wait for the fire to make any kind of opening and get out,” he said quickly.

Matt had stepped back into the room and Brian launched himself at the possessed singer, dragging him back into the hallway. A moment of struggles and cursing went on until they heard Brian shout.

“Go! Now”

Stephanie and Lisa both exited the room, seeing the two men struggle just a few feet away. Lisa wasn’t about to let Brian die after he had done so much to help her, and to help everyone. He turned and saw her standing there.

“What are you doing? Go!” he shouted again.

“I’m not letting him kill you!” Lisa shouted.

“Get the fuck out of here. Don’t be a hero,” Brian said, struggling to keep Matt pinned against a wall. “God damnit, Lisa, fucking go!”

Brian was distracted for a split second while yelling at Lisa, and Matt took advantage of it. As if demonstrating a self-defense move, he freed himself from Brian’s grip, shoving him into the opposite wall. As he charged at Brian, a low growl was heard. Brian was now pinned against the wall, both of Matt’s hands gripping his throat tightly.

“Leave him alone!” Lisa shouted, once again jumping on the singer’s back. “Stephanie!” she screamed at the top of her lungs seeing as her best friend was already downstairs.

Smoke was slowly drifting around, filling the air as the house continued to burn from the basement up. The fire was slowly creeping up the hidden stairwell, burning every dry piece of wood in it’s path. Lisa’s attempts to distract the singer weren’t working as she watched him choking the life out of who was once his best friend and brother-in-law.

Still holding onto Brian, Matt attempted to get her off of his back. Dragging the guitarist with him, he backed to the wall where he was once pinned. He was trying to crush Lisa between his body and the wall. She let out a grunt as the blow had knocked the wind out of her.

The hallway was now beginning to glow orange as flames now crept up the stairwell. Lisa took two more hits to the wall, groaning as she swore she felt a rib crack. She didn't give up trying to pry the two men apart. Matt cursed and prepared for one last blow. He charged backwards towards the wall, colliding hard. Lisa's head bounced off the wall and she was knocked unconscious. When Matt stepped forward, her body crumpled to the floor with a thud. Brian was losing air, and was beginning to see white dots as he struggled to free himself from the death grip.

Footsteps raced up the stairs, followed by the sound of a gunshot. The two hands released Brian, and he began gasping for air, taking in large gulps as he stumbled to get out of arm's reach of Matt. It took a matter of seconds for him to refocus. Matt was staring at Stephanie who held the gun. He looked from her to his side, where the bullet had struck him.

“The head, Stephanie,” Brian choked out, still taking deep breaths.

She closed her eyes and fired, hitting Matt in the chest. His body stumbled backwards, closing in on the fire that engulfed the door to the back stairwell.

“Higher, Stephanie, shoot!” Brian shouted.

With her eyes still closed, she fired once more, hitting the singer in the forehead. His body still stood, stumbling backwards. Brian went and pushed his body towards the flames. Matt’s body finally went down, crashing through the floor that was now weakened by the fire. Like it was a scene from a movie, a hole opened up and flames flickered up through it.

Brian went to Lisa’s crumpled body. She still had a pulse. He picked her up in his arms, following Stephanie to the main stairwell. "We have to get out of here, now before this place collapses."

“I’m sorry,” she said.

“There was no choice. I tried to get Matt to fight it, but he couldn’t win. I'd rather the three of us get out of there alive though.”

Stephanie looked at her watch as they entered the living room. Smoke filled it, and they knew the floors had to be weakening.. “Hey, it’s just after midnight. That means it’s Sunday.”

They rounded the corner to the foyer, and as if nothing had happened, the front door was wide open.

Notes