Neither was Baxter. He bucked and twisted. He flung up arms, trying to shield his face. He grunted. He cried out. Real blood poured from his nostrils. He began to beg. ‘Stop! Please! Leave me alone! Don’t! I’m sorry. I’m sorry!’
Finley taped it all.
Harris came rushing into the clearing. Where had he been?
One look at Abilene and he stopped abruptly. Confusion on his face. Then fury.
He took a step forward.
And halted and watched as one-armed Helen lurched forward between Baxter’s legs and kicked him in the groin.
Baxter didn’t respond.
He just lay there, silent and limp.
‘Cut,’ Finley said. Voice grim.
‘What the hell happened here!’ Harris blurted. Not waiting for an answer, he ran over to Abilene. As he approached her, the zombies stood over Baxter and stared down at him.
‘Things got out of hand,’ Finley muttered.
‘Jesus.’ He pulled Abilene’s blouse shut. His arms went around her and he drew her gently against him. ‘Are you all right?’
‘Where were you?’ she sobbed.
‘I didn’t want to watch what he… Did he hurt you?’
She shook her head. ‘Could you get me down from here?’
He reached for one of her bound wrists.
‘Hold it,’ Finley said. ‘Let one of the zombies do it. Then we’ll have an ending.’
‘Screw your damn film! ’
‘It’s okay,’ Abilene said. ‘Let… it’s okay.’
He backed away. Finley gave Vivian a real knife similar to the fake one.
Finley taping, Vivian staggered forward in good zombie fashion but with a strange, frantic look in her green eyes. She sawed through the rope. Abilene lowered her arms. Her panties were down around her knees. She bent over and pulled them up. Then she whirled around and ran for the trees, the loose end of the rope dragging along the ground beside her.
‘That’s it,’ Finley called.
When Abilene returned, the girls gathered around her while Harris untied her wrists.
‘I’m really sorry,’ Finley said. ‘It just didn’t hit me what he was doing. I knew he wasn’t sticking to the script, but…’
‘I should’ve been here,’ Harris said. He sounded miserable.
‘I just wish we would’ve nailed him sooner,’ Cora said. ‘I don’t think any of us realized…’
‘It wasn’t till you kneed him,’ Helen said.
‘Yeah,’ Vivian said. ‘I didn’t know what was going on. God, I’m sotry.’
‘It’s all my fault,’ Finley said. ‘I should’ve stopped things when he started licking off the blood. He wasn’t supposed to do that. But it seemed right for The Reaper, you know? It all seemed right for The Reaper, and you were reacting like a good victim even though…’ She shook her head. ‘Shit.’
Abilene rubbed her sore wrists, then fastened the buttons of her blouse. ‘It’s okay. It’s over. I just don’t want my breast ending up in your movie.’
‘It won’t. I promise.’
‘And you owe me a new bra.’
Just for an instant, a smile tipped up a corner of Finley’s mouth. Then she was looking grim again, nodding.
They all turned their attention to Baxter as he groaned. He shook his head, grimaced, rolled onto his side, clutched his groin and drew his knees up.
‘What’ll we do with him?’ Abilene asked.
Harris took a step toward him, but Abilene grabbed his shoulder. ‘Don’t. He’s had enough.’
‘We oughta get a final shot of him,’ Finley said. ‘Gotta mess him up first, though.’
Vivian and Helen went to the edge of the clearing. As they came back with jars of blood, Cora nudged Baxter with her foot. ‘Roll over and play dead.’
Wincing and moaning, he eased down onto his back. Cora bent over and tore his shirt open. Then Vivian and Helen doused him all over with the crimson fluid. It mixed with the real blood on his face. The real blood looked brighter.
‘Okay,’ Finley said. ‘Get down around him and act like you’re ripping him apart. Don’t move a muscle, Baxter. The mood my pals are in, they just might get carried away. That happens, you know.’
Helen, Vivian and Cora knelt over Baxter. While Finley taped, they pretended to tear at him with their fingernails and teeth. He didn't move at all.
‘That’s a wrap,’ Finley said.
The zombies got to their feet and stepped away from him.
He remained on his back. His eyes found Abilene. ‘I’m sorry,’ he said.
‘I’ll bet,’ she muttered.
‘I mean it. I never… I just couldn’t stop myself. I never planned to do any of that. It… just happened.’ He turned his face away. ‘I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.’
‘You’ll have plenty of time to think about it,’ Finley said, ‘while you’re walking back to town. Come on, let’s get out of here.’
‘We aren’t gonna leave him,’ Abilene said.
‘He’s not going back in my car.’
‘Then we’ll drive him,’ she said, and looked at Harris. He was frowning at her. ‘Hey, I’m the one he messed with. And I didn’t appreciate it one bit. But we all got him into this, and maybe it’s not completely his fault. You got carried away in the love scene. We both did. I’m not so sure we should blame him for losing it. I mean, I wish it hadn’t happened but… it was this damn story. We never should’ve asked any guy to play The Reaper.’
‘Would’ve been okay,’ Finley said, ‘if Tony…’
‘Tony didn’t have any track meet today,’ Cora said.
‘What?’ Finley blurted.
‘He lied about it. He just didn’t want to play The Reaper. He said, “I can’t do that stuff to Abilene or to anyone else. Not even pretending.” It’s like he knew what might happen.’
‘He wouldn’t have done that stuff to her,’ Vivian said.
‘Maybe he was afraid he might. I don’t know.’
‘I know one thing,’ Abilene said. ‘He’s smarter than the rest of us; he stayed out of it.’
‘ “A nifty little film. Though I realize you were limited as far as special effects, you managed to carry off the story quite effectively. The cast was great. Very convincing portrayals all around. My regards to everyone involved. I wish you success with your film, and I should think you’ll have a great future in the cinema. Sincerely, Dick.” How do you like them apples?’ Finley asked, grinning up from the letter.
Abilene sneered. ‘Convincing portrayals, huh?’
‘They should’ve been,’ Cora said. ‘Nobody in the whole damn film was acting. You and Harris were really making out, Baxter tried to rape you, and we zombies kicked his ass in earnest.’
‘Turned into cinema verite,’ Finley said. ‘Hope the Institute appreciates it as much as the author.’
‘I’m a connoisseur of such things,’ Helen said, ‘and I think it was fabulous. Especially that one-armed zombie.’
‘You did a great job pulling Baxter off me,’ Abilene admitted.
Helen beamed at her. ‘Pretty good for a fatty, huh? And a dead one, to boot.’
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
Nobody screamed. Nobody fled. Nobody spoke or wept.
They all stood there, staring at the body.
Abilene supposed it came as no surprise to any of them that Helen had been murdered. It was what they had all suspected, dreaded, tried to deny all morning during their search for her. They’d clung to feeble hopes, but they’d known they would probably never find her alive.
Now it was over. There was no more room for hope or denial.
Someone had brought Helen into the shower room and butchered her.
It occurred to Abilene that she ought to be afraid. The killer might be nearby, might come for the rest of them. But she felt no fear. She felt only tired and dazed and numb.
She sank to the floor of the shower room. Slumping back against a wall, she raised her knees and hugged them tight. She was vaguely aware of the white cat scooting by, fleeing as Cora and Finley walked slowly toward Helen’s body.
Cora crouched. Her hand went to Helen’s neck. Searching for a pulse beat, though there could be no doubt that Helen was dead. A few moments later, she straightened up.
Finley, bending over, reached for the knife.