A Chill in the Heat of the Night Ch.5 (Wednesday) - Early Access (Patreon)

All characters in this story are over the age of 18

‘’You better have a good excuse for waking us up this late into the night, Eugene!’’

Eugene tried not to whiter under Bianca’s threatening tone as he scanned the area, double-checking that they were alone as they wandered through the Nevermore halls. He pressed his back against a stone pillar and waited for clearance to move on. Trudging along behind him, still half-asleep were Bianca and Xavier. They rubbed their eyes and yawned, begrudgingly following Eugene through multiple corridors. They hardly saw the point in sneaking around when it was this late into the night. But, Eugene had come to them with news of an emergency that couldn’t wait. Despite being smaller and meeker than the older students, Eugene was able to drag them out of their beds, using his bees to watch the corridors and make sure that no one was spying on them.

‘’Can’t you tell us anything?’’ Xavier asked tiredly.

‘’Ssh!’’ Eugene hushed. Xavier rolled his eyes but complied.

Before long, Eugene had managed to get the three of them to his desired destination without sounding any alarms. Bianca and Xavier exchanged a curious glance once they realized that he had taken them to Wednesday and Enid’s dorm. They stepped inside with Eugene making sure that the door was locked before instructing a few of his bees to keep watch. They responded with an obedient buzz and slipped through the small keyhole.

Bianca glanced around the room and sighed. The news of Enid’s death shocked all of the students and every faculty member at the school, especially when it was reported that Wednesday had been arrested as the number one suspect. Bianca and Xavier refused to believe the goth girl had anything to do with the murder. She was morbid, but not in that way.

‘’What is this about?’’ she asked.

Eugene fidgeted nervously. ‘’Okay, don’t freak out…’’

‘’You dragged us here in the middle of the night without a word and now you’re saying don’t freak out?’’ Xavier said.

‘’I couldn’t tell you what was going on until we got here because…well…I think I better let her explain.’’

Puzzled by Eugene’s words, Xavier and Bianca were about to share another glance when they noticed that they were not alone. They both jumped back with fright at Wednesday’s sudden appearance. She was standing between them, cold and stoic as ever, with Thing perched on her shoulder. ‘’It’s about time you got here.’’ She scolded.

Xavier raised his hands to stop her. ‘’What the hell is going on? We thought you had been arrested.’’

‘’A momentary setback,’’ she replied before handing Xavier and Bianca documents. The two stunned students took them before Wednesday strolled towards Eugene. ‘’Well done.’’

He bashfully accepted her thanks. ‘’No problem.’’

Bianca quickly glanced through the papers before she came across a picture that contained the gory details regarding Enid’s case. She gagged and averted her gaze. ‘’Did you steal official police files?’’

‘’I had offered to cooperate with the Sheriff, but he declined. If I’m going to find the truth, then I’m going to have to do things my way.’’

Xavier’s brow furrowed. ‘’You want to find out who killed Enid?’’

‘’Wrong!’’ Wednesday snapped. ‘’I have good reason to believe that she is still alive. I want to examine the site where they found the body and find out what happened to her.’’

Her tone startled them both. They had never heard Wednesday sound so sharp yet so desperate before. It didn’t surprise them considering this case involved Enid’s well-being. The official reports didn’t paint a pretty picture. If they went with everything that was reported, they would have felt that Enid’s fate was cemented.

Sensing Wednesday’s stress, Eugene stepped forward to speak with Xavier and Bianca. ‘’Wednesday can use her visions to find out what really happened.’’

‘’Wouldn’t the police have taken all the evidence?’’ Xavier asked.

‘’The police can be sloppy,’’ Wednesday stated. ‘’If they missed something, I will use it to my advantage. I can see what happened.’’

Bianca sighed as she quickly scrolled through the documents, avoiding the bloody pictures whenever she could. ‘’Addams, you know that I want this to be true. But, this evidence seems pretty damning. They found a body. They found Enid’s blood and hair at the scene.’’

‘’There’s always more beneath the surface. We at Nevermore know that better than anyone else.’’

‘’She’s got a point,’’ Xavier said. ‘’She’s not usually wrong about this stuff.’’

A nervous exhale escaped from the siren. Locking eyes with Wednesday, she could see softness in the goth girl’s expression that caught Bianca off-guard. She had never seen her this vulnerable. She was trying to act strong and commanding, as she always did. But, Bianca could tell that Wednesday was desperately trying to keep it together. Her big eyes were glazed with sadness, holding back tears as she watched Bianca go through the pages of the case. Every image of the mangled, dismembered corpse could be about Enid. The thought terrified her. Bianca’s heart went out to her former rival.

‘’Screw it, let’s do it,’’ Bianca said. ‘’But, you do know that there’s going to be guards stationed at the crime scene.’’

Wednesday gave her a knowing look. ‘’That’s where you come in.’’

XXX

Fog had descended upon the woods, making it near impossible to see where they were going. Somehow, Wednesday was able to effortlessly find the path. She marched to the edge of the border where police tape circled the area and snuck underneath it without slowing down. Her friends followed closely, each far more hesitant than Wednesday was. However, it was not for lack of conviction in wanting to save Enid. They hoped with all their hearts that their friend was alive and well. But, they were more cautious about being caught whilst Wednesday was rushing to get to the scene before dawn.

They came to a stop behind a tree that was large enough to hide all four of them. Glancing around the corner, Wednesday spotted a lone police officer posted nearby. He paced up and down the perimeter. There was a small gun concealed in his holster.

Upon seeing the officer, Bianca nodded to Wednesday and approached him. The group watched on anxiously.

‘’Excuse me?’’ Bianca called out, getting the guard’s attention.

He turned sharply. His guard was lowered when he saw Bianca’s student uniform. However, he remained alert. ‘’Miss, you can’t be here. You need to turn back around.’’

Bianca smiled charmingly. ‘’Oh, that’s sweet of you to worry. But, I’m more concerned about you.’’

His wrinkled brow creased with confusion. ‘’Pardon?’’

‘’You’ve been working so hard, and on the late shift too. You deserve a break. I think you should take a midnight walk. Don’t worry about standing guard. You’ll be back in no time.’’

Before he could do anything, he watched as Bianca’s eyes shimmered with bright colors and his mind instantly went blank. He could almost read the words coming out of Bianca’s mouth and feel them coil around his subconscious, compelling him to follow her every command. Slowly, he began to walk away. His expression was dull and lifeless as he ventured into the fog before disappearing from sight completely.

Bianca’s smile dropped and she turned to the others. ‘’Hurry, we don’t have much time.’’

‘’That was so cool!’’ Eugene beamed.

Xavier snorted. ‘’Yeah, but you don’t want to be on the end of it.’’

‘’Is it weird I kinda do?’’

Once they were certain that the officer wasn’t going to come back, they hurried over to Bianca. Wednesday gave the siren a thankful nod before addressing the group as a whole. ‘’We have to make this quick. Search around for anything that sounds out. The moment you find something, call out and we’ll come. I’ll use my visions to find out what really happened here.’’

‘’Let’s get this over with before we get into any more trouble,’’ Bianca said.

They each separated. Bianca strolled to the west. Eugene began his search north with his flock of bees scattering to widen the range of his investigation. Their buzzing slowly vanished beneath the sound of the howling wind. A chill ran down Wednesday’s spine as she turned to venture east. However, before she could leave, she felt Xavier grasp her arm.

‘’Don’t try to talk me out of this…’’

‘’I’m not!’’ Xavier said. His voice was laced with an uneasy tension. ‘’I hope that we find something that can help. But…I just want you to be ready, just in case what we do find isn’t what you wanted to hear.’’

Wednesday was unflinching. She didn’t look back at Xavier. She knew that he was trying to help. She was fully aware that there was always the possibility that this search would be for nought. That negativity was kept buried six feet under. Wednesday had been through too much to take everything at face value. There had to be more to this event. Enid couldn’t just be gone from her life like this. It wasn’t fair. She felt Xavier’s grip on her arm loosen. Tilting her head slightly, she saw the tall student take his route south of where they started. He walked through the fog, leaving Wednesday alone with Thing. He saw a single tear rolling down Wednesday’s face. He used his thumb to brush the tear away. There was a part of him that expected Wednesday to lash out or berate him for getting sentimental when they had a job to do. However, Wednesday was unresponsive. She gazed at the ground and swallowed the lump in her throat.

‘’I’m not ready for that.’’ She murmured. Thing patted her shoulder, coaxing her out of her solemn daze. She exhaled and composed herself. ‘’Let’s get moving.’’

Relieved to hear her determination had returned, Thing scurried to the ground and moved alongside the goth girl. He tapped his fingers against every bump on the path, hoping that it would be a clue that had been missed by the police. Wednesday’s eyes darted in all directions. It would have been easy if Enid just magically appeared and resolved this case without any further hassle.

After minutes of fruitless searching, Eugene’s voice echoed throughout the woods. ‘’Wednesday! You need to come and see this!’’

She followed his voice and raced towards him. Thing almost couldn’t keep up as she tore through the fog, nearly crashing into Bianca and Xavier who had also been alerted to Eugene’s call. When they found him, he was standing with his finger pointed at something. His bees were hovering around his head, buzzing wildly, excited by their discovery. Wednesday wasn’t sure if what they had found made her feel better or worse. It was difficult to spot at first glance as it was buried in the ground, surrounded by small sticks. However, there was no doubt in any of their minds that what Eugene and his bees had found was a piece of a broken werewolf claw. The bright pastel was undeniably Enid’s.

Bianca glanced at Wednesday. ‘’Well, it has to be her. We’re on the right track.’’

Wednesday took one step forward and then stopped. She repeated the action. Every advancement was stalled. Her hand twitched as she slowly reached out to touch the claw. She didn’t turn around, but she knew that Xavier was staring at her with bated breath. His words from earlier rang in the back of her mind.

She wanted to know the truth. But, she still wasn’t prepared if it was the truth that she dreaded.

‘’What am I doing?’’ she cursed herself.

Her hand trembled. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t will herself to touch the claw, fearing the vision that could be waiting for her.

Something gently touching her side made her jump. She turned and saw that it was Eugene kneeling beside her with his hand on her back as a gesture of support. Bianca came into view, taking her place behind the two of them where she offered Wednesday a hopeful smile. She turned her head and watched as Xavier’s tall figure came down to her level, grabbing her arm again. But, this time, there was faith that things would not take a dark turn. Finally, Thing was there to take Wednesday’s hand and comfort her. They gave the goth girl the strength she needed to take the plunge and grab the claw.

Nothing happened.

They waited for some kind of reaction. However, Wednesday did not even flinch. She tightened her grip on the claw and shook it. Still, there was no vision.

Wednesday sighed. ‘’There has to be something else. Let’s keep looking.’’

The others nodded and let go of Wednesday.

The second she did, her head reared back and her eyes went wide. Everything around her disappeared as she was consumed by an overwhelming sensation.

She was a voyeur watching on as she returned to the scene from last night. She was looking down to see herself and Enid sleeping together, snuggled beneath their clothes after their last passionate night together. Enid moved in her sleep. Her motions blurred, heightening the surreal feeling that Wednesday had come familiar with upon viewing her visions. A sound echoed in the distance. Wednesday watched the world spin as she was now looking towards the trees and saw masked individuals stalking them with rifles at the ready. Two shots were fired, striking both Wednesday and Enid as they slept. They were darts. Both hit their target. However, Enid jolted upwards and howled in pain.

‘’You mixed up the sedatives! That was supposed to be for the werewolf!’’ a soldier reprimanded his colleague.

More shots were fired as Enid threatened to release the beast inside. Before she could shift, she was hit with multiple darts. She drowsily stumbled from left to right, lashing out and leaving behind claw marks on the trees and rocks that were within reach. One of her nails broke off and vanished somewhere along the ground. Enid tried to call out for her. But, there was no strength in her voice. She collapsed onto her hands and knees, desperately crawling her way to the unconscious Wednesday. She reached out to take her hand. But, before they could make contact, Enid’s head dropped. She was out for the count.

A few seconds passed before the masked soldiers emerged from the trees. They kept their rifles aimed directly at Enid. Some of them surveyed the damage that had been caused by her temporary rampage. Time slowed down as a tattoo on one of their necks was displayed. A werewolf in a crouching position, praying as a humanoid spirit was floating above as if the person was ascending from their more animalistic form. It was a striking image that did not bode well for Enid’s chances.

‘’What do we do about the other one?’’

Wednesday’s unconscious body was brought into focus.

‘’Do we still have target number six’s corpse?’’

‘’Yes, sir.’’

‘’There’s no point bringing a dead wolf back to base. Chop it up and scatter the pieces. We’ll make it look like a lover’s quarrel that resulted in target thirteen’s murder. Take her to the truck.’’

A montage of events quickly flashed forward. Wednesday could see her being dragged away from the scene as Enid was handcuffed and carted off. They took pieces of her rainbow hair and carefully placed them on the ground. The body of another werewolf, bloody and lifeless was brought into view as a soldier reeved up an electric saw. The sound was loud enough to make Wednesday’s ears bleed.

She felt herself being torn away from the vision, awakening in Xavier and Bianca’s arms. Eugene was flashing a light in her eyes, trying to get a response from her. She felt Thing gently slapping her cheek as well. Once she was aware of her surroundings, Wednesday bolted upright and looked at the others with hope restored.

‘’I was right! Enid isn’t dead!’’

‘’Really?’’ Eugene gasped with relief.

‘’What did you see?’’ Bianca asked.

Wednesday was helped to her feet. ‘’A group captured her and then attempted to blame me for murder to cover their tracks.’’

‘’Do you know who they were?’’ Xavier questioned.

‘’No, but we’re going to find out.’’