Rhiannon // Max Mayfield

13: Switchblade

Nancy drives the car at least ten over the speed limit for a while until the gang pulled up outside a closed grocery store. Nancy grabs a random brick of the floor and hurtled it at the window, giving everyone a gap to get through. Reluctantly Max left Alex in the car, god knows when the girl would wake up.

They wasted no time in helping El, Mike set her down in the middle of an isle, Nancy grabbed some rubbing alcohol and gauze pads from the shelf.

El was sat down, panting as she clutched Mike's hand, the boy let her squeeze it. Nancy rolled up her pant leg, making all the kids hiss through their teeth in disgust.

Nancy started getting the gauze pads but Max stopped her, having experience in this field. "What, hey? What are you doing?" She asked, holding her hand up.

"I'm cleaning the wound," Nancy explains, pouring Alcohol onto the gauze.

Max puts an arm on Nancy's arm before she could even start, "No, first we need to stop the bleeding, then clean, then disinfect, then bandage." Everyone looks at her in surprise, "I skateboard, trust me."

Max grabs the gauze and puts it over El's wound, "Mike, hold this." He put his hand where Max had pointed to and pressed, "Keep the pressure on it. Nice and firm, okay?"

Max was about to rattle of instructions to Nancy but they all froze at the sound of glass breaking. They all turned to look as Alexia Summers walked in, flayed.

"Alex?" Max called, scared out of her mind at the sight of her girlfriend.

Nancy put her arm around Max, preventing the girl from going forward, "Max, that isn't our Alex, look." She pointed to Alex's discarded jacket, then to the girls stomach, her veins were dark and inky.

Max was sure the sight would give her nightmares, Alex was stood there, smiling like a sadist while twirling a switchblade in her hands. The others were just confused as to where she even got the weapon from.

"Where is she?" Alex asked them, Mike had moved El to a different aisle while this was happening, the rest of the group watching their friend in confusion while trying to cover for El.

"Alex, please, I know your still in there..." Max said, taking another step closer to the girl, pushing Nancy's arm out of the way. She wasn't trying to hide her fear as she walked, "You wouldn't do this... I know you wouldn't... you'd protect us with anything."

"Where is she?" Alex repeated, her voice wasn't her own, it was slightly robotic and lacking of all emotion except anger. El and Mike rushed to keep themselves hidden but Mike couldn't carry El for any longer.

"Alex, this isn't you. Please," Max begs, stepping forward again so she was within an arms distance away from the girl. She was trying to hold her head up high, making it seem like she wasn't scared.

Alex started Max dead in the eyes and stopped swirling her blade.

"Fine, you won't tell me? I'll find her myself."

She walked closer to Max and swung her fist, using the back end of her blade to hit Max's temple. Max crumpled to the ground in pain, quickly falling unconscious. Alex didn't even regard the girl, just walked over her body, daring closer to the group.