The Forever Crew

by Stunich, C. M.

“I wasn’t planning on telling them at all,” Church says, circling a name on the screen. Libby. Who the hell is Libby? I mean, besides the awful girl that carried around a stone with a cult symbol on it, and bullied poor Jenica. “You’re the only one I want to tell. I love the boys, but there are just some things a man should share with his wife and no one else, don’t you think?”

  My cheeks flush, but in that small room, with the roaring fireplaces, and the storm outside, it feels awfully cozy and intimate; if I give into my embarrassment, I may very well shrivel up and die. So I try humor as a deflection technique.

  “If we’re really going to be husband and wife, then why haven’t you put the moves on me yet? I mean, we are sharing a room and all. The opportunities for seduction are ample.”

  Church sets his iPad aside for a moment and looks me over, studying me with such careful precision that I’m surprised he didn’t figure my secret out sooner. He doesn’t miss a damn thing.

  “When your father was writing me up and, might I add, tarnishing my perfect academic record, he made sure to let me know that if I laid a finger on you, he’d expel me, and that he didn’t care who my parents were.” Church’s mouth lifts into a smile. “He cares about you, you know that, right?”

  “Then why is he such a goddamn dick all the time?” I groan, hiding my face in the pillow.

  “He wants to protect you, but he doesn’t know how. And I don’t just mean with this cult thing, I mean in life.” Church sighs and scrubs a hand over his face as I look up, reaching out to pull the iPad toward me.

  Next to the circled Libby, is the last name McConnell.

  It’s a name I’m really, really starting to dislike hearing.

  “Libby is Selena and Gareth’s sister?” I ask, switching the subject the way Church usually does, from personal to business. He glances over at the iPad and frowns, that ice creeping back into his expression again.

  “She is.”

  “So … could Selena be our female attacker then?” I venture, wondering if all the clues add up. “I mean, that’s a lot of coincidences—her brother running for Student Council, her sister being mentioned in the journal, and her showing up at the hot springs.”

  “I’m leaning more toward Aster, to be honest with you.” Church sits up, crossing his legs in front of him. My eyes rove a bit past his ankle to the bit of calf muscle showing beneath his pants, making me feel like some sort of Victorian pervert. Dear me, I saw a flash of ankle! How scandalous. “But mostly because they’re both connected to Mark. The twins are right: he’s guilty.”

  “Are we saying that because he’s a total waste of life? Or because you know something you’re not telling me?”

  “It’s just a hunch,” Church says, reaching over and shutting the screen of the iPad off. After a brief pause, he leans in and brushes a gentle kiss across my forehead. “Now get to bed. We have a long day ahead of us tomorrow.”

  I slink back to my own bed, but not without wondering what Church might do if I tried to crawl under the covers beside him.

  I decide I’m too scared to risk rejection and end up falling asleep to dreams of amber eyes, aristocratic fingers, and smiles that are just for me.

  “Girl,” Ross starts, eyeing my costume with a twitching brow from his position on the other side of my phone screen. I decided after much thought that instead of going with the usual short skirt, crop top, racy Halloween garb I’ve worn in the past, that I’d rather go as Geralt of Rivia from The Witcher. Ross gestures up and down, indicating my padded shoulders, long gray wig, and faux beard with a quirked lip. “You had a dramatic coming out of the closet moment to go from boy to girl, and now you’re all dressed up as a man with a big dick?” Ross leans in and squints at the screen, pointing in the general direction of my crotch where, of course, I’ve stuffed the packer penis. We’re close now, me and this floppy silicone dick. “All I can say is—I approve.”

  He leans back and smirks at me, lips curved up beneath the red-brown hairs of a faux mustache. Ross McCubbin, former assistant to the Adamson Student Council boys, rainbow unicorn extraordinaire, and surprising new friend of mine. He graduated last year and is now going to school in California while dating his new online love match, Andrew Payson (who’s actually still a senior in high school which totally makes Ross a perv).

  They’re living it up in SoCal, dressed up as Darryl Whitefeather and Josh Wilson (aka White Josh) from the TV show Crazy Ex-Girlfriend for Halloween. I accused Ross of making the costumes too easy—he’s essentially wearing a suit and his boyfriend Andrew has on a tank top, board shorts, and flip-flops for crap’s sake—but he shut me down quick and said their costumes were more about character than appearance.

  “Right? I look hella badass, huh?” I say, flexing my fake biceps. “Toss a coin to your Witcher, peon!”

  “Oh god, please stop, your Geralt voice is horrendous. You sound like you have strep throat or something. Don’t insult Henry Cavill like that. Speaking of hottie hot men with silver hair, how’s our Spencer doing?”

  I roll my eyes at the insult and shrug one shoulder, glancing over to find Church sprawled on his bed, dressed as Fred Jones from Scooby-Doo. I won’t lie, he looks pretty damn hot with his hair coifed back like that, wearing blue jeans and a white shirt with an orange ascot tie. The guys have a theme going on here, dressing up like the full cast of mystery solving teens: Ranger is going as Daphne (I cannot wait to see this in person), Spencer as Velma (okay, also really excited to see this transformation), with the twins going as Shaggy and Scooby. I’m the only outlier, as per usual.

  “We’ll get to see him in knee socks and an orange turtleneck if that helps?” I start, just before the door opens and I turn, bringing the phone with me to show off ‘those meddling kids’. A snort escapes before I can stop it, and I clamp a hand over my mouth.

  “Not a word,” Ranger growls, dressed in heels, pink tights, and an orange wig. His makeup, however, is pretty damn flawless. Lots of sparkle around the lids. Spencer doesn’t look any happier, wearing glasses with no lenses, a short brown wig, and a pleated red miniskirt. Tobias is outfitted with a faux goatee and brown bell bottoms while Micah is swimming in a big, furry Scooby-Doo costume.

  My composure only lasts a moment before I’m howling with laughter.

  “Give me that,” Spencer growls, snatching the phone away from me. “It’s not fair: I should’ve been Daphne.”

  “You can’t walk in heels for shit,” Ranger snarls, scowling and looking my costume over with a raised brow. “Still think you should’ve gone as Scrappy.” I stick my tongue out at him because, come on, nobody likes Scrappy-Doo anyway.

  “We miss you, bro,” Spencer says as the twins crowd up behind him, waving enthusiastically.

  “How’s that online stalker internet dick?” they ask, and this time, it’s Ross’ turn to roll his eyes. We were all fairly certain he was going to get murdered and turned into a lampshade by his online crush, but thankfully, it looks like they’ve actually got a strong romance going on over there.

  I watch Ross’ face to see if he has any reaction to seeing Spencer Hargrove, his former crush, on the screen, but instead, his new boyfriend Andrew steps up behind him. As soon as Andrew enters the picture, the rest of us might as well be invisible.

  “It’s fantastic,” he says, looking back at us briefly as his boyfriend sheepishly waves back at the twins. “So fantastic, in fact, that I’m going to go and do a little pre-party partying. You guys have fun and be safe out there while you’re sleuthing. If any one of you dies—even the ugly little mop-headed one”—he points distinctly in my direction—“it’ll totally ruin my winter travel plans. Snow in Connecticut is only fun when it’s blood free. Byyyeeeee.”

  “Byyyeeeee,” we all call back, waving as the video chat cuts off and Spencer hands my phone back to me. I can’t help it—I reach over and cup his ass under that short skirt.

  “Damn,” I murmur, and he flashes a grin, reaching up to tug at a strand of my long, gray wi
g hair.

  “Still think I would’ve made a hotter Daphne,” he says, rolling his eyes and then snapping his fingers. “Oh! Before I forget, Jack texted and said he’ll be at the party tonight.”

  “Excellent,” Church says, standing up and sliding his palms down his white shirt. “Perhaps he can give us some extra insight into Jenica’s notes.”

  “Or explain why he wasn’t there to pick up my sister like he said he would,” Ranger snaps, and Spencer bristles. The twins exchange a look, like they’re afraid Spencer’s loyalty to his brother and Ranger’s loyalty to his sister might cause the two to clash. For whatever reason, I have a little more faith in the boys than that.

  “Maybe he can tell us who, exactly, is after Charlotte?” Tobias muses, scratching at his glued-on goatee. “Because as soon as we know, it’s no-holds barred. I will kick the shit out of some cultists.”

  “That’s a good question,” Spencer says, frowning hard, the expression almost comical with the big black-framed glasses sliding down his nose. “What happens when we do find out who these creeps are? Do we fight them? Turn them into the FBI? Kill them?”

  “Kill them?!” I choke, making a face very similar to the one on my emoji umbrella. “We’re not killing anybody.”

  “If we have to kill to keep you safe …” Spencer starts, shrugging one shoulder. But there’s a look in his turquoise eyes that says he’s not fully comfortable with the idea. Church, on the other hand, doesn’t look like he has any reservations at all.

  I almost believe he would kill to keep me safe.

  “Let’s hit this party,” Micah says, breaking the tension by flipping the head up on his Scooby-Doo costume. “After all, Charlotte hasn’t seen the church before.”

  The church, apparently, is an old relic that used to be connected to the school via those crazy underground tunnels. It’s much smaller than the church that used to be housed in the Adamson Academy main building, but still impressive. Or, I feel like it might’ve been if it was anything more than a pile of rubble.

  There aren’t any full walls standing, just these piles of old stone covered in teenagers wearing costumes. A DJ blasts music from a stage nearby, and the alcohol is flowing like water.

  “If this party wasn't so amazing, we'd go to New York instead,” Micah says, pausing on the edge of the clearing, just under the canopy of trees. The limo took us to the southernmost part of Nutmeg and dropped us off at a busy trail, already covered in partygoers wearing Halloween costumes. Apparently, this old church isn’t much of a secret to the locals.

  “This is where you all were last year?” I ask, and he nods, grabbing my hand in one of his furry paws and dragging me into the fray. I’m nervous—I won’t lie about that—but I keep telling myself it’s impossible for these Fellowship freaks to get me in such a big crowd.

  Although … that doesn’t mean they’re not watching.

  The first thing I notice is that Mark is here with Selena, chugging beer from a keg as she cheers him on. I’m not exactly sure who they’re supposed to be. I think Mark is meant to be some famous rapper while Selena’s a popstar of some kind.

  The music is made up of modern hits, the same sort of stuff I’d be listening to if I were partying at Monica’s house with all our old friends. But there’s definitely an edge of money and privilege here that I recognize from that party in the New York penthouse that the boys took me to. As much as I like my new life with the guys in Connecticut, this is one thing that I’m not sure I’ll ever get used to.

  There’s food—obviously catered—plenty of drinks, drugs, and a sound system worth more than my dad’s car. As soon as the crowd recognizes that it’s Spencer in the wig and glasses, they cheer, and he grins, unloading the bag he brought with him onto one of the tables. There’s enough weed there to get him thrown in federal prison.

  “You want to dance?” Micah asks, giving me this lascivious look from under the hood of his costume that makes me grin.

  “With a furry?” I retort, looking him up and down. “I don’t know, man. You’re pressing your luck.”

  “How about I promise not to proposition you for sex while I’m wearing this thing, and we’ll settle on some grinding instead?”

  “Deal.” I take Micah’s hand and let him pull me into the sweaty, gyrating group of dancers on the old, bowed, and grayed wood floors of the church. There are a few pews, pushed to either side of the space and filled with people talking, laughing, and snapping selfies. The majority of the rubble—including a broken stained-glass window—is gathered in the corners of the crumbling structure.

  After a few songs, Tobias cuts in and takes Micah’s place, smiling at me from above that scraggly goatee. I give it a little tug, laughing as he spins me around, our only source of light the full moon above the trees, and the colored spotlights sweeping across the crowd. It’s interesting, to look up into eyes that are the same shape and color as Micah’s, but at the same time, so different. The thought makes me smile, knowing that there’s so much more to a person than what you see on the outside.

  “College applications are due in November,” Tobias whispers, leaning in close so that his mouth is near enough to my ear that I can hear him over the music. “I filled mine out for Bornstead U, and guess what?”

  “What?” I whisper back, shivering as he nibbles my earlobe playfully.

  “Spencer filled his out, too. Even though he said he wasn’t interested in college. I think you’re having a positive influence on us, Chuck.” I smile, curving my arms around his neck as the music shifts into a slower, softer song. Half the crowd groans, sweating and booing, while the rest of us relax into the melody, swaying together. “We should hear back in December. Then we can decide.”

  “Decide what?” I ask, looking up, my heart pounding like crazy. College seems so far away, but in reality, I’ll know whether I was accepted within a month, I’ll be turning eighteen around the same time. And we’re already almost two months into the schoolyear. It’s a little scary, thinking about the future and all of its unknowns.

  “If we’re all going. You know we’ve always sort of planned to stick together, right?”

  “I didn’t, actually,” I say, looking up into Tobias’ eyes. There’s a calmness there in his gaze that I grab hold of and cling to. I like the way he looks down at me, like he’s more than happy to take care of me and Micah both. He’s got a giving sort of heart.

  “We never really decided if we wanted to travel or go to school first, but I like the idea of us all going to Colorado together, don’t you?”

  “I’m pretty sure that’d be a dream come true.” I wrinkle my brows and then move my left hand between us, so I can stare at the pink Asscher cut diamond that Church gave me. “But how would it all work? I’m … just assuming that at some point, you’re going to want me to choose?”

  “Choose, what?” Tobias asks, but before I get the chance to answer, I see Spencer waving us over. Tobias and I exchange a look and then weave our way off the dance floor, over to where Spencer’s frilly little red miniskirt is swishing away through the trees.

  We follow him to a small clearing, occupied by a few hot and heavy couples that make my cheeks flush if I look at them too closely. Okay. Yep. Not my business. I refocus my attention on the brown-haired boy leaning against a tree, dressed similarly to how he was the last time we saw him: baggy t-shirt, loose fitting jeans, sneakers.

  “Hey, Jack,” Spencer says, slapping palms with his brother. “You didn’t dress up?”

  “Nah, I’m not staying,” Jack says, looking past Spencer and over at the rest of us. Me, in particular. He flicks his blue eyes back to Spence’s. “I was sort of hoping we might be able to talk in private?”

  “Not a chance in hell,” Ranger says, just as intimidating as always, even in a wig and lavender heels. He crosses muscular arms over his chest and waits, rather impatiently I might add, for Jack to continue. “Well? We know all about the Fellowship of the Divine now, so what can you tell us that we don�
��t know?”

  “Jesus Christ, man, keep your voice down,” Jack hisses, looking around like he expects a monster to leap out at him at any moment. If one did, I mean, we’re appropriately dressed. I’ve got on the Witcher costume, and the boys are prepped to tear off a mask so the villain can shout stuff about meddling kids. “Who told you that shit? And do they, by chance, have a freaking death wish?”

  “Lionel Murphy,” Church supplies easily, watching Jack carefully. It’s the little tells, right?

  “We saw the missing pages from Jenica’s journal,” Spencer says, and Jack just lifts an eyebrow. I’m guessing he’s never seen or heard about this mysterious journal. “And man, I hate to say it, but it really makes you look guilty.”

  “Me?” Jack chokes, looking around again. I don’t see anybody but the happy couples, sexing it up around the clearing. God, teenagers are sort of gross, huh? All hormone-y and shit. Damn, Spencer’s legs look fine in those knee socks. I facepalm but nobody’s paying any attention to me. “Jenica and I were friends.”

  “Yeah? So you sell your friends prescription drugs and cocaine, and you don’t give a fuck what it does to their lives?” Ranger asks, stepping forward. Spencer stops him by putting an arm out, and the two exchange a long, studying look before Ranger finally steps back with a growl.

  “I didn’t kill her though, if that’s what you’re implying.” Jack looks imploringly at his younger brother. “You know me. I wouldn’t do that; I couldn’t hurt her.”

  “Where were you when you were supposed to give her a ride that night, the night she died?” Spencer asks carefully, keeping his gaze trained on his brother’s face. The twins move around our little group in slow circles, pushing away drunken revelers and leaving us with enough space to talk in private.

  “When she didn’t show and didn’t answer her phone, I went looking for her,” Jack says, and the way his breath catches, the way sweat beads on his forehead, that tells me right away that I’m not going to like this part of the story. “She was always meeting with Lionel at the clearing with the old angel statues. I went there, and … I saw things I didn’t want to see, okay?”