Serial Saturday: Willie the Clown, Part 7 by Rachael Chang

Willie the Clown: Part Seven, Finale

Chapter 13 

I run past Cam’s dead body and jump over Paige’s as I sprint out of the tunnels, trying to run as fast as I can. My heart pounds so loudly that I can’t even hear myself think, but I try to stay focused.

Behind me, I hear the clown running after me, laughing hysterically as he tracks me down. 

“Where are you going little kitty? There’s no way out! You’re gonna get punished when I catch you! Get back here!”

The clown laughs louder as his footsteps get closer and closer to me. I hyperventilate as I run, turning down tunnel by tunnel as I desperately try to find my way out. But this place is like a maze. An impossibly difficult maze. How the hell was I going to get out of here, if I didn’t know my way around the tunnels like the clown does?

Once I put some distance between me and the clown, I take a minute to catch my breath. Thankfully, it seems like I have a minute to think since I don’t hear the clown’s footsteps anymore. I must be quite a good distance ahead of him. 

Ok, focus Maddie. Think. What’s the best way out of here? This is your one chance to escape. Because if he catches you, he’ll torture you, or worse. Kill you. Come on, think! 

I try to calm down my breathing as I think of the best possible way out of here. Let’s see. I’ve been turning down every tunnel I see, hoping that they’ll lead me out of here. But so far that strategy hasn’t been working for me.      

Obviously. 

Come on, there has to be a way out of here! If there’s a way in, there’s gotta be a way out.

Suddenly, I gasp as a lightbulb seems to go off in my head. What if I kept going straight down a tunnel? If I do that, then it has to lead outside right? Not necessarily. It could lead me to a dead end. But…it was worth a shot anyways…right?

I clench my fists at my side, determination taking over me. There was no time for second guessing myself. I had to try this, even if it could possibly go wrong. Even if it didn’t guarantee me a way out. I jump as I hear the clown laugh maniacally again, and then, I sprint as fast as I can.  

Sweat pours from my forehead down into my shirt as I gasp for air. The tunnels are so hot and musty that it’s difficult to breathe, but I try to push forward, forcing myself to continue running even if I feel as though I’m about to pass out. I keep running and running, blindly going forward.

Suddenly, I see a dim light at the end of the tunnel that I take a break in. I pause for only a brief second before running again because I need to catch my breath. But, as I start running again, I feel something grab my shoulder and throw me down onto the ground hard. 

When my eyes adjust, I see that it’s him. The clown. He managed to catch up with me. But…how? I thought I’d ditched him a long time ago. He was way behind me. How…how did he catch up to me so fast?

“You’re such a bad kitty, I can’t believe I thought you were good! How dare you try to run away! Now…I have no choice but to kill you!” The clown screams in my face, pinning me down on the ground. 

I desperately try to wriggle out of his vice-like grip, but it seems impossible. He’s so strong that his brute strength is enough to kill me. I know I have to do something, and do it now. My mind begins to race wildly as I try to come up with a plan.

My heart pounds so loudly that I can barely hear myself think. As I wrestle with the clown, my eyes dart all around me as I try to find some form of a weapon that I could use to get away from him. But there’s literally nothing. 

“It’ll be ok, little kitty. I’ll make your death quick. You’ll be with your friends soon enough in Heaven.” 

My heart rate speeds up so fast that I begin to hyperventilate with fear. Without thinking, I splash some filthy sewer water into the clown’s face. He cries out in pain as it stings his eyes. Then, the clown falls backwards, and I kick him in his groin. He groans and screams in sheer agony, swearing a million different curse words as I get up and run. 

I sprint as fast as I possibly can, even though my legs feel as if they’re going to fall off, I don’t stop. The dim light is only about ten feet away from me now. 

It’s not much further now. I’m almost there. Run. Just run! I tell myself. 

Finally, I reach the very end of the tunnel. Once I’m outside, I’m immediately blinded by ultra-bright search lights. I cry out in terror and fall to my knees on the ground.  

“Hold your fire, it’s one of the kids! Do not shoot, I repeat! Do not shoot!”

I hear a booming voice screaming into a megaphone, and it takes me a while to realize that it’s a policeman. I don’t know why, but I put my trembling hands up in surrender as a group of police swarm me. They wrap a blanket around me and help me stand up. 

“Don’t worry, Maddie. You’re safe now. It’s over.”

I’m too exhausted to care how this police officer knows my name in this moment. I assume that me, Paige and Cam have been all over the news and have been declared “missing.” That’s probably how he knew who I was. But I couldn’t figure out one thing. How did the police know we were here? How did they find us? Honestly, I didn’t care. I’m just so happy to see them that I begin crying because of happiness and relief. 

What happens next is a complete blur. As soon as I’m put into an ambulance that was waiting for me, I begin to feel extremely light-headed and my ears start to ring loudly. I feel the color drain from my face and I pass out . 

Chapter 14 

While I’m asleep, I have horrible nightmares. I dream that the clown is still torturing us, tasing us over and over again until bruise marks appear on our bodies. I’m forced to watch the clown shoot Cameron again; forced to watch him die. I’m forced to watch Paige die as well. Then, I’m forced to dance with the clown again, but this time, while I’m dancing with him, the clown holds onto me so tightly that I’m unable to escape. He throws me back into the makeshift prison cell before I can even attempt to make a break for it.

And then, I wake up. 

I sit bolt upright, throwing the covers off of me; my hospital gown completely drenched in sweat.

“CAM! PAIGE! NO!” I scream, terrified. 

“Maddie, Maddie, Maddie wake up! You’re ok, you’re safe now! Everything’s ok!”

A familiar voice jolts me awake, snapping me out of the never-ending nightmare that seemed so real. I wipe my eyes, wiping away tears that stream down my face. I’m hyperventilating as I glance all around me, taking in my surroundings. My eyes finally lay on my mom, who sits next to me looking at me with worry. When I see her, I’m able to relax a little.

“It’s ok sweetie, just breathe. You’re in the hospital. You’re safe now,” she says, gently stroking my hair. 

“M-mom?” I stammer.

“Hi sweetie. I-I’m so happy you’re awake. I was so so worried about you,” my mom says, her voice soft and kind. 

I clear my throat in an attempt to make it a little less raspy, “Mom…there-there’s something you should know…Cam and Paige are dead. The clown killed them,” I say, tears beginning to roll down my cheeks. 

My mom instantly goes from being relieved to sad as her face falls. She looks at me with her eyes full of sadness, “I know, honey. The police found their bodies deeper in the tunnels. Their families have already been notified. I’m so sorry for the loss of your friends, but they’re in a better place now sweetie.”

I nod, but I can’t stop the tears from free-falling down my face, “I-I couldn’t save them mom. The clown was too strong, and I was locked in a cell the entire time he was killing them. I wanted to help, but there was nothing I could do. Nothing.”

With that, I burst into tears, sobbing uncontrollably as I think about my friends. I wail so loudly that I’m sure people can hear me but I don’t care at this point. My mom pulls me into a hug and she strokes my back as she tries to calm me down. But it’s no use. I feel my entire body rack with my intense sobs as I cry on my mom’s shoulder. 

A few minutes go by, and there’s a knock on my hospital room door. I jump, startled, but a couple of police officers enter. One of them holds a small notepad in her hands, along with a pencil. I stare at them, confused at what they’re doing in here. 

“Excuse us, but we were wondering if Maddie was able to answer a few questions for us. We understand she might not be ready to speak about what happened, but any information is crucial to catch whoever did this,” says the police chief, his expression stoic. 

My mom pulls me away from her gently then glares at the officers with pure hatred, “How dare you ask her to answer questions at a time like this! Get out, now!”

“Mom, please. It’s ok. I don’t mind,” I say, putting a reassuring hand on her shoulder. 

My mom looks at me with an appalled expression, “Are-are you sure, sweetie? You don’t have to talk to them if you don’t want to.”

“It’s ok. I can give them a quick description, then they can leave,” I tell her. Then, I turn to face the officers, “The man who killed Cam and Paige was dressed up as a clown. He’s probably still back where he held us captive, deep within the tunnels. I’m sure you’ll find him there.”

The police chief raises an eyebrow, and his partner stares at me with a puzzled look on her face. 

I glance back and forth between the two of them, wondering why they were so confused. 

“What?” I ask.

The police chief clears his throat before speaking, as if he’s nervous about something, “Ma’am, we searched everywhere in the tunnels. We went as deep as we could investigate, but there’s absolutely no sign of anyone ever living there. We were able to find what looked like a makeshift home with some kind of jail cell in it, but no one was around. However, we’ll be on the lookout for a clown. Thank you for your time. Please, get some rest.”

I stare in complete disbelief at the police officers as they leave the room. My heart rate immediately skyrockets as I learn that they haven’t caught the man responsible for holding me hostage for three days, and killing my boyfriend and best friend. What the hell…what if…what if he never gets caught?

Upon hearing that news, I feel all the color drain from my face, and my palms become very cold and clammy. I feel extremely light headed, and I fall backwards onto my bed, passing out. The last thing I hear is my mom screaming out for a nurse. Nurses come rushing into my room and they immediately begin treating me. 

I spend about a week in the hospital. Turns out, I was down in the tunnels for about three days. I was starving, and I had been running solely on adrenaline the entire duration of my time spent down there. It takes the nurses quite a while to get my vitals back up to where they should be, and for my health to return relatively back to normal. But…after what I had to witness…after the severe trauma that I had to go through…I knew deep down that I’d never be normal. At least, completely normal. Ever again. 

Epilogue

He walks around aimlessly for what seems like hours. His legs are so tired that they feel like they’re about to fall off, and he’s exhausted. He fought as hard as he could to keep the little kitty that he cared the most about, but she had the upper hand in the end. She’d beaten him. 

He’d lost. 

He wasn’t sure what he was going to do now. The police were scouring the tunnels, tearing his home apart looking for him. He couldn’t go back there. At least, not yet. He was going to have to wait a while until the police were all gone. He knew that it could take a while, but he was prepared to wait. 

Willie scanned his surroundings slowly. As dusk fell, people began to leave the park that he had chosen for his resting place. There were several people going on runs, playing with their kids, walking their dogs. Most people were in groups; the clown knew better than to attack them. He kept waiting and waiting until it got darker outside. Pretty soon, the street lamps lit up the park, and only a couple of people remained. He knew his opportunity was coming up soon, and that he had to act fast. 

Once there was only one person left in the park, Willie got up from his picnic table and began slowly making his way over towards him. He stalked his victim, trying to not make any noise while his feet crunched on the leaves beneath him. His adrenaline was pumping. His anger was growing, coursing through his veins. 

That bitch! How dare she escape!

Willie was only a few feet away from the man now. He was talking loudly on his cell phone, something that was very annoying to Willie. He was telling someone that he’d be home soon, and that they shouldn’t worry. 

Willie smiled sinisterly to himself. 

You really shouldn’t have said that, buddy. 

Suddenly, Willie pounced on the unsuspecting man, tackling him to the ground. They landed with an incredibly loud THUD! The man’s cell phone fell to the ground and shattered.

“Hey get the hell off of me! What do you think you’re doing?!” The man screamed, trying to fight Willie off. 

But Willie already had the man pinned. As fast as he could, Willie dug around in his pocket and fumbled for his special jar. The jar that contained the fun liquid in it that he loved so much. 

Kerosene. He always made sure to have some on hand for moments like these. 

Willie popped open the bottle while still holding the man down. The man was screaming and kicking Willie repeatedly, but Willie didn’t care. He proceeded to pour the kerosene all over the man, emptying the bottle. The man spit the liquid out, but it wasn’t going to help him. 

Next, Willie found his lighter and flipped the switch, making the flame appear. He then held it to the man’s suit until it caught on fire. 

“Holy shit! What the hell?! Help! Somebody please, HELP ME!”

This is the part Willie loved the best. The screaming, the crying out in sheer agony. Once the majority of the man was engulfed in flames, he got off of him and watched the show. He watched gleefully as the man got up and ran around for a little while, flailing his arms helplessly until he collapsed on the ground. 

Willie walked over towards the man, wanting to make sure his work here was done. When he leaned down to check for any signs of life, he smiled from ear to ear when he saw that his victim was dead. 

Satisfied, Willie began to make his way out of the park. He took his time, savoring this moment. Willie knew that his thirst for blood wasn’t going to be quenched, ever. 

That is, until he killed her.