I reach down, grip the glass, and yank it out of my foot, the pain surging through my body. I wince at the sting, the throbbing of the cut matching my heartbeat. My breath feels sharp, my stomach tight with a mixture of nausea and panic, and I realize it’s now or never. Tears are streaming down my face, but the adrenaline stops me from breaking.

I wrap tissues around my foot, trying not to focus on the blood quickly soaking through. I pull on today’s clothes, fasten the camera around my head, and wince as I push my foot into my shoe. I go downstairs and unlock the front door, then stop.

In here, I’m safe, but out there…

I want Dad to be home. But the living room is dark, and my father is working the zombie shift.

He would hate me for doing this, but I have to. I grip the handle, feel it click as I push, then walk outside.

The car that pulled up is the man from two doors down, and he smiles as I walk past while I do my best to look normal. I want to ask him for help, but something stops me. Would he believe me? Would he tell me to wait for the police—the sirens and the solemn sighs that always come too late?

No. The hooded man couldn’t have gone far. I try to walk faster, but the pain in my foot sends jolts up my leg.

I wonder what this looks like on-screen, some blurry camera footage and me panting in the background.

I get to the end of my block and look both ways, and there it is: the alley where Mom was killed. If I was the real Magpie Man, if I had thrown a brick through someone’s window and wanted to shut them up or scare them or whatever the hell this is, the alley would be the perfect ending.

I try to move, but my legs are frozen to the spot. My breathing cuts through the nighttime hush, and I don’t trust the space around me.

I think about turning around…going home…running away. And then I step forward and stare into the darkness, the last streetlight for one minute and forty-two seconds buzzing above me.

This is the safety Mom never reached. She started at the opposite end but never made it out.

I step forward again, then again, and I feel the darkness start to cover me. A rush goes through my body, and my heart is pounding, and the silence gets louder until it’s ringing in my ears. I hear breathing, a snap, a rustle that makes me shiver.

And then someone grabs my arm from behind.

Chapter 46

“Don’t be stupid!”

I spin around, wondering why I didn’t bring a weapon, and a boy is standing there, still holding my arm.