Foul Play
Chapter 2
Nick stared at him, eyes widened in fear.
"Oh my God, AJ, it's really---"
"A pig!"
"What?!"
Nick looked through the window. Sure enough, there was a roasted boar
lying on the table. A REALLY big, fat pig. He was over come by joy.
"It's not Howie! It's not Howie! Hallelujah!"
"Nick, shut up!"
Lou heard all the racket and went to the window. He spotted them in the
bushes.
"Hey! What the hell are you two doing here?!"
Nick and AJ screamed and scrambled away.
"Run, Nick, run! We have to get home before he sits on us and cooks us!"
"It's not Howie! It's not Howie!"
"We already established that, you idiot!"
They ran home and stopped at the front door. They forgot it was locked.
AJ frantically fumbled with his millions of keys, while Nick pounded on the
door.
"AJ, hurry up!"
"I'm trying!"
Brian! Kevin! Open the door! Please! He's after us! I don't wanna
die!"
Suddenly the front door swung opened and there stood a very angry Kevin
and a surprised Brian. AJ and Nick ran inside slammed the door shut behind
them and locked it with chains and all.
"Where the hell did you guys go?!" yelled Kevin.
"We went to Lou's house!" panted Nick.
"What?! I thought I told you not to--"
"We know, Kev, we know! But we had to find out!"
"Well, what did you find out?!" inquired Brian.
Nick nodded his head 'no'. He was too out of breath to talk.
"He---didn't---eat---Howie---" he managed to wheeze out.
"Yeah, but that still doesn't prove that he didn't kill him!" reasoned AJ.
All of a sudden, a rank odor surrounded the boys. Brian pinched his nose.
"Good Lord, Nick! What the hell did ya eat, man?!"
"It wasn't me!"
They all looked at AJ.
"Hey, I didn't do it!"
"Me neither!" said Kevin. All eyes fell on Brian.
"Dudes, don't look at me! I would've felt it!"
They were puzzled until AJ thought of something.
"Guys? I don't think we're alone," he whispered.
As if on cue, someone wearing a black cloak and a spooky ghost face mask
jumped out holding a large knife.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
Brian, Nick, AJ, and Kevin all took off running out the front door,
screaming hysterically.
"Oh my God! He IS a psycho!" yelled Kevin.
"That's what I've been trying to tell you! But do you ever listen to
me?! Noooooooooo!" complained AJ.
"Where are we going?!" shouted Brian.
"I don't know! We just have to get away from him or else he'll gut us!"
shrieked Nick.
They all looked back. Lou was chasing them.
"Jeez, for weighing as much as half an elephant, he can run pretty fast!"
exclaimed AJ.
"That's not good!"
They all zoomed and screamed down the streets.
"We can't run forever! I'm getting tired!" stated Brian as he slowed
down.
"Brian, don't slow down! Just keep running! We can---we can go to
John's house!" Kevin realized.
John lived just a couple of blocks away from where they were. They never
actually went inside his house, except for Howie, of course. He had just
bought it. They looked behind them. Lou was gaining on them.
"What the hell is he on?! Super pills?!"
"Guys, I have an idea!"
Nick started running the other way, towards Lou.
"Nick! What are you doing?! Are you crazy?!"
"Trust me!"
Nick grabbed a couple of pebbles and rolled them on the ground in Lou's
direction. They got caught in the bottoms of his shoes and caused him to
lose his balance. He went tumbling down the street, grunting and hollering,
but still with knife in hand.
"There! It's gonna take him forever to get up! That should buy us some
time!"
Nick caught up with the others. A few minutes later, they reached John's
front porch and they furiously pounded on the door, rang the bell, and yelled.
"Let us in, please!"
"This is an emergency!"
"John, open the door!"
"We're gonna get killed!"
"HEEEEEEEELLLLP!"
No answer.
"How can he not hear us?!"
"Maybe he's not home!"
"Oh shit!"
"What are we going to do now?!"
They ran around back. Brian stopped dead in his tracks.
"Yo, guys! A window's opened!" he cried pointing to the lower side of
the house. It led to the basement. The others turned around.
"Good job, Frack!"
"Yeah, yeah, yeah, just get in! Hurry!"
AJ went through first since he was the smallest and he could slip right
through easily. Brian was next. Then, Kevin dove in. And lastly, Nick
squeezed through. They fell on top of each other, landing in a pile. It was
really dark in there.
"Brian! Get your foot out of my face!" hissed AJ, who unfortunately was
on the bottom.
"That's not my foot!" Brian hissed back.
"It's mine!" whispered Kevin.
"Oh, well, get it away from me!"
"I can't move! Nick's on top of me!"
"Nick, get off him, so he can get off me!"
"Fine!"
He rolled off Kevin and landed with a thud. They all untangled
themselves from each other.
"Everybody, shhhhhh!"
Everything was silent except for their rapid beating hearts and their
wheezy breathing.
"Guys?" Nick murmured. "Do you think he's out there?"
"I don't know! Just be quiet!"
They sat there in the dark, trying to plan their next move.
"This sucks!" declared AJ.
"SHHHHHH!!!" were the others' responses.
Knock knock knock
Brian jumped.
"W-w-what was that?!"
"What was what?!"
Mmmbffbufmm
A muffled sound came from somewhere in the basement.
"That?!"
The noises continued. The boys all huddled closer together.
"Oh my God! What if it's Lou?!" cried Nick.
"It's not! It can't be! He can't fit through that window! Besides, we
would know if he was here!"
"Then what is it?!"
"I don't know!"
"The noise seems to be coming from…over there…" Kevin pointed to the
stairs leading into John's house.
"You think John's home?!"
"No. It's coming from in here."
He cautiously walked over to the staircase, which had a closed door
beside it.
"What could this be?"
"Kevin, don't open it! You know what happened last time we opened a
closet door!" warned AJ, hiding behind him. The other two joined them.
Knock mbuffmmbbumfmm knock knock tap tap knock
The sounds became frequent and desperate.
"Someone must be in here! We have to open it!"
Kevin put his fingers around the knob.
"Kevin, no!"
Kevin ignored AJ and turned the knob with no success. It was locked.
"Shit! It's locked! Does anyone have a pin or something?!"
"Yeah sure, Kev, we carry pins with us all the time!" commented Brian
sarcastically.
Nick walked around, trying to find something to pick the lock with. It
was pretty dark. The only light they had was the moon, so he couldn't see
anything anyway, but he stepped on something sharp.
"Ow!"
He bent down and picked up whatever penetrated his foot. It gleamed in the
moonlight. It was a long, thin nail.
"Hey, guys! Will this work?"
"There's only one way to find out!"
Kevin took the nail and stuck it in the keyhole. He turned and twisted
it around. *click*
"Hey, I think I got it!"
He put his hand on the doorknob again.
"Ready?"
Brian and Nick shook their heads 'yes', while AJ shook his head 'no'.
Kevin turned it and opened the door. They all screamed.
Another body fell out.
"NOT AGAIN!!!"
AJ had closed his eyes, but opened them when he heard surprised gasps
from the other three. He followed their gaze to the body on the floor. It
was alive! It was squirming about trying to talk. They couldn't see who it
was because it was so dark. They didn't want to turn on the light because
they didn't want Lou to find out where they were hiding. But the suspense
and curiosity was killing them. They decided to risk it. Kevin flipped on
the lights. AJ thought he was going to pass out when he saw who it was.
"Howie?!"
Yup, it was Howie alright. He was tied up and gagged, but very much alive.
"What the hell?! How can this happen?! What's going on?!"
"Mbbbfummmfm grrrrrrrrrr" was his best explanation. He had an untie me
now or I will strangle you when I get free look in his eyes. They were too
surprised to think of that.
"Oh yeah!"
AJ undid the ropes and Howie removed the cloth from his mouth himself.
"WHAT THE HELL'S GOING ON?!" was the first thing that came out of his
mouth.
"SHHHHHHH!!! Lou's trying to kill us! What the hell are you doing
here?! Alive?!"
"WHAT?!"
"We thought you were dead!"
"Why would you think that?!"
"Cuz when I opened the closet in your hotel room, you just fell out like
a corpse!"
"Well, genius, did you even bother to check my pulse?!"
Nick and AJ looked sheepishly at each other.
"Oops."
"I was stuck in here for God knows how long!"
"Two days."
"Two days?! Where is 'here' anyway?!"
"We're in John's basement," informed Nick.
"John?! What John?! My brother John?!"
"Yup."
"Why the---"
"Listen, dude, we don't know anymore than you do! But what we do know is
that we have to get out of here!"
They all agreed and scrambled up the stairs.
"Guys, this is a dead end, the basement door is always loc---"
Kevin swung opened the door.
"Umm, nevermind."
They entered John's kitchen. It was dark, so Howie switched on the
lights.
"Hello? John? Is anybody home? It's me, Howie!"
The house seemed to be empty. No one answered.
"Great."
"Guys, we can't go outside. Lou might still be out there. We have no
choice but to stay here and wait until John gets home and explain the whole
situation to him. I'm sure he won't mind if we stay the night," proclaimed
Kevin.
"Yeah, but…"
"Howie, what happened?" asked AJ.
"What?"
"What happened that night all five of us were supposed to go clubbing?"
"I don't remember much. The last thing I recall is walking to the door
to meet you guys at the lobby. I was about to open it then everything went
black. Someone much have hit me on the head or something because I've got a
throbbing head ache right now."
"You're right cuz you've got quite an ugly bump on the back of your head"
"Really? That's great."
"Howie, where's the bathroom?"
"It's upstairs, Nick."
"Ok."
Nick ran up the stairs.
The rest of them plopped down on the couch in the living room.
"This is so weird," commented Howie.
"Tell me about! First the scary phone calls, then finding you stuffed in
a closet, then Lou trying to kill us, then us finding you stuffed in a closet
again…By the way, the phone calls? They were all Lou," said AJ.
"They were? How do you know?"
"He mentioned us as the main ingredient in several recipes."
"Oh."
"John has some major explaining to do when he comes back. This is
unacceptable! First he wants to join the group and now we find Howie in his
basement---"began Kevin, angrily.
"What?!" the other three asked in unison.
"Oh, that's right, you don't know. Umm, John called earlier tonight.
First I thought it was because maybe he had news about your disappearance.
But then, he asked me what I thought about him joining the group. I mean, he
wanted to join the group! He wanted to take Howie's place!"
" *gasp* What did you say?!"
"I told him that I was absolutely horrified at his suggestion and that it
was disrespectful and totally immoral!"
"Howie, if I were you, I'd beat the crap out of him!" stated Brian.
"Who said I wasn't going to?!"
"Umm, guys?" Nick called out from the top of the stairs. "Can you come
up here for a second?"
They all sighed and went upstairs.
"What is it, Nick?"
"Well, I was looking for the bathroom when I saw a locked door near the
entrance to the attic."
"You were looking for the bathroom? Nick, you can see it from the bottom
of the stairs! I know you're a blonde, but my God…"
"Ok! Ok, so I snooped around a little! So sue me! Anyway, I found a
door---"
"Ok, so you found a door. It's probably just a storage space or
something! What's the big deal?!"
"Will you guys let me finish?! Since when are storage places prohibited
entry?!"
"What?"
"The door is locked and it has a sign on it that says Do Not Enter Or You
Will Die!!!"
"Oh he's probably just kidding around," reasoned Kevin.
Howie started walking to the end of the hallway.
"Howie, what are you doing?"
He found the mysterious door and turned the knob. It was locked. He
bent down and searched the floor with his hands until he came upon a loose
board. He removed it and there lay a shiny little key. He picked it up and
showed the others.
"I know my brother too well," he smirked. "He always used to hide the
key to his 'safe' under the carpet or floorboards when we were little cuz I'd
always get into his stuff. He didn't know I knew."
Howie stuck the small key into the keyhole and turned the knob.
"Howie, don't do it! He doesn't want anyone knowing what's in there!"
warned Kevin.
"Like I ever listen to him! Besides, he pissed me off! It's pay back
time!"
He stepped into the room and switched on the lights. He was shocked at
the sight that surrounded him. Behind him, the others gasped.
All around the room, there were pin-ups of the Backstreet Boys and Howie
Some with knifes stuck in them, some with darts, and some with the words
Die! Die! Die! written on them with red ink, symbolizing blood.
"Oh---my---God!"
"Howie?" AJ began. "I don't think John likes us very much."
The other four gave him a ya think?! look.
"I can't believe this! My own brother wants us dead!"
"Believe it!" said a voice behind them
They all turned around. John had just sauntered in.
"Hi, guys! What's up?" he said smiling.
Howie stepped closer to him.
"Why, John? Why?!"
"Why not?">
"Is that the best reason you can give me?!"
The others crowded behind him as a gesture that they had his back if John
tried anything. John narrowed his eyes and they burned with fury.
"You want a better reason? Ok. You're young, rich, famous, successful,
and I'm not," he said calmly.
"You're jealous?! Is that what this is all about?!"
"Yup, but it goes way beyond jealousy, brother dear. I want what you
have. The fame, the fortune, the glory, I want it all."
"You can't just take it! I worked hard to get where I am today! You
think it's easy being away from home forty weeks out of the year?! Away from
family, friends, a normal peaceful life?! I love what I do, yes! It's the
best thing that ever happened to me! But it's also the hardest!"
"You think I enjoy working for my little brother?! I should be the one
running my own business, not you! I'm older!"
"Don't go blaming your failures on me! It was your own fault!"
John clenched his fists. Howie prepared himself for anything.
"I still don't understand, but fine! You hate me! But why hate them
(referring to AJ, Kevin, Brian, and Nick)?! They didn't do anything to you!"
"They wouldn't let me be in the group!"
"You have no talent!"
"So?!"
They stood there, glaring at each other. Nick, Brian, Kevin, and AJ kept
their eyes on John. Howie broke the silence with another question.
"Why didn't you just kill me when you had the chance?"
John looked at the ground and sighed.
"As much as I hate to admit, I couldn't. As much as I wanted to, I just
couldn't do it."
"Well now's your chance."
"What?"
"Go ahead. Kill me. I dare you."
"You can't be serious!"
"I've never been more serious in my life!"
"Even if I tried, your posse back there would get me."
"No they won't. Fellas, get out."
They looked at him shocked.
"What?!"
"I said get out. Leave me and John here alone.
"No way!" exclaimed AJ. "We're not leaving you alone with this psycho!
If he has a problem with you, he has to deal with the rest of us!"
"AJ, this doesn't concern you! It's family business!"
"No!"
"Dammit, I'm trying to prove a point! He's not going to do anything!
Get out!"
Suddenly, the door slammed shut. While AJ and Howie were arguing, John
had slipped out and locked them inside. Nick ran to the door and frantically
tried to turn the doorknob.
"He locked us inside! Howie, you have the key! Open it!"
"I can't! It doesn't work from the inside! I knew he was a coward!
Instead of being a man and facing me, he took the easy way out and locked us
in! You hear that, John?! You're a f*ckin' coward!" he yelled at the top of
his lungs.
"Howie, calm down! We have to find another way out of here!" reminded
Kevin.
"B-b-but Lou's out there! He'll kill us!" exclaimed Nick.
"Nick, we're stuck with a psycho whether we're inside or outside, so it
doesn't matter!" proclaimed Brian.
"Guys, we can jump out the window! We're only two stories up!" informed
AJ.
"Oh, ONLY two stories up?!"
"Desperate times call for desperate measures! Besides, does anyone else
have a better idea?!"
"AJ's right! We have no choice!"
Howie opened the window.
"Ok, who wants to go first?"
They all looked at each other.