THE PARTY

by

AUTHOR E

Chapter 2

The Chapters

INTRO

CHAPTER 1

CHAPTER 2

Back at Mr. Pizza, all the youth were seated throughout the restaurant, checking over their loot and swapping candy they didn’t like for their favorites.

Joe looked up and scanned the seats, searching for Frank. He had several chocolate bars that he knew were Frank’s favorites and figured he would hand them over. But he didn’t see Frank anywhere.

A feeling of unease washed over his that he couldn’t see his brother. He quickly shoved his candy in his bag and decided to really look around. He wasn’t sitting at the booths or tables, so Joe headed for the restroom, hoping he was worried about nothing.

As he opened the door, the unease turned into a sick feeling. Joe let the door close as he hurried to find Mr. Prito, who had just brought out two pizzas for everyone to start on.

“Mr. Prito,” Joe said, pulling on his sleeve to get his attention.

“What is it?” he asked.

“I can’t find Frank,” Joe stated.

“What do you mean you can’t find Frank?” Anthony asked as he scanned the restaurant.

“I can’t find him,” Joe said. “He’s not here. I already looked. Something has happened to him.”

“Calm down, Joe. He has to be here somewhere.”

Anthony moved away, checking all the booths and tables. He also checked the restroom and spoke with his relatives before returning to Joe.

“We will find him,” Anthony said. He crouched down in front of Joe. “When was the last time you actually saw Frank?”

“When we were trick-or-treating,” Joe said, trying to keep fear out of his voice. “We were on that last street of houses before we started back. That’s the last time I saw him.”

“It’s okay, Joe. We have the police on their way and will find Frank in no time.”

Joe remained where he was. He couldn’t shake the feeling that something had happened to Frank and the horrific images swirling in his head didn’t help. He knew Frank wouldn’t have disobeyed their parents’ instructions. The consequences would be worse than not attending the party.

He was unsure of how much time had passed when two police officers stepped into the restaurant. He recognized the one as Officer Con Riley. The two of them quickly moved over to him.

“Thanks for coming so quickly,” Anthony said.

“It’s not a problem,” Con said. “We already have officers looking for him. Have you called the Hardy’s?”

Anthony nodded. “They are on their way.”

“Good.” Con focused on Joe. “Can you tell me why you think something happened to Frank?”

“I know something happened to Frank,” Joe said vehemently as he stamped his foot on the floor. “I don’t think. I know.”

“Okay,” Con said.

“Frank’s not here and he should be,” Joe said. “Mr. Prito and I both looked for Frank and he’s not here.”

“When was the last time you saw him?” asked the second officer, whose nametag read “Lawrence.”

“When we were trick-or-treating,” Joe said. “We were hitting one last street before coming back here for the party.”

“Are you sure he just didn’t go off to get more candy for himself?” Officer Lawrence asked.

“HE WOULDN’T!!!” Joe yelled, getting angry that the officer didn’t believe him.

“Joe’s right,” a voice said behind the officers.

They turned to see Fenton and Laura standing there, worry in their eyes.

“Frank wouldn’t go off,” Laura said. “Both boys had strict instruction about tonight and Frank is a stickler for rules. Something had to have happened to him.”

“Joe, where was the last place you saw your brother?” Fenton asked.

“I don’t know the sane of the street, but I can show you,” Joe said, looking hopefully at his father to be included in the search.

“All right,” Fenton said and looked at Laura. “You should probably stay here in case he does show up.”

“Okay,” Laura said. “But be safe.”

“We will.”

“Do you want another pair of eyes?” Anthony asked. “I fee bad this happened when I was supposed to be watching them.”

“Are you sure?” Fenton asked. “You do have a party going on.”

“If Laura wouldn’t mind helping Elena and the others, I would prefer to go. I can take you to the streets where they collected their candy.”

“I think it’s a good idea,” Con said. “We can hit the last street first and work backward.”

“Laura?” Anthony asked.

“I don’t mind,” Laura said. “It will help keep me occupied until you all return.”

“Thank you.”

“Let’s go,” Con said.

The five of them left the restaurant and Anthony led them to the last street they had been on earlier. They slowly made their way along, searching for any sign of Frank or something that would tell them where he had gone.

Joe stayed close to his father, looking everywhere for fear of missing the clue. For some reason, he knew they were close to the location where Frank disappeared.

Anthony pointed out the last house the youth had gone to for candy. “Once they got their candy, we gathered together and then headed for the restaurant.”

“So, Frank was with you then?” Con asked.

Anthony nodded his head. “You couldn’t miss him when they were all together, especially with that white hair.”

Joe pointed toward the bushes. “Do you mean like that?”

The adults turned to look where Joe was pointing. Con moved first and crouched down. With a gloved hand, Con picked up something that was white and hairy.

He looked at Joe. “Does this look familiar?”

Joe nodded his head. “That’s the wig Frank was wearing.”

“Then this is the area to start searching from,” Fenton said.

Joe glanced around, barely hearing Con calling for the other officers to converge on that area. He moved slowly down the sidewalk, not far from the others. He knew he had to be careful so that whatever happened to Frank didn’t happen to him as well.

Where are you Frank? He wondered. What happened while we were out trick-or-treating so that you didn’t make it back to Mr. Pizza with us? I know you didn’t just go off on your own like Officer Lawrence thinks. We knew the rules Mom and Dad set and we weren’t going to disobey them. Joe sighed. I really do hope you are all right. This was supposed to be fun, but has turned into a complete nightmare.

“Joe?”

He turned and faced his father. “Yes, Dad?”

“When you were out here earlier, did you see or hear anything that seemed unusual?”

Joe shook his head. “Nothing. But I wasn’t really paying attention. I was talking with Tony and Chet.” He looked down at the ground, guilt filling his entire being. “I’m sorry I’m not more help.”

“You’ve done a lot,” Fenton said, placing a hand on Joe’s shoulder and giving it a squeeze. “You noticed Frank wasn’t with you and told someone. And now everyone is searching. We’ll find him. Don’t worry.”

The two of them made their way back over to the officers, still looking of something to help them.

Within minutes several police cruiser pulled to a stop where they were standing. The officers got out and began examining the area.

Joe stayed put and looked about. A lot of the houses had turned off their porch lights. No one was out walking around. For some reason, his gaze focused on a large, darkened house that could only be seen due to the streetlight.

As he stared at the house, he saw the movement of light and wondered if someone was in there.

“Dad?” Joe kept his eyes on the house.

“What is it?” Fenton asked.

He pointed toward the house. “Do you see the light moving in there?”

“I sure do,” Fenton said. “Con?”

“Did you see something?”

“Do you know who owns that house?” Fenton asked.

“No one,” Con said. “The Winters lived there until the eighties when they died in a car crash. From what I heard, a grandchild took over the house, but vanished without a word to anyone. The bank and city are trying to locate a family member, but it doesn’t seem like they’re having much luck.

“So, the house is abandoned,” Fenton concluded.

“It should be.”

“Well, we just saw some lights moving in there and think we should check it out,” Fenton said.

“Then let’s go.”

The three of them made their way over to the house and up the steps, each board creaking as their weight hit it.

Just as they reached the front door, they heard several sets of footsteps moving quickly inside.

“Open up!” Con yelled as he knocked on the door.

Suddenly there was a light that flickered yellow and orange. And it continued to grow.

“Get back to the sidewalk, Joe!” Fenton yelled as con tried to break the door open.

Catching a glimpse of the fear on his father’s face, Joe slowly backed down the steps, a wave of terror consuming his young body. He had a feeling Frank was inside.

There was a loud crack as the door broke and the two men hurried inside. Several other officers hurried to the house, hearing the noise.

Joe stood on the sidewalk. He wanted to go in and find Frank. The flames were growing quickly. There didn’t seem to be anyway to stop the fire.

As he took a step up the walkway, he felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned to see Anthony Prito standing there.

“We need to stay here,” Anthony said. “They know what they’re doing and will bring Frank out if he is in there.”

Joe turned back to the house and saw half of the first floor was engulfed and that the flames were beginning to move along the second floor. He was vaguely aware of the firefighters arriving on the scene and attempting to bring the blaze under control.

The minutes seemed to drag on as Joe waited for his father to emerge. The flames were getting higher and the black smoke billowing out made it impossible to see anything. No one seemed to be coming out.

“Where are they?” Joe asked to no one in particular.

“Give them some more time,” Anthony said. “It’s a big house.”

Suddenly there was movement by the front door and they saw the firefighters and police officers hurrying down steps.

“It’s collapsing!” an officer yelled running toward them. “Everyone back!”

“NO!!!” Joe yelled as Anthony pulled him across the street to the other sidewalk.

His body shook uncontrollably. He knew Frank had been in there. He didn’t know how, but he knew it. And he couldn’t get to his brother. The one who was his protector and best friend. He hadn’t been allowed to save him. They watched out for one another and he had let Frank down. This was all his fault.

He closed his eyes, bowing his head as he tried to keep the tears hidden.

“Get an ambulance!”

Joe’s eyes flew open at the sound of his father’s voice. Fenton and Con were hurrying away from the house and across the street. A limp figure was being carried in his father’s arms. Even though the clothes were dirty and parts of the jacket looked charred, Joe knew it was his brother.

As they neared the sidewalk, Joe saw that in the streetlight Frank’s face was pale and covered in soot. Frank was unconscious.

“Dad?” Joe asked as Fenton came to a stop beside him.

“He was upstairs tied up,” Fenton said as they paramedics hurried over to them.

Joe watched as his father gently set Frank on the stretcher before stepping back to allow the paramedics rooms to work.

He stood transfixed at his brother’s side as an oxygen mask was placed over Frank’s nose and mouth. They began checking his vitals, but Frank never opened his eyes.

“We need to get him to the hospital,” one paramedic said.

“That’s fine,” Fenton said.

As the paramedics readied Frank for transport, two officer walked up to them, each of them holding onto two youth each.

“Con?”

“Yeah?” he asked, turning around.

“We caught these four running out of the back of the house.”

“You were inside?” Con asked.

The four young men looked at the ground, unable to meet the officer’s gaze.

“Were you inside?” Con asked slowly.

It seemed like none of them were going to answer until a soft voice said, “Yes.”

They all looked at the red-haired boy who was now looking Con in the eye. “We were inside.”

“What were you doing in there?” Con asked.

“Nothing was supposed to happen,” the redhead said. “We were having fun just hanging out. We were snagging candy from trick-or-treaters to have as our own. We met here to hang out since this place was abandoned.”

“Why did you grab the boy and tie him up in the bedroom?” Con asked.

“What?” he asked. “I didn’t do that.”

“Then who did?”

“It had to be them.” He pointed to the two youth that were standing the furthest away from him. “They were in the house when we got there and had a large bag of candy.”

The two youth accused of the tasks stared at the redhead with anger filling both of their faces. Con said, “Take them to the station and call their parents.”

“Got it.”

The officers moved away with the youth.

“We need to get back to Mr. Pizza and get Laura,” Fenton said. “We have to get to the hospital.”

“I’ll have an officer take you,” Con said. “I’ll swing by later to get your statements.”

“All right,” Fenton said, placing a hand on Joe’s shoulder. “Come on, son. Let’s go.”

* * * * *

Two hours later the Hardy’s were sitting in the waiting room at the hospital. When they had arrived at Mr. Pizza to get Laura, they suggested Joe stay there, but he was adamant about going along, even though he knew he wouldn’t be able to go any further than the waiting room.

Joe had his head resting on his mother’s arm, hoping his brother was going to be fine. But he couldn’t stop thinking that he was partially at fault for the situation. He knew he should have stayed with his brother, but he hadn’t and now they were at the hospital.

“Fenton? Laura?”

Joe looked up to see Dr. Bates entering the waiting room. His parents stood up.

“Have you seen Frank?” Laura asked.

“I just left him,” he answered, motioning for them to sit down. “He is going to be all right. He did suffer some smoke inhalation, but he seems to be responding well. He’s very tired and we’d like to keep him overnight for observation.”

“But he’s okay?” Joe asked, wanting to make sure he heard the doctor correctly.

“He is,” Dr. Bates said. “If the two of you would like to see him, he’s in room 304.”

“Thank you,” Laura said.

“We appreciate you taking care of him,” Fenton said.

“You’re welcome,” Dr. Bates said. “Go ahead up. I’ll hang you with Joe until you return.”

“Tell Frank I’m glad he’s okay,” Joe said.

“We will.” Laura ruffled Joe’s hair and then left the waiting room with Fenton.

Joe let out a sigh of relief that Frank was all right, but he wished he could see his brother with his own eyes.

* * * * *

Frank rested with his eyes closed, unable to let his body fall into dreamland. He had woken a short while earlier to Dr. Bates standing by his side. The doctor explained what had been wrong with him, but reassured him that he was going to be all right with lots of rest.

After the explanation and instruction to sleep, Dr. Bates left the room. While Frank knew sleep would be good for him, he couldn’t get his mind to stop replaying what he had been through.

The room he had been left in was dark and an uneasiness washed over him immediately. He heard sounds and wondered if something was in the room with him. He had heard small scampering across the floor and felt something tickling his hands. He attempted to brush whatever it was away, but with how tightly he was tied up, he couldn’t do anything.

He could still feel the tickling and shook his hands to get the feeling to go away.

The sound of the door moving forced Frank to open his eyes. He turned his gaze toward the door as his parents stepped into the room.

“How are you feeling?” Laura asked, hurrying toward the bed. She reached over and pulled him close, giving him a hug.

“Okay,” Frank said, his voice scratchy. “I’m sorry for what happened. I didn’t mean to break the rules.”

“It’s all right,” Fenton said stepping up to the bed. “This wasn’t your fault. You did nothing wrong.”

“But I didn’t stay with the group like I was supposed to.”

“You were with the group and then all this craziness happened,” Fenton said as Laura loosened her hold on Frank. “You are not at fault.”

“Your father’s right,” Laura said. “You didn’t purposely disobey us and shouldn’t feel guilty.”

“I know, but I still feel bad.”

 

“Frank, do you feel up to telling us what happened?” Fenton asked, switching subjects.

“Sure,” Frank sat himself up a little more and then began the tale. “We had been trick-or-treating and had gone to a lot of houses. We decided to head back to Mr. Pizza to continue the party. My bag fell out of my hand and spilled all over the sidewalk. I quickly cleaned it up, but when I stood up, the others were gone. I hurried down the street figuring I would catch up to them. But I was grabbed from behind with a hand over my mouth. A voice said that if I screamed my throat would be slit.

“I remained quiet and was dragged to this darkened homed. When I was taken inside, there was another person there who was wearing a gorilla mask. But the person had the brightest blue eyes I’ve eve seen.”

“Then what happened?” Fenton asked.

“I was tied up and take to a room. They dropped me on the floor and left me in darkness. I’m not sure how much time had passed when the room started filling with smoke. It got thick really quick and I couldn’t breathe. That’s all I remember until waking with Dr. Bates by my side.”

“Thank you,” Fenton said. “I’ll be able to give the information to the police since they’ve possibly caught the people who did this.”

“That’s good,” Frank said, fighting the exhaustion that was weighing down on his body.

“Go ahead and rest,” Laura said. “That’s the only way you’ll feel better.”

“And your mother will be here if you need something,” Fenton said. “I’m going to the police station after I drop Joe off at home.”

“Joe’s here?” Frank asked, struggling to keep his eyes open.

“He’s down in the waiting room with Dr. Bates since he’s too young to come up,” Laura said. “And he’s glad you’re okay.”

“I wish I could see him.”

“He wants that too, but that will have to wait until tomorrow,” Fenton said.

“I guess,” Frank said as he tried to stifle a yawn. He felt his eyes slide shut and forgot about fighting it. Within minutes he was deep in a dreamless sleep.

* * * * *

Frank sat up quickly, looking around wildly as his heart thudded in his chest. He shook his arms trying to get the tingling sensation to go away. He saw his dresser and desk and knew he was in the safety of his bedroom in their house on Elm Street. He took several deep breaths and was slowly able to calm down.

As the beating of his heart returned to normal, he thought about all he had done since his release from the hospital that morning. His father had picked him up and together they headed to the police station so he could give his statement. It seemed to take an eternity, but knew he was having that feeling since he was tired.

When he had finally arrived home, he had gone up to his room and tumbled into bed.

Now that he was awake, he realized he was a bit hungry. H made his way downstairs wondering what was in the refrigerator that he could eat.

Stepping into the kitchen, Frank saw his mother standing at the stove, stirring something in one of the pots.

“Hi, Mom.”

Laura turned around, a smile filling her face. “Hi sweetie. How are you feeling?”

“All right. I’m a little hungry though.”

“I’m not surprised at that,” Laura said, moving to the cupboard and pulling out a bowl. “You slept through lunch.”

“I’m sorry.”

“It’s not your fault,” Laura said. “You went through a lot last night and needed your rest.”

Laura filled the bowl with some soup from the pot she had been stirring.

Frank settled at the kitchen table and devoured the soup, surprised at how hungry he was.

“Mom? Where’s Joe?”

“He went over to Biff’s to play since you were sleeping,” Laura answered. “He should be back soon.”

As he started on a second bowl, he noticed the plastic candy dish on the table, heaping with candy. He tried not to stare at it, but couldn’t stop. He knew that was everything Joe had collected the previous evening and tried not to think that his candy was long gone.

When he finished his soup, he rinsed out the bowl and spool before placing them in the dishwasher. He made his way back to his room.

Frank grabbed his history book before leaning back on his bed. As he flipped to the chapter he need to read for Monday, he couldn’t shake the anger he was feeling to the guys who had grabbed him. He knew they hadn’t really meant any harm. It was just supposed to be a prank, or so their parents tried to explain.

Because of them I missed out on the Halloween party with my friends, he thought. Yeah, they almost got me killed, but I did survive thanks to Dad, Joe, Officer Riley and Mr. Prito. I never would’ve been in that situation if they had used their heads. I’ve seen bigger kids steal candy from younger ones and just take off. But they pushed the limit when they threatened me. I would’ve been upset if they had taken my candy, but I still would’ve been at the party with my friends. This Halloween was the worst and I’m glad it’s over.

A knock on the door interrupted Frank’s thoughts.

“Come on.”

The door was opened by Joe who was carrying something behind his back.

“Did I wake you?” Joe asked.

“No,” Frank said. “I was just working on some homework.”

“I have some too, but I don’t want to do it.”

“I figured I’d start it at least,” Frank said. “Who knows how much I’ll get done before I fall asleep again.”

“You were sleeping soundly when Dad brought you home,” Joe said, moving to the bed.

“I don’t even remember getting home,” Frank admitted.

“I’m glad you’re home,” Joe said shyly, looking down at the floor.

“I heard I have you to thank for brining in the cavalry.”

Joe lifted his head, a slight pink accenting his features and Frank didn’t think it had anything to do with the cool weather outside. Joe said, “I didn’t do much.”

“Yes, you did. You realized I wasn’t with out and told Mr. Prito. If you hadn’t said something, I might still be tied up in that house.”

“And if I’d been paying better attention, it wouldn’t have taken me so long to realize you hadn’t made it back to Mr. Pizza with us.”

“In the end you did realize and that’s what counts the most,” Frank said. He decided to switch subjects. “Mom said you were at Biff’s. What were you doing?”

“Playing video games mostly and eating candy,” Joe answered. “We figured it was a good time to break into our haul from last night.”

“That’s good.”

“You can have some of my candy if you want it,” Joe said. “Dad told me yours got stolen by some big kids before the fire.”

“Thanks, Joe, but it’s all right. I don’t need any candy.”

“Are you sure?” Joe asked. “I don’t mind.”

“I’m sure,” Frank said, feeling touched by his brother’s offer. “You got it and should eat it.”

“Frank, I’m not offering because I was told to, if that’s what you’re thinking,” Joe said. “No one said anything and I want to share.”

“I appreciate the offer, Joe,” Frank said. “But I just don’t want any candy.”

“All right,” Joe said and set a small paper bag on the foot of the bed. “But if you want some later, I brought you a bunch.”

Before Frank could say anything, Joe turned and left the room. Frank knew his brother was being sincere with his offer, but he didn’t feel right in taking the candy from him.

Curiosity of what was inside the brown bag forced him to peer inside. He folded back the flaps and looked inside. A smile filled his face at the sight. There were a dozen mini chocolate candy bars in the bag – his favorites. Joe had given him his favorite candy from Halloween.

“Thanks, Joe,” Frank said quietly.

“You’re welcome.”

Frank looked up and locked gazes with his brother. He had the best brother in the world and while Halloween hadn’t been that memorable, the moment that would stick out for him would be that one.

He had the world’s best brother and knew he was going to have to try and be that good as well.

-The End-

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