The first thing Jade saw when they stepped inside was Monte. Sitting on his cot, calm as could be, reading a book.
His book.
Jade froze. "What the fuck is this guy doing here?"
Before Kenny could answer, Monte didn't even look up. "I live here… currently."
"I'm not staying under the same roof as him," Jade snapped.
Kenny shrugged. "Not like you've got a lot of options. You weren't exactly friendly earlier."
Monte smirked. "He's saying you're an asshole, and no one wants you."
Jade glared, stomping over to the couch and dropping down with a huff.
Monte chuckled, taking a sip from his bottle.
Kenny raised a brow. "Getting hammered already?"
Monte shrugged. "You want some?"
Kenny hesitated, then sighed and took the bottle, downing a swig.
Monte grinned. "Knew you had it in you. Welcome to the club."
Kenny chuckled. "You're a trip."
Monte winked. "Girls like trips."
Kenny laughed. "Can't argue with that."
Jade glanced over from the couch, rubbing his temples. "What are we drinking?"
Monte passed him the bottle. "Vintage rum. Courtesy of Fat Tony."
"Fat who?" Jade asked, taking a drink.
Kenny looked intrigued. "Yeah, who the hell is that?"
Monte leaned back, voice casual. "Mob boss. Some called him the Kingpin. Most just called him Fat Tony."
Jade frowned. "And you knew this guy how?"
Monte gave a deadpan look. "I'd tell you, but then I'd have to kill you."
Both Jade and Kenny froze.
A moment later, Boyd came out of his office, smirking. "Don't scare my deputy, Monte."
Monte lifted the bottle. "You're the boss."
Boyd smiled faintly, taking the bottle and pouring a small glass for himself before handing it back. "So, tell us more."
Monte nodded slowly. "Remember what I told you about Larry the Man?"
Boyd and Kenny nodded. Jade leaned forward, curious despite himself.
Monte took another sip. "Larry picked the wrong target. Guy happened to be related to Fat Tony. A nephew, a cousin, whatever. Didn't matter. Fat Tony didn't take kindly to finding his boy chopped up and stuffed in his mother's freezer."
Jade's eyes widened. "Holy shit."
Kenny looked just as shocked. Boyd didn't move, but there was a flicker in his eyes.
Monte went on. "Fat Tony called me in. Told me to handle Larry."
Kenny asked, almost cautiously, "Handle him how?"
Monte smiled faintly. "They didn't call me Monte the Heartbreaker for nothing."
Jade frowned. "You seduce him or something?"
Monte shot him a flat look. "Hell no. His niece, Cassandra. She let me into the house during a party. I slit Larry's throat."
Kenny stared. "You… killed him?"
Monte nodded once, expression unreadable.
Boyd's voice was low. "So how'd you end up at odds with Fat Tony if you were working for him?"
Monte sighed, staring down at the bottle. "Fat Tony's son, Skinny Pete, wasn't satisfied with Larry's death. He sent guys to wipe out everyone even loosely connected to him."
Boyd's tone softened. "And they killed the girl."
Monte nodded slowly. "Yeah."
Silence hung heavy in the room for a long moment.
Monte finally said quietly, "She was the first woman I ever really cared about. After that, I didn't care who got caught in the crossfire. I found Skinny Pete, and I put fifteen rounds in his chest."
Kenny swallowed hard. "Then you stole his Mustang and drove straight here."
Monte gave a dry laugh. "Pretty much."
Jade looked at him differently now. The smirk, the sarcasm. All of it hid something much darker.
A man who'd lived with death so long, it stopped scaring him.
Monte took another swig. "Guess I'm lucky, in a way."
Boyd asked, "How's that?"
Monte smiled faintly. "I'm already a dead man. Fat Tony won't stop until he's got my head."
The room went quiet again. Then...
Tap. Tap. Tap.
All eyes turned toward the window.
Jade froze.
A pale face smiled back through the glass... wide, grotesque, inhuman.
The Nurse.
Monte stood up slowly. "How you doin', fuckface?"
The creature grinned wider. "I'm going to enjoy tearing you up, Monte."
Monte's grin matched hers. "Keep dreaming, bitch. I'll find a way to kill you first. Let's see how wide you're smiling when I cut you up real slow and toss you in a lake."
The creature paused, eyes glinting. "I like you. I can't wait."
Monte rolled his eyes. "Broken record. Say something new next time."
Boyd called out from behind, "Monte! Shut the damn blinds before Jade pisses his pants."
"I'm not!" Jade yelled, voice breaking.
Monte winked at the creature, then yanked the blinds shut.
A shriek ripped through the air, followed by a chorus of laughter.
More shadows gathered outside. More smiles.
Jade's voice trembled. "Look what you did! There's more of them now!"
Monte just shrugged, settling back on his cot and taking another drink. "Good."
Kenny frowned. "How the hell is that good?"
Monte gestured lazily toward the window. "'Cause none of us are dumb enough to open the door. If all those bastards are out there, it means they're not somewhere else."
Boyd nodded, catching his point. "He's right. It limits who they can get to."
Kenny shook his head, half smiling. "You keep surprising me, Monte."
Monte smirked. "It's what I do."
Outside, the laughter continued. Low, patient, and never ending.
Inside, Monte lifted the bottle and took another long swig.
The monsters could wait.
He'd been hunted before.
...
The laughter outside finally quieted to a distant hum. The night creatures were still out there, waiting, but the station had settled into its usual uneasy calm.
Monte sat back on his cot, turning the empty bottle in his hands. Boyd was slumped in the chair beside his office door, Kenny and Jade on the couch, the room washed in the low, flickering light of a lantern.
Monte broke the silence first. "So," he said, swirling the last drop of rum in his glass, "what's your guys' stories?"
Kenny looked up from where he sat, half-drunk and half-tired. "Mine's not much," he said. "I was driving back home with my mom and dad. My dad's got Alzheimer's, he forgot the bus number and boarded the wrong bus. We never made it back."
Monte nodded, thoughtful. "That your dad up at the infirmary?"
Kenny's shoulders stiffened. "Yeah. Why?"
Monte smirked slightly. "He's a good guy. Loves chess."
Kenny blinked, then relaxed a little, smiling faintly. "Yeah. It's the one thing he never forgets."
Monte nodded. "Makes sense. Something steady to hold onto."
The tension in the room eased a little.
Jade leaned forward next, rubbing his eyes. "Guess I'm up. I just sold my tech company. My partner, Tobey, and I were taking a drive from Vegas back to L.A. It was a celebration trip."
Monte coughed, grinning. "Makes sense now."
Boyd raised a brow. "No wonder you two crashed."
Jade let out a dry laugh. "Yeah, not our best decision."
Kenny patted his shoulder. "Hey, you're still breathing. That's something."
Monte turned toward Boyd. "What about you, Sheriff? You come in with family?"
Boyd went quiet. His eyes dropped to the bottle in his hand.
Kenny shifted, his voice soft. "His story… isn't the happiest."
Monte lifted a hand. "It's all good. No need..."
Boyd cut him off gently. "I came here with my wife and son." He paused, his tone steady but distant. "It was before anyone knew about the Talismans. We didn't understand how this place worked back then."
Monte leaned forward. "Before the Talismans, what did people do to survive?"
Kenny answered quietly. "They hid. In basements, cellars, under houses. You had to stay silent all night and pray those things didn't hear you breathing."
Monte nodded slowly. "So you lost your family to them."
Boyd shook his head. "My son's still here. Ellis, he lives up at Colony House."
Monte coughed, smirking. "Ellis? That explains a lot. Dude hates me. Guess he didn't like how I looked at that light-skinned beauty, Fatima."
Boyd gave him a look. "I'll keep that in mind." His voice softened. "My wife, though… this place got to her. Twisted her. I was so focused on keeping everyone else alive that I didn't see how much she was unraveling."
Monte exhaled. "I see where this is going. You don't have to..."
Jade lifted his head, his curiosity breaking through the haze of rum. "No, I wanna know."
Monte shot him a glare. "Shut up."
Boyd continued quietly. "She started believing none of this was real. Thought everyone was just sleeping. She believed that death was the only way for people to wake up. She…"
He hesitated, the words catching in his throat. "She killed a lot of people before I stopped her. It was the day after I found the Talismans. She didn't think I was real. Didn't believe I could have survived the night out there."
He took a long breath. "Then she pointed the gun at Ellis."
Monte's expression softened.
Boyd's voice went quieter still. "I had to make a choice. One I'll never forget. One my son will never forgive me for."
The silence that followed was heavy and absolute.
Monte reached over, patting Boyd's shoulder. "Sorry to bring it up, man."
Boyd managed a weary smile. "It's alright. Talking about it… actually helped."
Monte glanced toward the couch.
Both Kenny and Jade were out cold, leaning against each other, snoring softly. Three empty bottles sat at their feet.
Monte chuckled under his breath. "Don't worry, I won't tell anyone. Doubt either of them remembers a thing tomorrow."
Boyd pushed himself up slowly. "Goodnight, Monte."
Monte nodded. "Night, Sheriff."
Boyd patted his back once before shuffling toward his office, closing the door behind him.
Monte leaned back on the cot, staring at the ceiling. Outside, the faint sound of laughter echoed again, distant but constant.
He smirked to himself, muttering quietly, "Come on, you bastards… just try me."
Monte stared at the bottle in his hand, just a swallow left at the bottom, the amber catching the lantern light.
He tilted it back and finished it in one long gulp, the burn sharp and warm down his throat.
He let out a slow breath, feeling that familiar heaviness in his head. The soft buzz that made the walls hum and the silence feel thicker.
Then, as his bladder protested, he muttered, "Alright, alright…" and pushed himself off the cot.
The floorboards creaked under his boots as he stumbled toward the bathroom. The laughter outside had faded to whispers, the kind that might've been the wind… or not.
He finished up, zipped, and turned toward the door.
That's when he froze.
A boy in white stood between him and the exit. Barefoot. Pale. Still.
Monte's instincts kicked in. His hand dropped to his belt, pulling the Glock in a smooth, practiced motion.
The boy didn't flinch. He smiled faintly. It was a knowing, almost sad smile.
"That won't work," he said softly.
Monte's voice came out low, steady. "Who are you?"
The boy tilted his head. "I'm a friend."
Monte didn't lower the gun, but his tone shifted. "Then what are you doing here, friend?"
The boy's eyes were distant, but clear. "I'm here to warn you."
Monte's brow furrowed. "About what?"
The boy took a step closer, his voice dropping to a whisper that barely carried over the sound of Monte's own breathing.
"Sara is going to kill you."
Monte stared for a long moment, trying to read him or the hallucination he assumed he was having.
Then he gave a half-drunk shrug. "No, she won't." His voice was dry. "Anything else?"
The boy's smile faded. He looked past Monte, like he was seeing something far away. "Be careful what you say," he murmured. "They're..."
And just like that, he was gone.
No sound. No flash. Just gone.
Monte blinked, rubbing his eyes. "Great. Now I'm seeing ghosts," he muttered, sliding the Glock back into his waistband.
He stepped out of the bathroom, the dim light of the lantern painting long shadows across the walls.
Kenny and Jade were still passed out on the couch, Boyd's office door shut. Everything was quiet again.
Monte made it back to his cot, the alcohol doing its job as he flopped down and exhaled. The cot creaked under his weight.
"Be careful what you say…" he mumbled to himself, the boy's words echoing faintly in his skull.
But the buzz in his head was stronger than the warning.
He closed his eyes, got comfortable, and then everything went black.