"Is this really okay?" Maxine sat in Richard's home, her heart filled with unease.
Just moments ago, she had taken Richard's advice and called home; Billy was the one who answered.
Faced with Billy's verbal abuse—screaming at her, calling her a little bitch for not listening to him and hanging out with Mike and those kids, and demanding to know why she wasn't home yet—Maxine, emboldened by the presence of her friends, mustered the courage to snap back. "Stay out of my business from now on. I'm staying at Richard's house tonight with Mike and the others, you controlling freak!"
After saying that, Maxine's face went pale, and she hung up the phone with her heart pounding wildly.
Recalling what she had just said and Billy's impotent, furious roars over the phone, Maxine felt like she was in big trouble. Billy would definitely drive over to find her soon. This time, he wouldn't just use words to intimidate her; he would get physical—with everyone.
"Don't worry, Chade is a great fighter. No matter how tough your brother is, he's no match for the Mind Flayer. Chade is someone who has actually slashed the Mind Flayer before," Lucas said, knowing Maxine's worries were unnecessary since she had no idea of Richard's combat abilities.
Dustin ate his pudding spoonful by spoonful, saying with a chuckle, "Just relax. Use those items Richard gave you and give him a sincere scare. I guarantee he'll never dare to push you around again."
Fearing Maxine wouldn't believe them, Will and Mike began telling her stories of their battle against the monsters from The Upside Down and Henry a year ago. However, as they talked, the boys drifted away from the theme of proving Richard's strength and instead started bragging about their own heroic deeds. Lucas and Dustin spared no effort in glorifying themselves, hoping to win Maxine's favor.
Listening to the boys' stories, Maxine could naturally tell which parts were exaggerated, but she enjoyed listening and felt much more relaxed—until she heard the roar of a car engine approaching outside.
Hearing the sound of that engine, Maxine knew her bastard stepbrother had arrived. Mike and the others scurried into Richard's bedroom, poking their heads out to cheer Maxine on.
Maxine glanced at Richard. His calm and composed demeanor from start to finish gave her some peace of mind. Seeing Richard go to answer the door after the doorbell rang, and seeing Billy standing there chewing gum aggressively, Maxine nervously gripped a fire axe, her eyes wide.
However, a scene that surprised Maxine occurred. As soon as Billy saw Richard open the door, his fierce, angry expression diminished significantly, and his tone wasn't as aggressive as usual. He glanced past Richard and said, "I'm here to take that girl back. She can't stay here tonight."
"Heh, neither you nor I have the right to decide her Will. It depends on what she thinks," Richard said with a smile, then turned his head toward Maxine. "Tomorrow is the weekend, and Lucas and the others are planning to play some interesting games. Don't you want to stay and play?"
Things had already reached this point, and Maxine didn't want to back down. She forced herself to remain calm and raised her voice. "Didn't I already say? I'm not coming home tonight. I can stay at whoever's house I want."
Hearing this, Billy's face darkened. But seeing Richard's half-smile, he recalled the experience of being knocked down by a single ball from the other man in the gym. He still felt a lingering fear of Richard's monstrous strength. He secretly clenched his fists, took a deep breath, and said coldly to Richard, "That little tramp has to come back with me. Don't push me."
"It's not very nice to describe your sister that way." Richard felt some displeasure at Billy's words. Even knowing Billy had a rough childhood, he didn't think one should refer to their sister—even a stepsister—with such derogatory terms.
To have experienced such pain and then inflict it upon others was understandable, but absolutely unforgivable.
"Mind your own business." Billy gave Richard a hard shove and barged into the house. Then, his hands and feet acting out, he kicked over a potted plant Richard had placed by the door before striding toward Maxine.
Richard, pretending to be pushed, took a step back. When he saw Billy kick the plant, spilling soil all over the floor, his brow twitched, and he looked at Billy with a gaze filled with a hint of pity.
"Give me that axe..." Before Billy could reach out to snatch the axe from Maxine, he suddenly felt his foot slip and he crashed to the floor. However, everyone else saw clearly that the rug had suddenly moved on its own, causing Billy to slip.
As Billy slipped, his head slammed into the leg of the sofa. Immediately after, the sofa—as if it were light as a feather—toppled backward upon impact, pinning Billy underneath it.
Billy let out a scream. The teenagers watched, completely stunned, and then their expressions changed as they quickly realized something terrifying.
"Could Richard's house be full of vengeful spirits?" Dustin's teeth chattered. Looking at Richard's warm and tidy bedroom again, it no longer felt comfortable and harmonious, but rather chilling and ominous.
Sure enough, everyone then saw Billy screaming as he was dragged out from under the sofa by three dolls. He was dragged all the way into the kitchen, then swung around and slammed against the cabinets. Immediately following that, the knives hanging on the kitchen wall came clattering down like rain.
Seeing the cold glint of those blades, Billy froze, not daring to move. Countless knives plunged into the floor around his body, forming an outline. His proud, smooth long hair was sliced off by a blade, and when his arm twitched, it accidentally touched an edge, slicing his skin and causing blood to flow.
Maxine was still a bit worried, but she suddenly felt as if she were being possessed. She felt she could only watch as her body moved uncontrollably. Holding the fire axe with a ferocious expression, she walked toward the terrified Billy and swung it down toward his crotch. A voice that didn't sound human roared from her mouth, "From now on, I don't need you to tell me what to do! I can take care of myself! Don't touch my friends, and don't even think about bullying me again, do you hear me, you son of a bitch!"
Crack!
The blade of the axe barely sliced through the fabric of Billy's pants at his crotch, revealing his white briefs. He looked up in terror, and seeing that his 'treasure' was still intact, his heart, which had stopped, began to beat again. He collapsed weakly, his mouth twitching as he said tremulously, "I... I understand..."
Hearing this response, the vengeful spirit on the axe relinquished control of Maxine's body. Maxine regained herself, her ferocious expression softening slightly, though her gaze remained cold.
Although the vengeful spirit's possession was a bit extreme, it was also what Maxine had always wanted to do. Therefore, it was hard to define whether that action was the work of the spirit or Maxine's own Will.
Richard grabbed Billy by the collar and threw him out of the house before the vengeful spirits inside could tear the house-wrecker to shreds. "Alright, the farce is over. You don't want to be restrained by your father, so why are you trying to restrain your sister? Go home, Billy."
Richard clapped his hands, then closed the door again. Looking at the mess in the house, he put his hands on his hips and said, "Looks like I'll have to do some serious cleaning."
Hearing the car engine outside, Maxine and the boys finally breathed a sigh of relief. They looked at each other and smiled, feeling like they had survived a disaster.
"Quick, hide in the room!" However, Richard, who was about to go to the utility room for a broom, suddenly had a change of expression and pushed the teenagers into the bedroom.
Boom!
Before the teenagers could react, they were pushed into Richard's bedroom with bewildered faces. Before Richard could close the bedroom door, everyone saw two bright lights outside the living room window getting brighter and brighter. A dark shadow drew closer and closer until, with a loud crash, a deformed car front smashed through the wall and front door of the house, barging inside.
Maxine and the boys couldn't help but scream. Once everything settled and the car that had crashed into the house failed to restart after several attempts, the door opened. Billy, who had just been taught a lesson and looked pathetic, stepped out. His eyes were completely pitch black, and black lines flowed across his body. With a distorted face, he said, "I'm going to kill all of you!"