Live, Laugh, Murder

Prologue

We shouldn’t have come here.

We fell for this twisted trap like mice lured in with the promise of cheese.

We weren’t supposed to end up like this.

But I guess that’s what happens when you reach for the stars when you were only meant to admire them from afar.

They burn you.

Scald you.

Searing you into nothing but a flame of regret.

Much like the flame alight in the roaring fireplace before us.

Our captor walks back into the room with a duffel bag slung over his muscled shoulder.

His mouth turns into a wicked smile as he takes the three of us in with his dark, amused eyes.

The duffel bag drops to the ground with a loud thunk, and he winks at me as he kneels to open it.

The sound of the zipper reverberates through the large study, making my insides quiver in fear.

A fear like one I’ve never known before.

One by one, he takes three items and places them at our feet.

A dagger.

A butcher knife.

And a pair of metal handcuffs.

“Come on, Teagan,” he says with a sneer. “Which one of your friends gets to live?” He sweeps his arm toward Lexi and Capri like this is some game.

But this isn’t a game to any of us.

This is our lives. And possibly, our deaths.

I look at my two best friends in the world and tell them with my eyes how sorry I am for dragging us into this. My mouth is gagged, and my body bound by tape to the plush velvet teal chair.

They both glance back at me, tears trailing down their beautiful faces as they shake their heads at me.

We know this is how we die—together until the very end.

We shouldn’t have come here.