On the streets, John, Dawn, and Tara crossed paths.
Dawn and Tara recognized John; he was handsome and accompanied by a beautiful girlfriend.
Normally, Tara might have given him a second glance, perhaps even flirted for a one-night stand.
But because of Art the Clown, she just wanted to go home as soon as possible.
Dawn was different; she even wanted to take a picture of Art the Clown, let alone a handsome man, especially since it was two nights before Halloween, and Halloween itself was just two days away.
Of course, she wanted to spend it with a handsome man, and this one looked promising.
"Hello, handsome! We met at the Chinese restaurant. Where's your girlfriend? How could she leave you here alone? So irresponsible."
John glanced at the heavily made-up Dawn: "I had my butler send her home first."
When he saw the two of them, he knew that the owner and employees of the Chinese restaurant were probably already in trouble.
Sometimes, being too involved isn't a good thing.
But at least John got to eat a meal, so he would get a small revenge for the owner and employees, and he was also curious about Art the Clown's body structure.
Dawn's eyes lit up even more when she heard John had a butler; he was definitely rich, and she even extended an invitation on the spot.
"If you don't mind, you can come to my place overnight. I don't think your girlfriend would mind, right? After all, I wouldn't tell, would I?"
Faced with such a low-level green tea, John couldn't be bothered to respond, only looking at the embarrassed Tara and saying,
"You two should go home early or take a taxi."
After speaking, he continued on his way, regardless of their reaction; he had to see what was happening, dead or alive.
After John left, Tara couldn't hold back and questioned Dawn.
"Are you crazy? First, you provoke a psychopath, and now you're thinking of bringing a man home to sleep with?"
Dawn said indifferently, "It's normal to want to find a man to play with when you're lonely. At most, I'll share him with you."
"..."
Tara wasn't interested in a threesome; she felt this night before Halloween was terrible.
She hoped Halloween Eve and Halloween day wouldn't be so bad.
...
Chinese restaurant.
Because Halloween was approaching, there were two pumpkin lanterns at the entrance of the shop, following local customs.
From mid-October, people here make lanterns by carving pumpkins, and orange and black become the main colors, symbolizing the expulsion of evil and avoidance of disaster.
There are many versions of the legend of Halloween's origin.
The main version is that the Catholic Church designated November 1st as All Saints' Day, but the date was close to Halloween, so it eventually became one holiday.
By the end of the century, as Ireland brought Halloween customs to North America, Halloween lost its religious significance and became a traditional festival focused on revelry.
It is generally believed that Halloween originated from harvest celebrations and ghost festivals in ancient Western European countries such as Ireland, Scotland, and Wales.
John also celebrated Halloween, when in Rome, do as the Romans do.
However, the pumpkin lanterns looked like they were dressed as ghosts.
Could it be ghosts scaring ghosts?
When John arrived at the scene, the shop door was closed, but the lights inside were still on.
With a gentle push, the door creaked open.
The worst-case scenario had occurred; as John walked in, he saw a lot of what looked like ketchup on the floor—the color was indeed similar to ketchup.
This was a dark joke.
Arriving at the back kitchen, the owner and employees' heads were hung in a row, but their bodies were gone.
He couldn't quite remember if they had been eaten; he didn't know if Art the Clown ate them, but he remembered his brother, the clown from It, was quite fond of eating.
One little kid, out of curiosity, was eaten whole, hand and all.
Since Art the Clown wasn't at the crime scene, he could only search nearby.
John didn't want to leave things until morning; morning would be Halloween Eve.
On that day, the children of Round Clam Town would wear various costumes and participate in parades or parties, while adults often engaged in apple bobbing.
There was also "trick or treat."
One of the children's favorite activities.
Knocking on doors to ask for candy.
If no candy, then a trick!
As well as various activities like "haunted house" adventures.
In short, all sorts of monsters and spirits would emerge that day.
It would be better to contain Art the Clown, this menace, as soon as possible.
...
On another street.
The two friends ' car tires had indeed been punctured.
Tara immediately thought of the man who had told them to go home early or take a taxi, but then she thought it impossible.
From his wealthy attire, the possibility was very low.
She inexplicably thought of the clown.
As luck would have it, the police announcement came over the radio.
And the location was the restaurant where they had just eaten; the owner and employees had all been killed, and the caller reported it was a clown carrying a black plastic bag.
This sent a shiver down Tara's spine.
She quickly nudged Dawn.
"Let's not wait for rescue; let's just hail a taxi home."
Dawn was somewhat dismissive; she thought a murderer who had killed would have fled long ago and wouldn't still be in town.
A normal murderer's psychology would indeed be like that.
Tara, speechless, called her sister to pick her up. After the call, she felt a sudden rush of heat to her head.
Opening the car window, she realized they were in the middle of nowhere.
If she could, she really didn't want to just pee on the street like Dawn.
Sharp-eyed Tara noticed a cleaner at a nearby building who had just opened the door and was lighting a cigarette outside.
She immediately opened the car door and went to talk to him.
"Hello, sir, may I please use the building's restroom?"
The cleaner was about to refuse when Dawn from the car chimed in,
"Please, it's just one trip to the restroom. Tara will definitely make you happy."
The cleaner's eyes lit up as he looked at Tara's outfit; she indeed looked good, with a small leather jacket and leather pants, and a glimpse of deep cleavage from top to bottom.
For a moment, his heart felt quite hot, and he said,
"I can let you in to use the restroom, but later..."
You know what I want to do later. The cleaner didn't finish his sentence, but he thought the woman in front of him should understand his meaning.
Tara originally wanted to refuse, but her urge to pee wouldn't allow it, so she pretended to agree for now, planning to deal with the lustful cleaner after using the restroom.
"Of course."
The cleaner's lips curved into a smile, and he cheerfully opened the building's main door, even kindly telling Tara the exact location to avoid wasting time searching.
Tara entered the building and found it very dilapidated.
As for the restroom, it was even more indescribable; it was completely grimy.
But for now, she could only force herself to endure the disgust and chose a stall that looked relatively clean, walking inside.
A few minutes later, Tara felt completely relieved.
She looked at the restroom with distaste and was about to leave.
Suddenly, a baby's cry attracted her curiosity.
Could it be an abandoned baby?
With a desire to see, Tara didn't leave immediately but followed the sound.
"Ah!"
A hand suddenly landed on Tara's shoulder, startling her. She turned around to see a dazed woman holding a doll, and the sound was coming from the doll.
Tara tried to talk, but she found that the woman seemed to have some mental issues and kept talking to herself.
She wasn't going to waste any more time; she just wanted to leave the building immediately.
Tara ignored the woman and pushed open the door along the way she came.
She had only walked a few steps when she froze.
Because she met him around the corner.
The clown she met at the Chinese restaurant was staring at her, his face covered in blood, with a sinister smile.
The two of them stared at each other for a few seconds.
Eyes met...