We’re thrilled to share an excerpt from The Executioners Three, a brand new younger grownup horror/thriller by Susan Dennard, publishing with Tor Teen on August 26.
Freddie Gellar didn’t imply to get half the rival highschool arrested. She’d merely heard shrieks coming from the woods, so she’d referred to as the cops like every good human would do. How was she imagined to realize it was simply children partying?
Besides the following day, a physique is discovered. And whereas the native sheriff would possibly name it suicide, Freddie’s instincts inform her in any other case. So, just like the aspiring sleuth (and true X-Recordsdata aficionado) she is, Freddie units out to show there’s a assassin at massive.
However her investigation is rapidly disrupted by the rivalry between her college and the college of the partying teenagers she bought arrested. For over twenty years, the 2 pupil our bodies have had an ongoing prank warfare, and Freddie’s failed try at Good Samaritanism has upped the ante. Worse, the intelligent—and beautiful—chief of the rival prank squad has set his sights on Freddie.
As extra pranks unfurl, extra our bodies additionally begin piling up within the forest. Nevertheless it’s the supernatural warning indicators round city, every plucked straight from an previous forgotten poem referred to as “The Executioners Three,” that fear Freddie essentially the most. She is aware of the poem and its blood curse can’t be actual, however she’s rapidly working out of time to show it.
As a result of the assassin—or executioners?—is aware of she’s onto them now, and their subsequent goal simply may be Freddie.
Freddie Gellar hadn’t meant to get half the scholar physique of Fortin Prep boarding college arrested. It wasn’t like she’d woken up that morning and thought, You understand what? I really feel like ruining lives on the rival excessive college at the moment.
Under no circumstances. She’d merely heard shrieks coming from the woods close to her home, so she’d referred to as the cops. Like all regular human with a regular conscience would do.
Freddie stabbed her broom halfheartedly at a swarm of daddy longlegs who’d taken roost on the ladder contained in the previous schoolhouse. She was supposed to enter the cupola, with its damaged bell, and string up fairy lights.
However thus far, all she’d managed was to open the schoolhouse door, sweep across the benches that will quickly get moved outdoors for the Lumberjack Pageant… after which cough dramatically on the gathered mud and cobwebs on the ladder.
The Fête du Bûcheron was in just a little over two weeks, and that meant each inch of Metropolis-on-the-Berme Village Historique needed to be prepared for a shindig the locals took Very Significantly Certainly. Yearly, the Village was open from Memorial Day to Labor Day. Then, the Village reopened its gates one additional day for the locals to rejoice Halloween.
Not solely was it an enormous fundraiser for the Village, however it was additionally the occasion of the yr for a city that was as insular because it was festive.
Which meant it was Freddie’s mother’s most essential occasion of the yr. Freddie and a handful of volunteers had already spent the final two weeks serving to Mother deck all the pieces in jack-o’-lanterns, scarecrows, and an unseemly variety of hay bales. La Maison Authentique du Bûcheron (the Genuine Lumberjack Homestead, which was neither genuine nor a homestead) was now a haunted home, full with skeletons, mirrors, and hiding locations for her stepdad, Steve, in ghost make-up.
La Taverne now housed all the mandatory accoutrements to promote heaps of scorching apple cider and Mrs. Ferris’s well-known jams, whereas La Marché d’Été (the summer season market) was all prepared for the jack-o’-lantern contest (whoever received that bought to place a banner on their home for the complete yr).
Lastly, two transportable bathrooms had been tucked behind the tavern that didn’t truly promote alcohol. No French placards for these. (Port-A-Potty, it could appear, was not price translating.)
Freddie sighed towards her finest pal, Divya, who leaned on the college’s purple clapboard entrance with all of the cool poise of a runway mannequin. The autumn wind had picked up outdoors, lifting leaves and including a stunning autumn glow to Divya’s amber pores and skin. It additionally made Divya shiver whereas she frantically performed Snake on her Nokia.
“It simply appears,” Divya stated now with out trying up, “like a very laborious mistake to make, Fred. I imply, absolutely you realize what a bunch of wealthy children ingesting appears like.”
“Not likely,” Freddie admitted. “It’s not like I’ve ever been to a celebration. Have you ever?”
Divya flashed a laser glare—and a sound like digital snake dying beeped out. “You understand I haven’t. Until you rely our guide membership meet-ups with Abby and Tom. These can get fairly rowdy generally.”
Freddie didn’t rely these in any respect. A drunken teenage get together was not the identical factor as a spirited dialogue of no matter novel Divya had insisted they learn. (This month’s choice had been The Pocket book, which Freddie had discovered just a little too gentle on homicide for her tastes.)
Freddie stabbed extra forcefully at this nest of longlegs (or was it a swarm?) blocking her from the schoolhouse bell twelve ft above. She actually couldn’t go up there till these have been gone. With hair as wild and darkish as hers, all these arachnids would get misplaced in a heartbeat.
Divya, in the meantime, slunk into the shadows of the college and notably didn’t supply to assist Freddie as she eased onto a bench. In spite of everything, it wasn’t her mother who was head of the Metropolis-on-the-Berme Historic Society. And regardless of what number of occasions Freddie identified to Mother that it was unlawful to pressure her daughter to arrange for the fête yearly, Mother simply laughed and stated, “Nice. In that case, yow will discover elsewhere to stay.”
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Though, for all Freddie’s vocal complaints (she was very, very vocal), she secretly liked volunteering right here. Metropolis-on-the-Berme was her favourite place in the entire world. Half vacationer attraction, with its solely reasonably correct French logging settlement, and half outside middle, with the county park trails winding by means of the forest subsequent door—you couldn’t get extra autumn creeptastic than this place.
Which was probably why the fête was all the time the largest occasion of the yr for locals.
And in addition why Mother all the time put a lot strain on Freddie to assist.
Final evening, nevertheless, issues had gone awry. After Freddie had completed serving to Mother with the hay bales, she’d left her scarf behind. And seeing because it was her favourite scarf (and due to this fact essential for the completion of any fall outfit), she’d set out for the Metropolis-on-the-Berme Village Historique on Steve’s rickety bike after dinner.
Freddie by no means made it to the Village—or discovered her scarf, for that matter. The path had been dangerously foggy, her headlamp bouncing beams all over the place, and there’d been an terrible stench like lifeless animals within the air. So sturdy, so overwhelming, that Freddie had truly thought she would possibly gag.
It had compelled her to cease her bike simply so she may cowl her mouth and attempt to breathe. The fog positively hadn’t helped. Freddie’d had the horrifying sense it was alive and attempting to climb inside her.
Then a bell had tolled from someplace within the bushes, regardless that there was solely the one bell in Metropolis-on-the-Berme (at the moment over Freddie’s head) and it had no clapper so it couldn’t ring.
Freddie had not preferred that sound. Nor the way in which she’d instantly felt the fog tighten as if strong round her throat.
So the moment she had heard frantic shrieking from the woods close by, she’d wanted no urging in any respect to show round and pedal straight dwelling once more.
She had seen sufficient X-Recordsdata and browse sufficient Goosebumps, thanks very a lot, to know the way this type of story would finish.
As soon as dwelling, she’d referred to as the cops. Sadly, as an alternative of discovering a Individual in Misery Being Slowly Dismembered within the previous logging forests of Metropolis-on-the-Berme, Sheriff Bowman had discovered an unauthorized bonfire and plenty of underage ingesting.
Divya kicked her legs onto the bench in entrance of her. “Look, Fred, I’ll grudgingly settle for that neither of us is aware of a lot about events or partying or something related to the verb ‘to get together,’ however absolutely you possibly can inform the distinction between somebody screaming bloody homicide and somebody screaming for extra beer.”
“Can I, although?” Freddie requested. “As a result of it seemed like bloody homicide to me. I imply, glass containers aren’t even allowed in Metropolis-on-the-Berme, Div.”
“Fairly certain the Fortin children don’t care about that half. They’re additionally underneath twenty-one.” Divya gave a low whistle. “Oh boy, I hope they don’t know that it was you who referred to as the cops on them.”
Freddie’s abdomen flipped. She hadn’t considered that. “How may they presumably know?”
Divya shrugged. “Dunno. Nevertheless it’s a small city. Individuals speak.”
Freddie winced. That phrase—It’s a small city, individuals speak—would possibly as effectively have been the city motto for Berm, inhabitants 1,321. There have been extra deer right here than individuals, and if the deer may speak, they in all probability would too.
Freddie’s solely potential saving grace was that nearly all the college students at Fortin Prep have been from out of city, and the one factor Bermians hated greater than a disruption to their beloved fête was out-of-towners. They even stated it that method—out-of-towners—prefer it was a unclean phrase, and vacationers have been solely accepted so long as they didn’t keep for greater than a protracted weekend in the course of the summer season.
When finally the daddy longlegs have been vanquished from the ladder, Freddie retrieved the mandatory fairy lights from a field by Divya’s bench. “Thanks for the assistance,” Freddie stated with as a lot sarcasm as she may muster.
“Any time,” Divya murmured, as soon as extra enjoying Snake. “Can we go to the archives now?”
“No.” Freddie sniffed. “The settlement was that you simply’d assist me clear up the previous schoolhouse, and then I might take you to the archives.”
“However my paper is due Monday, Fred.” Divya lastly shoved her cellphone into her pocket. “I can’t wait any longer.”
“Properly, possibly it is best to have considered that earlier than you spent the final ten minutes enjoying Snake.” Freddie notched her chin excessive and sashayed away from Divya, a path of lights dragging over the wood planks behind her.
“I’ll assist now.” Divya chased after.
“Too late.” Freddie reached the ladder, and with one handful of lights, she lumbered up.
“Please, Fred.” Divya hugged on the ladder beneath and shot dramatic pet eyes upward. “Simply inform me what to do. Pwetty pwease?” She fluttered her lashes. “I can plug within the lights… or… sweep?”
“I already swept.” Actually, had her bestie been paying any consideration? “You’re going to need to get extra inventive, Madame Srivastava. Suppose firstborn youngster or household inheritance. Then I would rethink.”
Freddie reached the highest of the ladder. Chilly air billowed towards her— and the Village Historique spanned past. Lovely, vibe-y, and all the time proper on the sting of falling aside as a result of there by no means gave the impression to be sufficient funding.
Straight forward was the Village Sq., quickly to be full of the Lumberjack Pageant stage however at the moment solely full of hay bales and scarecrows, certainly one of which seemed to be waving, because of the wind.
“New concept,” Divya referred to as from beneath. “What if I lend you Lance?”
Oh, now we’re speaking. “Two weeks,” Freddie replied as she unknotted fairy lights. “I need him two weeks.”
“One.”
“Two or I climb down and depart you stranded.”
“Ugh, positive. You possibly can have him for 2 weeks.”
Huzzah. Freddie grinned on the bronze bell earlier than her, with its inexperienced outer patina. I’m so getting the higher finish of this discount.
Creak, creak, the bell agreed, because it had no clapper—which means when a wind tumbled by means of the cupola or Freddie wrapped lights round it, the poor factor may solely give a tragic squeal upon its hinge.
Nonetheless, that didn’t imply it couldn’t be the bell she’d heard final evening… And there was just one approach to discover out. Freddie grabbed the bell now and shook it.
Creak, creak, creak, it stated in reply.
She gave it yet another heave, simply to make sure…
Creak, creak, creak.
Yep, okay. Freddie may now say with absolute certainty that this was not the bell she’d heard, and if this factor had ever tolled with any dignity, these days have been gone.
Which was positive. It didn’t have to ring. It was only a reproduction of the bronze bell over on the Allard Fortin mausoleum anyway. Though, to be sincere, the reproduction was trying fairly tough this yr—like possibly the man Mother had employed to make it hadn’t performed an excellent job. As soon as she’d lined the bell in lights like a tragic Christmas tree, Freddie scuttled down. She was completely freezing now, and actually mourning the lack of her scarf. “I’ll take Lance, please.” She thrust her hand at Divya.
Who scowled. Then additionally obeyed and withdrew the sacred keychain from her pocket. A heartbeat later, the face of Lance Bass gleamed up at Freddie.
And Freddie sighed a melty sigh as she accepted Lance’s flawless face. He match so completely in her palm, a tiny slice of boy band magic. Every time Divya (or Freddie) had it together with her, good issues occurred. Magical issues, like discovering fifty-dollar payments within the street or repeated Good Hair Days.
Freddie blew Lance a kiss, then slipped him into her puffer vest. “Alright,” she declared, chin rising in triumph, “comply with me, Madame Srivastava. I shall lead you to the archives!”
She marched them out of the schoolhouse. If she twisted barely, she may see Le Moulin à Eau (the water mill) by means of a copse of coppery maples. At the moment, no paddles spun.
South of that was Le Forgeron (the blacksmith), which technically had a working forge… but additionally technically lacked a working blacksmith to make use of it. It had been modeled on a smithy that had been within the authentic Metropolis-on-the-Berme within the 1600s—and it was because of the blacksmith on the time preserving meticulous journals that Mother had been capable of make the reproduction bell that now lived within the schoolhouse with out its clapper.
It was towards this storied blacksmith’s hut that Freddie and Divya now aimed. They reached the stream that fed its forge, glittering, burbly, and darkish with chilly. The check in entrance that learn Le Forgeron had a contemporary streak of chook poop on it. So now it simply learn Le Forger(splat).
Freddie scowled on the poop. She ought to in all probability clear it earlier than the fête.
She and Divya have been simply rounding the constructing so they might embark into the woods when footsteps stomped out. A determine barreled into view. “Hey,” he stated.
And Freddie’s coronary heart lurched into her throat. Luis Mendez, star athlete and fellow senior at Berm Excessive, had simply spoken to her. Much more weird, he wasn’t performed talking and he was smiling. “Gellar,” he panted. “Good to see you.”
Then he was previous Freddie in a gust of sweaty air.
“Um… ” Divya wiggled a pinkie in her ear. “Did Luis Mendez simply say your identify?”
“I feel so.” Freddie was as absolutely shocked as Divya. Every single day, the Berm Excessive cross-country crew ran the park’s paths. Typically they nodded her method, however 99.9999 % of the time, they ignored her existence.
“Gellar!” cried a brand new voice. Then one other and one other, and instantly a whole swarm (or was it a nest?) of boys was charging previous. Zach Gilroy and Darius Baker even slung out their palms for prime fives.
Freddie complied, though she wasn’t completely certain how. Her mind had principally disconnected from her physique, and she or he may really feel her jaw dangling low. In seconds, the whole lot of the boys’ crew had jogged previous. Which meant that any second now, the women would—
“Freddie!” shrieked Carly Zhang as she bounded by. “Good job!”
“Good job on what?” Freddie tried to ask, however Carly was already gone, and now cheers have been rising up as a second stampede of our bodies rushed nearer.
“Now we have formally entered The X-Recordsdata,” Divya stated as ft and ponytails thundered previous, and Freddie may solely nod in settlement. Even the blacksmith’s hut appeared faintly astonished, its wood exterior creaking on the wind.
Then, as quick because the Berm Excessive cross-country groups had appeared, they vanished once more. Which wasn’t terribly shocking, given there have been solely seventeen runners throughout each groups. Final, as a result of he was all the time final (besides within the jack-o’-lantern contest of ’95), got here poor Todd Raskin, ever decided to dominate his bronchial asthma by means of sheer perserverance.
“Do you want your inhaler?” Freddie requested as he heaved previous.
“Nah,” he wheezed. “Thanks, Gellar. And good job!”
“I feel,” Divya stated, slipping her arm again by means of Freddie’s as they watched Todd tromp away, “that you simply’re widespread now, Freddie. That is… effectively, monumental, definitely.”
“Or simply bizarre.” Regardless of Freddie’s best perception in her personal fortitude, her knees have been quaking inside her denims. “Why would everybody like me unexpectedly? I don’t assume Carly has talked to me since seventh grade.”
“Erm.” Divya’s face scrunched into one thing nearly pained. “I feel this implies all of them know you bought the Fortin children arrested. Which suggests…” She paused to chunk her lip. “Properly, the Fortin Prep children in all probability know too. In spite of everything, Fred, it’s a small city.”
Freddie sighed. “And other people speak.”
* * *
Leaves rattled beneath Freddie’s boots as she trekked down one of many many sloping hills within the park that unfold past the Village. Beneath the leaf litter, mud squicked, and each few steps, water had the audacity to splatter. Good factor Freddie all the time wore her duck boots within the fall.
Divya was not as effectively ready. “Are you certain this path is a shortcut?” she requested, ten paces behind Freddie and lagging farther every second. Her ft, clad solely in formerly-beige-but-now-mucky-brown Birkenstock clogs, weren’t faring effectively—and Divya had made certain to level this out nearly each step of the way in which.
“In fact it’s a shortcut.” Freddie laughed as if to say Divya was ridiculous for suspecting in any other case. She didn’t point out that this path was actually simply an ephemeral stream that tended to fill with mosquitos in the summertime.
“We’ve been out right here 5 minutes—”
“Oh my god, 5 minutes.” Freddie made a Dwelling Alone face. “Div, you’re the hardest gal I do know. You possibly can deal with this trek—I promise. And in case your sneakers get too muddy, I’ll carry you.”
“Oh yeah?” Divya snorted amusing. Her face was now as rosy because the cross-country crew’s. “You imply like that point you carried me to my room after I twisted my ankle? I keep in mind how that ended.”
Freddie flipped her hair. “I meant to fall down the steps, Divya. It’s referred to as comedy.”
“And this place known as horror.” Divya shivered. “I imply, we may die out right here and nobody would know! I don’t have cell service, which is all the time how slasher films begin—”
She broke off as wind burst by means of the bushes. It carried leaves and mud. Freddie’s hair sprayed into her face.
Then the wind settled. One breath, two, earlier than a loud creaking break up the bushes.
It was like groaning wooden, however subtler. Larger pitched.
And chilly trickled down Freddie’s neck. She gulped. “Did you hear that, Div?”
“The wind?” Divya shivered. “How may I miss it? I ought to’ve worn my winter coat.”
“That’s not it.” Freddie turned towards the sound. It had come from farther down the hill.
The creak repeated, shuddering deep into her ear. She knew that sound, and but she couldn’t pinpoint how.
Divya scampered in shut, fear pinching her brow. “What do you hear, Fred?”
“One thing isn’t proper.” As quickly as Freddie stated that, she knew it was true. Deeply, terrifyingly true.
Divya tensed beside her. “Is it your intestine?” Like everybody else, she knew that Freddie’s intestine was foolproof. Freddie had sensed three tornadoes and a kitchen hearth earlier than they’d occurred. Plus, she’d recognized Divya’s cat was dying earlier than anybody else had even sensed Rasputin was performing sluggish.
She threw a tough have a look at Divya. Her finest pal’s flush was gone; her lips have been pale. “Div,” she stated softly, “I feel it is best to return to the Village, okay? And name the sheriff. She must be right here.”
Someway, Divya’s face went even whiter. “What about you?”
“I’ve bought expertise with this sort of stuff.”
“What sort of stuff? Creepy forests? I’m fairly certain a number of weeks using final summer season with Sheriff Bowman doesn’t imply you possibly can waltz by means of right here in search of hassle.”
Freddie wasn’t simply waltzing. She’d performed two summer season internships together with her hero, Sheriff Rita Bowman, and regardless that they’d by no means encountered something actually horrific, she had realized what to do at a criminal offense scene. “Please, Div. Simply go.”
“Completely not.” Divya took Freddie’s hand in hers.
And Freddie swallowed. She did really feel safer having Divya there, and she or he supposed each sheriff wanted a deputy. “Come on, then.”
They resumed their march, palms held and eyes watering towards the wind. The bushes blurred. Freddie’s boots kicked up mud and decomposing leaves. She barely observed. The creaking sound was getting louder. It grated towards her pores and skin.
Then the forest opened up, and the women skittered to a cease.
Freddie launched Divya’s hand. She knew what the sound was now: the groaning of a rope. The gritting of fibers towards one another as if a physique was being towed downward and swung on the wind.
She spun and spun, however there was nothing there. Nothing however raging wind and spraying leaves—
A crow cawed. Excessive and simply past the clearing.
Freddie’s gaze lurched up, to a sycamore. To a department so excessive, no human may have presumably reached it.
But somebody had.
“Divya.” Freddie clutched her abdomen. “Cowl your eyes. We’re leaving.”
Excerpted from The Executioners Three, copyright © 2025 by Susan Dennard.
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