Chapter 25 #2
“You can only do that if you get the hell out of here,” I stress.
Reece continues to stare at me, almost as if he wants to say more, before heaving out a sigh. He lifts his gaze and focuses on the men surrounding me. “Take care of her.”
“Always do,” Zane grumbles.
Reece curses and then turns to run through the door. Doyle immediately reaches up to close it behind him.
I try to search for any seams, any lines, any indication at all that, a few seconds earlier, there was a door there.
I can’t find any.
“He made it,” I whisper, my knotted stomach easing. “He really made it.” Reece Whipers would make a formidable ally. He was the one who led us to POP’s trafficking network in the first place.
“We don’t know for sure,” Beckett reminds me, his tone gentle.
“But he’s a tough bastard. He’ll make it,” Zane says. Then, in a muffled voice, he adds, “Unfortunately.”
Dominic elbows him in the gut.
“Thank you.” I turn toward Doyle, my heart wedging itself in my throat.
But Dominic’s brother has already left the room, slipping away as if he was never here to begin with.
Less than two seconds later, the mechanical voice from before declares, “Time’s up!”
Oh god.
Time’s up.
We freed Reece, but what about the other two? Did they survive? Did they find a way to escape?
My blood chills to sludge as, with a wheezing mechanical sound, every interior wall begins to lift, disappearing into the ceiling. Instead of a series of hallways and rooms, we now stand in one huge arena, easily the size of a football field or two combined.
“They seriously created this for a damn game?” Dominic whispers, parroting my own thoughts.
But I can’t focus on his words.
No, my attention is consumed by the two figures standing on the opposite side of the room from us, on a slightly raised stage.
“Fuck,” Beckett whispers, following my gaze.
Zane grabs my hand, and the four of us break into a run, passing a plethora of POP members who are meandering their way forward from wherever they were in the maze.
Lenny and Robbie stand hand in hand directly beside The Divine One—I can’t think of her as Aria right now.
They’ve both been stripped of the robes and masks and are as naked as they were when the game started.
Lenny is sobbing, fat tears rolling down her cheeks, while Robbie keeps his face impassive.
Both are covered from head to toe in blood.
I wonder if it’s theirs.
“We seem to have cheaters in our midst.” The Divine One’s voice echoes through the cavernous room, so even the POP members farthest away from the stage can hear.
A chorus of “boos” ripples through the crowd.
“Oh god.” I begin to run even faster, the cut in my leg aching fiercely. But the pain feels like an old friend with a hand on my arm, reminding me I’m here and still alive. I relish the sting.
“Fucking hell,” Dom mutters darkly.
“The lambs tried to escape,” The Divine One continues in that eerie, mechanical voice that scrapes at my skin like rusted nails. “They killed over a dozen of our family.”
Over a dozen?
Good for them.
“They need to be punished,” The Divine One continues, still in that apathetic voice. But I know Aria, and I suspect she’s grinning maliciously beneath that gold mask, reveling in the power.
This… This is how Aria planned from the start to win the game. No matter what the “lambs” did, she would declare they broke the rules. Cheated. I knew she never intended to let them go—I fucking knew it—but seeing it firsthand makes every muscle in my body lock together.
I need to do something.
Maybe I can use my powers as a so-called “goddess” to get her to stop. Or I could rally the people behind me.
“You will be punished,” The Divine One—no, dammit, Aria—continues, but this time, I swear her masked face is staring directly at me.
An avalanche slams into me and sweeps me away.
No.
No!
“NO!” I think I scream the word. A few heads turn in my direction, but it isn’t enough.
Aria doesn’t hesitate to lift her blade, already stained in garnet red, and slice it across Robbie’s throat. He doesn’t sputter or cry out. He simply stares blankly ahead, a single tear cascading down his cheek. He falls to his knees, then crumples forward, dead.
“Oh god.” Lenny begins to cry harder. “Please don’t. Please. I’m sorry. Please.”
The Divine One advances on her, and ropes of fire spill through my veins.
I’ve never felt so goddamn helpless before.
“Don’t look,” Beckett whispers, echoing what he told me earlier.
But I can’t look away.
I don’t want to.
I need to see this, to be a part of this, to offer what little comfort I can.
Lenny’s gaze snaps up, ensnaring mine, one of the only faces devoid of a mask.
I offer her a wobbly smile, tears streaming down my cheeks.
She looks so scared. God, I didn’t know it was possible for someone to look like that.
“Please,” I beg, though I’m uncertain who I’m speaking to.
The Divine One?
The POP members?
God himself?
The Divine One lifts her dagger and slices Lenny’s neck.
Unlike Robbie, she does make a sound as she falls forward—a strangled gurgle that reverberates through the room like a gunshot.
Her tear-filled gaze doesn’t leave mine as she topples sideways, her cheek landing in Robbie’s blood.
I see the exact moment the light leaves her eyes.
The exact moment she sucks in one final breath before her chest goes still.
The exact moment her twitching hand freezes, her palm splaying wide open on the bloody floor.
“Actions will have consequences,” The Divine One continues, and this time, I know she’s speaking the words to me. Only me.
I allow my eyes to narrow, allow her to see the unfettered rage coursing through me.
I hate her.
I fucking hate her.
And soon, regardless of the consequences, I’ll be her end.