Chapter 16
Chapter sixteen
Everything is immensely peaceful, except for the chill permeating through the air and settling into my bones. The subtle sounds of the ocean waves breaking along the nearby coast are soothing, lulling me to sleep yet again.
“Teagan!” Someone shouts my name, I think. But they seem so far away. I drift back into my peaceful slumber.
“Teagan! Wake up!”
I jerk awake with a painful jolt. I’m lying on a concrete floor, surrounded by hay and the smell of mildew.
My entire body hurts as I struggle to take in the unfamiliar surroundings.
Someone is shouting my name. My brain is in a haze of confusion.
I’m disoriented and nauseous as I gaze up at the slanted ceiling and bars above me.
Where am I? How long have I been asleep?
The last thing I remember is leaving the most awkward and uncomfortable dinner of my entire life.
Josh was sitting there next to my friends like he owned the place.
At least he wasn’t sitting with Lexi. I don’t know if I could have kept my mask of indifference up if they were here together.
There’s no way Lexi invited him. So why is he here?
Mr. Pierce wasn’t what I expected. He left in such a rush and didn’t really tell us anything about himself. He told us dessert would come to our rooms.
Oh no.
It starts coming back to me in flashes—the knock on my bedroom door and the smoke that filled the room moments later, rendering me unconscious before I could do anything.
“Teagan!”
I sit up quickly, causing my head to pound painfully.
It feels like I’m taking an ice pick straight to my eye socket as I fight against the brightly lit room to search for the voice.
The sound of waves nearby still lingers, and the air smells like the ocean back home.
The sun is peeking through the small circular windows lining the walls above.
At least it’s daytime. I wrestle the fog in my brain to take in my surroundings.
The first thing I notice is that I’m in a cage. It’s about four feet by four feet and surrounded by thick metal bars. The second thing I notice is that I’m not alone.
Directly across from me is Quinn. He’s locked in his own matching cage about six feet from mine. He looks rough. His hair is in disarray atop his head, and the white shirt he was wearing when I last saw him is torn on one sleeve and dirty.
I look down at myself and see that I’m also wearing the same dress I was in last night. Except I’m not lucky enough to have shoes on because I stupidly showed up to dinner without my heels. They’re still in that damn escape room in the castle.
“What’s going on?” I ask Quinn, my voice cracking as I realize how parched I am. Something about these cages tugs on a buried memory.
There’s a noise on the other side of me.
I turn and see Amber, the woman from dinner who was sitting next to me.
She’s crying and locked in a cage of her own.
I don’t know much about her other than she’s another one of Mr. Pierce’s guests and an influencer invited to document this event.
Her thick, curly blonde hair is sticking out in every direction, and she’s in the same ivy green dress that she was wearing at dinner.
I stand on shaky legs and take in the rest of the room.
There are six of us locked in six separate cages.
None of the cages are close enough to touch.
Quinn, Amber, and I are the only ones awake so far.
I breathe a small sigh of relief when I don’t see Capri, Lee, Lexi, or Josh.
I may be angry at most of them, but I wouldn’t want them waking up to this confusing nightmare.
I also know I can count on them to find me once they realize I’m missing.
They have to notice at some point, right?
“I don’t know what’s going on here,” Quinn says, his gruff voice momentarily startling me. I turn back towards him. He’s leaning against the metal bars of his cage, facing my own. “But I’m going to figure out how to get us out of here.”
My veins flood with fear as I come to grips with the reality of our precarious situation. I feel momentarily paralyzed before I remember Mr. Pierce likes to play games. Didn’t he say we were in store for more?
“I’m sure this is just another one of Pierce’s mind games,” I say. Flashbacks of the horrible faux-escape room play like a broken film in my mind. “Have you looked for clues or anything in your cage?” I ask Quinn as I start sifting through the dirty, damp hay on the floor of my cage.
Quinn shakes his head. “There’s nothing in mine. Trust me, I’ve looked from top to bottom while waiting for someone other than her to wake up.” He points at Amber, who has wrapped herself in a ball and is sobbing into her hands.
There has to be a catch or escape button in here somewhere. I tug on each bar forcefully while trying to calm the wave of panic rising in my chest. “Maybe we—”
A loud, blaring alarm goes off above us. Quinn and I cover our ears while the other three guests finally wake in their cages.
“Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. Welcome to the next level of the game.”
That voice. It’s the same voice that taunted us in the escape room.
“I do hope you’re all well rested. Because I guarantee you won’t be getting a lick of sleep after today.” The distorted voice lets out a hideous cackle. “Now, Teagan, my dear. I give you a choice.”
Me? Why am I being singled out? I cross my arms across my chest and look nervously at Quinn. He’s staring up at the camera mounted on the ceiling above with such hatred and anger in his eyes.
I clear my throat. “And what choice is that?” I ask hesitantly.
The speaker crackles before the voice returns. “You—and only you—may allow one of your teammates to be released. One teammate. You cannot choose yourself, for I have more plans for you in our near future.”
I look to the rest of the group and see that David, Travis, and Ahmed are now wide awake. Their eyes are wild with fear as they stare at me. Waiting for me to decide their fate.
“I DON’T WANT TO PLAY YOUR STUPID GAMES ANYMORE!
” Amber screams. “I JUST WANT TO GO HOME!” She’s completely hysterical as she slams her hands onto the bars of her cage.
I stare at her in horror as she starts biting and kicking them, tears stream down her flushed face as she shouts at the ceiling. “JUST LET ME LEAVE!”
“You really don’t want to play, Amber?” the voice asks.
Amber’s hazel eyes bore into mine as she sobs harder against the bars. “No,” she pleads as she shakes her head. “Please just let me go.”
I wish I could wrap her in a hug. Instead, I’m stuck watching her unravel before me.
“What happens to the person I choose?” I finally ask.
The voice’s laugh echoes throughout the room. “I won’t make them play with the rest of us.”
Amber’s eyes are pleading as she gazes at me. I look at Quinn, and he gives me what I hope is an understanding nod. I can’t let Amber fall apart like this when, for some unknown reason, I have the power to end her suffering.
“It’s going to be okay, Amber.” I force a smile at her before I look back at the camera.
“Okay, then I choose Amber.” She cries harder as she smiles, her mouth twisted wide in panic, showing off all her teeth between her wobbling lips.
I’m too nervous to look at the rest of the group.
I know they must hate me right now for not giving them a second thought.
“Wish granted,” the speaker’s voice booms out.
Shots are fired in rapid succession from somewhere outside. Amber is shot three times before I can even scream. Hot, red blood splatters me as she falls to the ground.
“Don’t make a sound,” the voice orders. “Now that I have your attention, I’d like to tell you the rules of the game. Raise your hand if you’re ready to listen. If not, you’ll end up like poor, sweet, dead Amber.”
Quinn raises his hand. Travis is next. Then David. Ahmed stares at Amber’s body as he raises his hand.
I can’t take my eyes off Amber. Her lifeless body is twisted at an unnatural angle. I can’t help but stare into those beautiful hazel eyes. Eyes that will never see life in color again. Because I—I just killed her.
I killed her. I only wanted to help her. I didn’t want this to happen. My body goes numb all over, and I fall to the ground. The hay pokes and prods into my bare legs.
“Must you make me repeat myself, Teagan?” the voice sarcastically drones on from above.
“Teagan, raise your damn hand,” Quinn pleads.
I meet his eyes and raise my hand weakly into the air. I think I might be in shock. My body is shaking against my will as tears stream endlessly down my face.
The cages all make a clicking sound, and the doors slowly open.
“Thank you for your cooperation. Isn’t this fun! You’ll find instructions outside the door to your left. Don’t disappoint me again. I hope to see you on the other side.” The speaker’s distinct hum goes quiet, and just like that, the reality of my situation sets in.
This isn’t a game.
Amber has just been murdered in front of us….because of me.
This is life or death for all of us.
Quinn is the first to step out of his cage.
He reaches mine in several strides before yanking the door open.
He grabs my arm, pulling me out of my cage and into his arms. “This isn’t your fault, Teagan.
None of this is your fault,” he whispers into my ear.
“I’ll get us out of here. We will get through this.
Whatever this is. Now take a deep breath. Then let’s see what our next step is.”
I nod silently against him, unable to speak.
Travis and David are whispering to each other as they stand over Amber’s body. I nearly hurl when I see Travis bend down and inspect her even closer. He touches her bullet wounds and pokes her before sliding his hands down to her face and closing her eyes forever.
“Do you think this is fake? There’s no way they just murdered one of us, like for real? Right?” David asks as he chews his fingernails. His red Hawaiian shirt is crumpled and dirty against his pale skin as he paces around the room.
Could this just be another prank on us? I touch the blood on my dress and bring my hand to my nose.
It’s definitely real blood. My knees wobble as the pungent, coppery-iron scent overwhelms me.
Quinn’s arms wrap tighter around me while I take deep breaths through my mouth, trying my best not to puke.
Now isn’t the time for romantic feelings, but he’s the only thing keeping me from losing myself entirely.
“Umm, you guys. You need to see this.” Ahmed’s voice jerks me out of my shocked stupor, and I pull away from Quinn in search of him.
He’s standing by the door that holds whatever comes next in this twisted game of Pierce’s mind.
As we get closer, I see that he’s already opened the door.
My heart starts racing in my chest. I wonder what horror awaits us behind it.
Quinn’s presence next to me is like a reassuring security blanket as I stop in front of Ahmed.
Ahmed looks directly at me. His dark eyes penetrate mine with a look of disdain. “Why does all of this seem to be because of you?”
“What?” I risk looking into the next room. My brows knit in confusion when I see what’s waiting on the other side.
There’s a small round table sitting at the bottom of a staircase. On the table is a black typewriter, and on it sits a letter with my name written on it.
But the most disturbing thing is the vase of pink flowers sitting next to it. They are the same flowers Josh gave me for our anniversary. The exact same flowers. Wilting in the yellow vase I put them in—my yellow vase.
How is this possible? Has Pierce been following me—stalking me? Is Josh a part of this plan? No. I refuse to believe that Josh would put me through this even if he’s angry at me. Plus, how would they have met? Josh doesn’t know a phone book from a thriller novel.
“Teagan,” Quinn whispers low enough so only I can hear him. I look into his impossibly stormy blue eyes and see a hint of doubt hiding in them as he reaches past me to grab the letter, thrusting it into my hands. “What did you do?”
“I don’t know. I don’t know why this is happening. I’m just as clueless as the rest of you.” I look at the group and see three pairs of angry male eyes boring into my soul.
“Open the damn letter already before you get the rest of us killed!” Travis yells. His bald head does nothing to stop the sweat from dripping down his angry, red face.
Grasping the letter with shaky hands, I see it’s the same thick card-stock that the invitation to this place was written on. I tear it open and pull the letter out. The guys step closer so they can read it over my shoulder as I read the typed words myself.
Teagan,
Does this all seem familiar to you yet?
Four men, one woman. Locked in cages at the bottom of an abandoned lighthouse?
Well, it should, since you released the harshest, most condescending podcast review of this book—my very own book —three years ago.
Don’t remember how the story goes?
Let me refresh your memory, Teagan.
You said, and I quote, “There’s no way a woman would let herself get put into a situation where she has to rely on four strange men to save her. A ‘real final girl’ would find a way to save herself. No man required.”
Well, my dear. Here is your task: Prove me wrong.
Survive the night and find your way back to Windermere with these four men hunting you down.
But here’s the catch: if they kill you, they get to go back home.
If they don’t, I’ll kill all four of them.
Prove me wrong by following the rules I’ve laid out for you, and I give you my word that your friends will remain safe.
Fail, and you’ll all be dead by the end of the day.
Good luck, Teagan. And don’t forget to Live, Laugh, and Murder your little heart out.
A. M. Pierce
P.S. And don’t trouble your pretty little head about Amber’s fate. It was painted in the stars the moment you and your friends set foot into my home. After all, how can there be a true Final Girl if there are two of you?
No, no, no.
Now I know why this all felt so familiar to me. It’s one of A. M. Pierce’s stories come to life.
Quinn shifts next to me as the three men standing behind me all stop breathing. I swear I can feel their undiluted hatred and need for survival permeating through the air around us, suffocating me. The hair on the back of my neck stands up, sensing that I’m now in danger.
I suddenly wish I were locked back in the cage again for my own protection.