Chapter 39
Chapter thirty-nine
Why would we waste our time searching this place from top to bottom when I know there’s a room full of screens monitoring every inch of it?
Lexi, Teagan, and I jog through the ominously quiet corridors of Windermere as I fill them in on the room Lochlan showed Lee and me. I also tell them about the security footage and how all the staff have been trapped here as hostages.
“We should be able to find Quinn, too,” I assure Teagan. “I’m telling you, there are literally fifty or more livestreams going on at once. It shouldn’t be hard to find him if we each take a wall.”
“But first, we find Pierce. I cannot believe he ran out of there when you went all She-Hulk,” Lexi chimes in, nudging me fondly with her elbow as we run. “That was seriously epic. If we end up getting out of here, I’m definitely dedicating an entire podcast episode to that moment alone.”
I giggle and feel a blush tearing across my cheeks. “Shut up,” I gasp with a smile.
My stamina isn’t up to par after running nonstop for the last day or so. At least Lex and Teagan were able to change. I feel absolutely disgusting in my days-old survival clothing and feel horrible knowing they must both be politely ignoring the stench of blood and sweat permeating from my skin.
We enter the massive dining hall, and all three of us come to a halting stop while we take in the bloody scene before us.
Josh’s body is still lying there, surrounded by a large pool of dark blood, and the gun Lee used to kill him is sitting on the dining table. I walk over, grab the rifle, then check to make sure it’s loaded before walking over to where the girls have paused.
It’s the other body that has my heart pinching painfully in my chest. The red-headed staff member that Josh killed is in the arms of another staff member.
She’s holding her and crying into her friend’s chest. I don’t know either of them, but I know now that they’re both just like us.
Pawns in this game, and we couldn’t save one of them.
“Allison?” Teagan steps toward her, her voice soft not to startle her.
Allison looks up, her dark eyes full of tears and pain, leaving mascara streaks down her face.
“She was my best friend,” she whispers. “She was stuck here because of me. I talked her into joining me on this trip years ago. All because I wanted to travel the world.” She looks down and places a kiss against her friend’s forehead. “And now she’ll be stuck here forever.”
Lexi kneels and places her hand on Allison’s shoulder. “Ashley tried to save my life, and I’m sorry we couldn’t save hers. But Allison, you can come with us. We’re getting out of here. Can you help us?”
Allison eyes the weapons we’re all holding. “It was her dream to find a way to escape this place, for all of us trapped here,” she tells us, wiping away her tears. “Tell me what I have to do.”
I don’t know this woman, but I’m in awe of her strength right now. Something tells me she’s someone who would fight tooth and nail to keep her people safe.
“Can you find all the others trapped here?” I ask her, and she nods. “Gather everybody and meet us in the forest. We’ll all head to the ferry together once Lochlan gets the limo. All of us are getting off this damn island.”
Allison gives Ashley one last squeeze, then gets to her feet.
“I’ll get them all out of here, I promise.
You girls, be safe. We won’t leave without you.
” She walks toward a door opposite us, then turns back.
“And if you can,” she stutters, before her demeanor hardens.
“Burn this place to the fucking ground.”
Lexi salutes her. “You got it, friend. We’ll leave what remains of this family here to rot among the ashes.” They share a conspiratorial smile before Allison disappears through one door while the three of us take off out of the other.
I’ve never been so thankful for my uncanny directional skills as I am right now because I’m successfully able to get the three of us back to the security room without getting lost.
We all pause at the door when we hear a playful voice with a Scottish accent on the other side.
“No. Stop doing that, you wretched creature.”
Teagan gasps and pushes her way through Lexi and me, throwing the door open before either of us can stop her.
“I knew it was you!” she shouts joyfully at Quinn and jumps into his arms. He looks both shocked and relieved to see her.
“I’m so sorry for everything. I should have believed you.
And I’m sorry for what happened to your mom.
” Her voice trails off as Quinn cocks his eyebrow at her.
“Pierce made me watch everything. He’s sick and demented.
Honestly, I don’t understand how you are related to him and Josh. They’re psychotic.”
Quinn sighs. “I’m just glad you’re okay.
” He squeezes her tighter. “And just for the record, you can blame my father for those sick and demented genes.” He looks over Teagan’s shoulder, meeting mine and Lexi’s gazes.
“I’m sorry for everything you all went through because of my family.
I don’t claim any of them aside from Skye.
She’s a pretty awesome kid.” He and I share a knowing smile, and I can’t help but be happy that she still has him in her life.
“Not to kill the vibe, but why were you in here anyway?” Lexi points to Quinn.
Quinn runs a hand over his face. “I came here after Allison let me out of the white room. I figured this was the best place to find Skye and Teagan.”
Lexi crosses her arms, her eyes scanning him up and down. “Fair enough. If Teagan trusts you, that’s good enough for me.”
Quinn flashes her a thankful smile. “Did you find Skye?”
I squeeze past him and Teagan, starting to look over all the screens as Lexi does the same on the other side. “Yeah, he and Lee have her. Allison is getting the rest of the staff out now.” I point to one of the screens showing her in the kitchens directing the staff out.
“What in the hell are you?” Lexi screeches while dodging a grey ball of fur.
“Paws!” Teagan, Quinn, and I all say in unison before Teagan scoops her up from the floor. “I can’t believe you saved her!” she gushes, giving both Paws and Quinn lovey-dovey eyes.
It would be adorably cute if we weren’t all running from a man who wants to both murder and trap us here to turn us into his unwilling servants.
Lexi rolls her eyes and gives Paws a pat on her head.
“I guess you’re sort of cute,” she says coolly.
“Look at us! Capri got herself an actual child, and Teagan and I snagged ourselves some hot Scottish men. You’re Scottish, right?
” she asks Quinn. “I only ask because Josh definitely didn’t have an accent, and Lochlan’s is much more pronounced than yours seems to be. ”
Quinn raises an eyebrow at her before shaking his head.
“Yes, I’m Scottish. My mother was also from America, which definitely played a part in my less pronounced accent, as you say.
Josh’s mother raised him in America, so he never really picked up on the accent.
And Lochlan is the proudest Scottish man I’ve ever met, annoyingly so, sometimes,” Quinn explains in a rush.
Lexi grins. “Then I guess we really did score those hot Scottish men, after all, T.” She winks at Teagan before turning back to her wall of screens. After a second, she taps a long nail on one of the monitors and announces, “And that, my Thriller Queens, is where we find our next victim.”
The four of us watch as Pierce and Henry shout at each other in a small, closet-type room.
Quinn chuckles dryly. “I know exactly where those two are hiding,” he says with a twisted grin.
He may look like his brothers, but he doesn’t exude that same sadistic aura like they do. Well, did. Rot in pieces, Josh.
My hand grips the rifle tighter as the slow burn of fury reignites in my stomach. “Where?”
Quinn takes Teagan’s hand and struts to the door. “They’re in the escape room.”
“Wait!” Lexi stops and points to the computer. “We need to destroy the footage. We can’t let this see the light of day. We owe that to everyone who came before us.”
Quinn walks back in and sits in the chair Lochlan occupied earlier. His dark hair falls over his eyes while he types something. “There. All we have to do is type the password.”
Lexi scoffs, raising her eyebrow at him. “And I’m guessing you know what that is?”
Quinn’s answering smile is devilishly charming. I totally get what Teagan sees in him. “It’s our father’s name.” He types in each letter slowly as we watch.
H-E-N-R-Y
“Henry? Like the butler guy? That Henry? He’s your father?” Teagan chokes out, pointing to the screen where Henry and Pierce continue to fight.
Quinn nods and presses enter. The screens all go black before our eyes.
A blinking bar appears, showing all the files being deleted in real time.
“Done. And yes, that Henry. He made us all prove our worth to him. Atlas is his last hope of keeping the family traditions alive. He’s done a great job of it all, hasn’t he? ”
I gnaw on my lip. “And how do you feel about us lighting this castle on fire and leaving them to die within its walls?”
He stands and faces me, his face alight with emotion. “I’ll finally be free.”
We follow Quinn out, weapons and Paws in hand, as he leads us to the other side of Windermere.
We make a few stops to grab some supplies.
I’ll be damned if I don’t give Allison the one thing she asked for: ashes.
It doesn’t take long before we are all standing in front of the door that leads to the stone stairway of the escape room.
How fitting that the place that started this all will be where it finally ends.