Chapter 15 #2
“I mean, obviously, it was a good feeling to know that I’ve gotten this far,” Katie replies, tapping her fingers on her leg.
“At the same time, there’s a lot farther to go, and I have a feeling it’s going to require a huge shift in how we all think about this game.
I just hope I get the chance to keep going and live to see another day. ”
“Well, we know there’s one person who isn’t going home tonight. Jenny, I’m guessing it must feel nice to have immunity?”
“You could say that,” Jenny replies, relief evident in her tone. “You never know when it could be you, and it’s certainly nice to have that security that it won’t be tonight.”
Alex gestures to Ashraf. “Ashraf, do you think it’ll be you going home tonight?”
“Oh, I suppose it’s always a possibility,” he says. He leans back in his seat, a small smile on his lips. “But I’d say it’s unlikely. From a statistical perspective, if nothing else—after all, nine out of the ten of us will still be here in the morning.”
Next, Alex turns to Tamika. “Tamika,” he says, “what are you basing your vote on tonight?”
She pauses for a moment before responding. “Tonight, I’m basing my vote on who I can trust,” she finally says, her gaze locked onto Alex’s. “That, and who can get me furthest in this game. Those are factors for any vote, but I think they’re especially important tonight.”
Alex smiles, seemingly pleased with Tamika’s answer. “Truer words were never spoken.” He points to Jenny, who’s seated all the way at the end of the row. “And with that, it is time to vote. Jenny, you’re up.”
She goes and votes, followed by Marina, then Cole, and so on.
When it gets to my turn, I walk to the voting booth, write down RANDY on the parchment in large letters with no hesitation, and hold it up to the camera.
“My vote is for Randy,” I say, my voice steady.
“Nothing against you personally, but this is my best chance to stay in the game, so you have to go.”
Then I carefully fold the vote, place it in the urn, and return to my seat. My heart beats a steady thump-thump-thump in my chest as I wait for the voting to finish and Alex to go get the urn. This has to work, I tell myself over and over again. This will work.
Finally, Alex comes back and puts the urn in its usual place on the podium. “If anyone has a hidden immunity idol and you want to play it, now would be the time to do so,” he says.
For a moment, no one moves, and I wonder if I’ve miscalculated. Then, after a few more interminable seconds, Randy holds up his hand. “One moment, Alex,” he says, reaching down for his bag. He grins widely and laughs. “I swear I’ve got it here somewhere.”
My heart immediately leaps into my throat and stays there, even as I try to keep my expression as blank as possible.
This could just be a bluff—maybe he wants to see if he can get a reaction out of us, so whoever actually has the idol knows whether they need to play it for themself. Please, let that be true.
But then he pulls out something that looks like a bracelet with blue and green glass beads on it, and my heart almost stops.
He stands up and walks over to Alex, every step thudding in my ears as I realize that my game might be over.
“I know Jenny’s already safe tonight, but I’d like to increase our odds,” he says, handing Alex the idol. “I’m playing this for Ashraf.”
As soon as he says Ashraf’s name, relief washes through me, and I close my eyes and let out a quiet sigh.
That was close. Then I remember that I need to try to hide how I’m feeling, just in case there’s another surprise waiting in the wings, so I reopen my eyes and try my best to still my expression.
The rest of my alliance, including Cole, is clearly thinking the same thing, because they all have stone-faced expressions.
Still, the tells are there if you know what you’re looking for—the way the corners of Katie’s mouth are twisted up ever so slightly, or the way Rhonda’s hand lies lightly on her chest. Tamika, on the other hand, has her head down, looking at the ground, so I don’t know what she’s thinking.
Meanwhile, Randy takes his seat and shakes Ashraf’s shoulder, both of them grinning widely, like they’ve just won the Super Bowl. Jenny and Alina look happy too, the former even clapping her hands together in excitement. We’ll see how long their good humor lasts.
Once we’re all settled again, Alex holds up the idol that Randy just handed him.
“This is a hidden immunity idol,” he intones.
“All votes cast for Ashraf will not count. As usual, once the votes are read, the decision is final, and the person voted out will be asked to leave immediately. I’ll read the votes. ”
He reaches into the urn and pulls out one of the parchments, staring at it for a second before turning it to show us. “First vote: Randy.”
I glance to my left just in time to see Randy and Ashraf’s faces drop. Their smiles are replaced by confused expressions so quickly that it would be funny if it wasn’t so … okay, I guess it’s a little funny, although I doubt the Sikas would agree.
Meanwhile, Alex continues to read the votes. “Next vote: Marina. That’s one vote Randy, one vote Marina.
“Randy.
“Marina.
“Randy.
“Marina. We’re tied, three votes Randy, three votes Marina.
“Randy.
“Marina.
“Randy. That’s five votes Randy, four votes Marina, one vote left.”
I let out a quiet breath. Five votes for Randy means Cole truly didn’t flip, that he was telling the truth the entire time.
But I’m not out of the woods yet, because as Alex said, there’s still one vote left, and it could determine the course of the rest of the game. I reach out and take Marina’s hand in mine, giving it a light squeeze. It all comes down to Tamika now.
Alex reaches into the urn with exquisite slowness, opening the last parchment. “The ninth person voted out is,” he says, flipping the vote around to show us the name written on it. “Randy.”
I let out a huge sigh of relief and hear four others as Alex motions to Randy and says, “Please give me your insignia.”
Randy stands up and walks over to Alex, looking shell-shocked as he hands the latter his necklace. “Randy,” Alex says. “Your time in this game has come to an end.” He snaps the red token in half, then gestures to the path behind him. “It’s time for you to go.”