Chapter Fifteen Something Wicked This Way Comes
Briar
Th e school function Thomas had made me promise I’d attend was in fact, not an assembly.
The entire school, or I guess what looked like it, had gathered outside the back of the Burley District where I spent most of my time. It was where most of the mathematics classes were held.
Instead of an open common like the middle of the grounds, a recreational hall like behind the Iruine District, or the creepy mausoleum beyond the Rothchild District. There was in lieu a hedge maze.
Was it really a surprise that Hollow Heights would have a lavish maze probably with some spooky story attached to its name? Not really.
I’d learned quickly it came with the territory.
Ponderosa Springs and the university that was built upon it was not for the faint of heart.
The over ambitious seven concentric circles made of boxwood hedges took up all the space behind the building before it faded into forest line.
One single entrance into the encroaching formed grass, and what I assumed was one way out.
In the center sat a tower with a double helical external staircase, just to confuse people more.
Nighttime had come fast, students wearing glow in the dark bracelets and holding flashlights as they huddled in groups, laughing, enjoying another collegiate event they’d talk about on their wedding day.
I envied them.
Their oblivious nature and privilege.
I wondered how many people would show up if they knew students were being taken and teachers were being murdered in the woods.
Would they still enjoy themselves? Would the umbrella of wealth shield them from things even as cruel as death?
I wasn’t so sure.
Slipping my thumbs neatly into the holes at the cuff of my long-sleeve shirt, the polyester felt smooth against my skin when the wind pressed it tighter into my body. Lyra had braided my hair tightly down my back, hiding the slight red that stained my dirty blonde strains.
We scrubbed the shower for hours on our hands and knees with little proof. The white tile had a faint pink layer now. Not to mention, my skin was still tinted the same color even after a clean shower.
“They call it the Labyrinth.” Lyra speaks, walking in tune with me as we glide down the cobblestone steps to the damp grass in front of the soaring maze.
My stomach rumbled with lack of food and exhaustion, “Of course it is.”
I cross my arms in front of my chest, leaning on my left foot to peer into the entrance, greeted with the sight of darkness and a scarce amount of moonlight. There was no way we could navigate our way through this without a flashlight.
“It was inspired by the Greek myth, you know Theseus and the Minotaur? The builders wanted it to be a replica of the one in Crete. They do this game for the freshman every year, the challenge is always different and it’s usually a puzzle of some sort.
I had been looking forward to this when I was high school.
” The use of past tense does not escape me.
Had been looking forward to, as in she could not care less now.
They hadn’t only stolen our sense of safety, they’d stolen our sense of joy. We were so afraid to do anything fun, so scared they’d pop up around the corner and burn us to the ground.
Which sucked because I’d always consider myself pretty decent at puzzles.
“Welcome the freshman class of Hollow Heights!” One of the teachers announces with a microphone at the top of the cobblestone steps behind us.
“We are excited to include you in a century old tradition here! Every single year is a different game but the reward is always the same. If you find the golden key inside the Labyrinth you win access to one of the school’s many hidden rooms that have been remolded into private recreational halls.”
There is a loud cheer and resounding enthusiasm from our peers, more excited for the competition than the reward I’m sure.
Although this is a renowned university with more plaques and awards than the fucking pope, they don’t offer organized sports, afraid athletics will become more of a priory than education and that cannot happen at a school like this one.
If anyone for one single second thought Hollow Heights was doing anything to steer the greatest young minds of generations off course, they’d be discredited immediately. People try for years to get their children in here, to even have their applications touched by a fucking paperclip.
This is where our future America would be coming from.
It messed with my mind to know four of those people already had a rap sheet bloody as a tampon, what did they plan to do after this? Would they be helping kids? Ruling the free world?
“Teams of two and three only! Each team will have fifteen minutes inside the maze to locate the key, if you are unsuccessful, after the air horn goes off raise your flashlight up to the sky and wait for a teacher to come and guide you out of the maze. As always we want to ensure your safety during these fun times…” They go onto a list of safety precautions that more than half of us won’t remember in twenty seconds, the other half didn’t listen the first time around.
My eyes scanned the sea of students, subconsciously searching for one of them.
Another quick lesson I’d learned is if you saw one of The Hollow Boys the other three were not far behind.
There was never one without the other. Like sharks that hunted in a pack, it’s never the shark you see you need to worry yourself about, it’s the one lurking in the shadows that you can’t spot that’s more likely to take off a hunk of your leg.
I don’t see Silas’s black hoodie, Thatcher’s frozen tinted hair, or hear the click of Rook’s zippo over the noise. I didn’t even feel the pressure that comes when Alistair’s eyes are on me. That’s usually how I know they are sniffing around.
The panic. The sweat. The adrenaline.
It’s like every feeling I’d ever experienced combined into one yet at the same time it was like nothing I’d ever experienced before.
God, I hated him for it.
But tonight I didn’t see them. I couldn’t sense their presence. Organized school functions weren’t exactly their thing anyway. Too many eyes, too many expectations to be upheld.
I nudge Lyra with my hip, smirking a bit, “We can still make this fun, yeah? It would be nice to have a secret place to hide.”
She laughs, breathy and it’s the first sound of joy in the last few weeks.
“You really think we are going to find it before try hard Tracy and golden boy Garrett do?” Her eyes advert to Easton and Mary, a power couple in both vision and personality.
I don’t miss the yellow and purple bruise adorning his otherwise perfect face or the way Mary has intentionally matched her cardigan to the color of his shirt.
“This isn’t about whose daddy can buy them the biggest yacht. This is about navigating a maze. No money. No status. Sure, from day to day they have the upper hand, but right now, we have the advantage.”
“Our charming personalities?”
I push her shoulder lightly, the breeze catching her curls and pushing them behind her shoulder, “Besides that, smartass. Our advantage is street smarts. You think these kids have ever had to think on their feet before? Get themselves out of a tricky situation without their mom and dad? I doubt it.” I wasn’t being mean, just telling the truth.
It seemed to me Lyra and I were the only two people at this school who’d grown up below the millionaire line. Sure Lyra had money now as an eighteen-year-old, but she grew up in the system and I knew how that was. I saw what foster care did to kids. What it turned them into and let them become.
From birth you’re brought into this world without the ability to take care of yourself. You have to learn and adapt from others. Most have parents who guide and teach them. To show them the wrongs and rights of life.
Then there are others.
The outcasts, the castaways, the loners of the world who learn all these things themselves. We learn the hard way, we learn by failing, by mistakes. We grow claws and sharp teeth instead of warm hearts. We fight our way to the top. We take care of ourselves and our own. That’s it.
“You’re not worried about—” She pauses, looking over her shoulder to make sure no one is listening, “The maze catching fire or being hooked by a bear trap?”
I don’t laugh, even though I should. I wouldn’t put it past any of them to do something like that.
Was I worried? Yes.
Was I going to let that ruin this? I was going to try like hell not to.
“I doubt they’ll be here tonight. Plus they can’t get into the maze when we are inside, there are teachers at both entrances. We should be safe to enjoy ourselves tonight, okay?’ I reassure her.
She nods, not realizing that I plan on continuing, “But I really think we should consider telling someone, Lyra.”
Nothing comes out of her mouth for a while, silence as we hear an airhorn blare around us over and over again signaling the start and finish of people’s time inside the Labyrinth.
“Let’s take tonight. Just this moment. Just one night of normal and we can talk about what we need to do in the morning.”
It was the closest I’d gotten to a yes from her. I knew she was more apt to say no right now, but I still felt like this was a small win. She was beginning to warm up to the idea of confiding in someone. The police. A teacher. Anyone who could help us.
I hook my arm through hers, “You gonna be able to keep up in that skirt?” The green and black plaid material brushed the top of her thighs, putting me in the mind of Slytherin uniforms from Harry Potter.