Chapter 21
MISSY
The sun hangs low in the late afternoon sky by the time the hulk of a man in front of me wearing a sweaty coral polo finally stops.
I feel like I’ve been walking for hours, and I can only hope that this is the end of our trek through the jungle-turned-sauna.
My bruised ankle begins to ache, and I roll it around, giving it a moment’s relief.
Earlier on the beach, I had been shelling out the remaining meat from a coconut when I’d been cornered by the bulky Sunsets and Sabotage staff member.
He gave me little more than a “follow me” before ushering me off the beach and into the jungle.
I’d searched for Colton but couldn’t find him among the sudden influx of coral polos swarming base camp.
But one parting glance across the beach told me that the other teams left in the game were also being separated and individually taken to unknown locations without their teammate.
Yesterday, we’d all been informed that there would be an additional Mayday Challenge and that it would take the place of our last Reward Challenge in the game. That meant that today’s challenge would be the very last one before Mayday Challenge Five—or in other words, the finals.
Everyone had spent the past day speculating about what this challenge would be and when it would take place.
It seems we are finally getting answers.
Well, sort of. Despite the many questions I’d asked after being led away from base camp, like where Colton was or why I wasn’t being united with my teammate, I wasn’t given a response.
I rest my hands on my knees, inhaling a long breath before eyeing the staff member who served as my jungle sherpa, guiding my weak little limbs over rocks and hills as the drone above us caught every step on camera.
The man looks nearly as worn out as I do, but somehow he’s managed to whistle Simon & Garfunkel tunes throughout our entire expedition, likely to avoid playing twenty questions with me as I tried to siphon information from him to no avail.
He wouldn’t even tell me his name, so I’ve just been calling him Simon as an homage to his favorite musical duo.
I place my hands on my hips. “So, is this where you finally tell me what this new Mayday Challenge is all about?”
In answer, Simon steps aside, exposing what was previously hiding behind those big shoulder bricks of his.
“Whoa.” I’m both creeped out and curious at the structure before me. I take a few tentative steps forward, marveling at the scene that looks to have come straight out of an Indiana Jones movie.
About twenty feet in front of me lies the cockpit of a small airplane that appears as if it’s been ripped from its main cabin.
Jagged metal edges and stringy wires, which I hope are purely for aesthetic purposes, hang haphazardly from the severed cockpit.
My eyes travel around the exterior, noting the bold teal stripe that lines the front of the structure and the vines that wind across the windshield and roof, making it seem as if this cockpit has been abandoned in the jungle for years.
The sound of crunching leaves draws my attention back to Simon, whose face is pale and beaded with sweat after the intense heat. I feel bad that he has to stand outside and wait for me.
“Hold on just a moment,” I say before unzipping my backpack and pulling out one of my woven palm fans. “Take Dolly. She’s my favorite.”
Simon raises a brow as I hold the fan out to him.
“She’s named after the great Dolly Parton,” I explain. “Which, come to think of it, she’s covered a Simon & Garfunkel song.” I wiggle the fan in front of him. “I think you two will get along famously.”
Wordlessly, Simon takes the delicate palm fan between his meaty fingers, and with that, he turns and plants himself several yards away from me, fanning his face with little Dolly.
I pivot on my good heel and reexamine the task ahead of me.
“Mmkay, what is this all about?” I tiptoe between several winding roots before reaching the flat ground in front of the cockpit, the drone above me following me like it’s my shadow.
A skewed sign that reads “enter” hangs off one of the jagged metal edges, so I carefully step into the cockpit and duck my head under the wires that hang down. I worm my way onto the seat in the middle of the cockpit—the only seat in the cockpit.
The singular chair confirms my suspicion that whatever comes next is a solo mission, one that Colton is likely experiencing somewhere else in this jungle.
I feel a pang of disappointment. I haven’t seen him since midafternoon, and for some reason, that feels too long.
Funny that I could go from never wanting to see him again to wanting to see him throughout my day, whether that is in the pages of our coloring book or in person.
Just the thought pastes a smile on my lips that’s more permanent than any lip stain I’ve ever worn.
Be still, my heart. Is this really happening?
“Contestants, this is your captain speaking.” I nearly jump out of my seat hearing Niall’s disembodied voice.
I quickly find that it’s coming from the PA system above me.
“As you may have noticed, there are still four teams remaining after yesterday’s Mayday Challenge.
However, only three teams are permitted to compete in the final challenge, which means that in just minutes, one team will be eliminated. ”
Any happy feeling inside of me flees.
“In order to determine which team has seen their last sunset on Sabotage Island, we’ll be playing a little game of ‘Choose Your Fate.’”
I cover my eyes with my hand and breathe deep, hoping to cool off the nerves that have made instant noodles out of my innards. On rare occasions, I’ve seen this game played on Sunsets and Sabotage. It’s a mind game of the worst kind. One with big rewards but equally big risks.
“If you will draw your attention to your windshield,” Niall instructs.
Instantly, my gaze flicks to the windshield that, moments earlier, looked like just a sturdy sheet of glass, but now I watch its transparent surface transform from a clear windowpane to an inky-black LED screen.
Soon after, the names of the eight remaining contestants appear in their team colors in four distinct team columns.
I see my name in teal right next to Colton’s and start to nervously finger my handmade bracelet, spinning it around my wrist. I feel blind not knowing where Colton is after having him right by my side for weeks.
“The rules of the game are simple. Without communicating with your teammate, each contestant has thirty seconds to choose one of three options. A food reward. A monetary reward. Or a safety reward. If you and your teammate both choose the food reward, you will both get that round’s food reward.
If you and your teammate both choose the monetary reward, you will both get that round’s monetary reward.
If you and your teammate both choose the safety reward, you and your teammate will not be eliminated and will go on to play in the final challenge of Sunsets and Sabotage.
However, if you and your teammate choose the safety reward, your team will no longer be eligible for any other rewards offered throughout this Mayday Challenge.
” Niall pauses, likely for dramatic effect.
“But, if at any time you and your teammate choose different rewards, you will get nothing from that round.”
Once more, I spin my bracelet around my wrist, my fingertips skimming the dried leaves. I’ve never been a good guesser, and having to guess what is going on in Colton’s mind, well, I’ve been trying to do that for years with little success.
“We will play in rounds until there is only one team that has not chosen the safety reward at the same time. Your round one food reward is a spaghetti dinner. Your round one monetary reward is $500, given to each team member upon your last day on the island. Round one starts now.”
Suddenly, a clock appears in the left-hand corner of the LED screen, the seconds ticking down from thirty. I bite my lip, mulling over the three icons that have just appeared in front of me. A bread icon for food. A coin icon for monetary. And a house icon for safety.
My hand hovers over the safety button. Of course I want to be safe and move on to the next round, but then again, I’ve seen this game last thirteen rounds before. If I choose safety now, I could be missing out on heaps of benefits.
While there have definitely been seasons where all of the teams were more risk-averse when playing “Choose Your Fate,” there have also been seasons where teams have taken high risks and come out on top.
I think of Team Indigo, the winners of Season Twelve—they’d played this game and ended up winning a full buffet to fuel them before the final Mayday Challenge, as well as extra money in their pockets.
And then there was Team Burgundy from Season Five that kept choosing monetary rewards and walked into the final challenge with an extra $8,000 each.
Feeling confident that all teams won’t choose the safe route for round one, I move my hand over to the coin icon. Fourteen more seconds.
I think of my nonprofit and how I could use this extra money to set up Something to Glow About, but then I think of Colton, who goes out early every morning to fish so that I can have something somewhat filling for meals because I’m lousy with a fishing spear.
I know we’re all hungry out here, but Colton is likely burning off all the calories he eats every day just by fishing and bringing his finds back to camp.
With only three seconds left, I slap my hand on the screen, lighting up the bread icon.
I close my eyes, hoping beyond hope that Colton and I are aligned on this. Next thing I know, a red X flashes on my screen.