Page 80 of They're Watching You

“It is now time to begin,” Gavin says. “Only the game sprite knows where you will find your first game piece.” His brows waggle mischievously. “Oh where, oh where could she be?”

I glance around the chamber, my feet still pinned to the earth. Time stops. Part of me wants to slump down onto the stone and give in. To let the poison wreak its havoc on my body. I can’t compete against Remington. Not when his life is at stake.

The other part of me wants to follow through on this deep desire to slug Gavin in the mouth with this shard of glass. But that’s as good as ensuring my death, so I let it fall to the ground.

Then there’s a third part—the smallest piece of me—that’s aware of what I have to do and willing to do it. That’s the part that glimpses a wink of sparkling gossamer wings. A hint of fluorescent blue in the darkness, like a dragonfly’s wings. It dips down through the trapdoor before disappearing back up in the old cathedral. It’s what wrenches my feet from the ground and sparks me to action.

But I’m already seconds behind Remington. In a game like this, those seconds might as well be days.

Once I’m up inside the old cathedral, the other society members’ cheers and chants fading behind me, the sprite has already disappeared outside. But I catch a ripple of Remington’s cloak sliding out through the makeshift door.

A piercing pain wedges itself in my chest.

He’s playing. Trying to beat me so he can live, despite the consequences for me. When I inhale, the sharpness intensifies, and my steps are staggering. But on the next breath, the pain lessens. By the third one, I’m already sprinting after him.

Outside, the cold stings my face as I search for Remington’s black cloak, which has blended into the night. I start to run, even though I have no idea where he or the sprite went, until a branch rustles off to my right. A blur of motion gleams beneath the lampposts, and I follow it downhill toward Horton Pond.

Ahead, Remington takes a sharp turn before the pond, and I follow, my shoes slipping in the sludge on the bank. I catch myself before falling in the mud, but I’ve lost Remington again. After the grass, I take the pathway, hoping it’s where the game fairy headed.

Sure enough, footsteps slap the cobblestone, and the lampposts highlight Remington’s figure just as he disappears inside the Arthur Aquatic Center.

My stomach somersaults.No.

I’ve never been inside this building before. This is what Gavin meant by having to make the game fair. He added a challenge I can’t possibly complete. Definitely not before Remington. Gavin must’ve obtained my admission essay—or managed to hear my whispers last night in the dining hall. He learned about my fear of water, and he’s using it against me.

Clenching my teeth, I push through the doors, finding myself inside an enormous, humid facility with bleachers lining two sides. Immediately, the scent of chlorine sends my head spinning. The Olympic-size pool, complete with lane dividers and starting blocks, is right in front of me. The dizziness hits so hard I press my back against the cold wall to keep from falling in. Across the pool, the sprite stops before the exit door at the back. I watch the cracked and distorted version of her gesture with two hands around the facility before waving goodbye and flitting out the door.

“Maren!” I hear Remington’s voice, but I have to shut my eyes to stop the room from moving. “Are you okay?”

“Mmhmm,” I mumble, even though nothing about me or this situation is okay. I didn’t even realize I’d slid to the cold floor. But here I am, my palms pressed into the slip-proof tile. I reach up to rub my scalp, which is suddenly sore where my hair was ripped and pulled at when I was nine years old.

Remington comes closer, leaning down to whisper, “It’s going to be alright. But can you help me figure out what we’re supposed to be doing?”

We?“You left me.” I keep massaging my scalp. “You took the advantage for yourself and left me.”

“Sorry about that,” he says, not sounding very sorry at all. “But remember this is all a source of entertainment for them. We have to act like we’re competing.”

“Likely story,” I accidentally say aloud.

“Look, all I want is to get you out of this place and to safety, but we have to play the game.” His lips purse and then he mouths, “Did you do what we talked about?”

I nod. I tasked Jordan with getting the video out. Only Remington doesn’t know I already pulled the trigger on the whole thing. “It’s happening now,” I whisper, finally opening my eyes.

He blinks, but a look of understanding comes over him.

Maybe someone out there is still free of the society’s web. If not—if my decision to expose the truth about the society explodes in our faces—we’d better hurry up and figure out how to save ourselves before we both die.

“Okay,” I say, using the wall to push myself to my feet. “What are we looking for?”

“That’s the thing.” Remington stands at the edge of the pool, peering down into the blue water. “They didn’t say, and that fairy pretty much pointed to the entire place.”

I head to a set of bleachers, wobbling a little as I teeter on the small border between the water and the seating. I scan the tops of the benches before moving around to the back. Then I climb over and duck beneath the metal legs in search of some clue, some instruction to guide us.

“There’s something in the bottom of the pool,” Remington says, pointing. “Make that two somethings. In the shallow part.”

Before I can react, Remington is flinging his cloak and shirt onto a bleacher seat. He kicks his shoes off and takes two loping steps to the edge. He dives down, reaching the bottom to retrieve the first item. As he surfaces, taking in that first breath, I finally suck in some air too.

Remington glances from the small object to me, his expression grave. I know what he wants me to do. I have to try. I have to make it seem real.

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