Page 57 of Death Match

When it cleared and I was standing in the middle of the heat and greenery of the maze’s center again, I immediately looked up at the sky.

It wasn’t real, I reminded myself. At least, I hoped it wasn’t. I had to make sure.

“Tell me that wasn’t real,” I shouted. My throat burned from all the sobbing and screaming. “Tell me she’s alive! That they both are!”

There was only silence from above.

“Tell me!” I demanded.

“Kay is alive and well.” Eli’s voice was a relief to hear in more ways than one. And as his words sank in, more tears sprang into my eyes. My legs shook, and as my knees gave out, I sank into the tall grass and took shallow breaths.

“And Zach?” I called back, just to make sure. I needed to hear it from them.

“Perfectly fine,” he replied.

So, it hadn’t been real.

Oh, thank God.

Even still, the realness of the Trial still lingered, leaving me unstable and achy.

Eli and Michael hadn’t been joking when he’d said these Trials were meant to challenge me in the worst ways.

But at least Kay was okay and the instance with the bridge had been fabricated. Everything I had seen, everything that had happened, hadn’t been real. Kay was okay. Probably helping customers in her shop at that very moment. And Zach…he was most likely drinking from a bottle or napping.

Both of them were fine.

Then why was there still a stabbing pain in my chest? Why wasn’t it easing?

“Jade…” Eli’s voice was full of sympathy. “I swear to you, they’re okay. What you saw—what you experienced—it wasn’t real.”

I knew he was trying his best to make me feel better, but no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t shake the crippling feeling that Trial had left me with.

My head started to throb from thinking about it too much. I buried my fingers in the cool blades of grass, trying to regain control of myself.

I just wanted this to be over. The Trials, the war, everything. I just wanted to be done with it all.

Slowly, I stood again, trying to regather myself. But man, was I exhausted. And sickly.

“What was that Trial supposed to be about anyway? Torture?” I asked the angels in the sky. Who was coming up with this shit, anyway? Whoever it was, they needed to see a therapist because they were fucked up.

“Fears,” Michael answered. “Facing your greatest fears and then conquering them.” He paused. “This will be war, Jade. It isn’t going to be easy. You will lose people. But you can’t let that stop you from what needs to be done.”

Well…witnessing my best friend die? Yeah, I would say that Trial had nailed it on the head with showing me my worst fear.

And I had thought crossing the old-ass bridge would have been the challenge. Conquering my phobia of heights.

Nope. My fear of losing Kay outdid that one by a mile.

I shifted, suddenly uncomfortable as the weight of Michael’s words fell onto me—more stones to what I was already carrying on my shoulders. Even though he was probably right, I really didn’t want to think about the possibility of losing more people I cared about right now.

“You’re doing great, Jade,” Eli assured me. “It’ll be over soon.”

Soon? Really? Well, that was a relief.

“How many more of these things do I have anyway?” I asked, partly afraid of the answer.

“We really aren’t supposed to say…” I could hear the frown in his tone.

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