Page 45 of Wicked Games

Carey

Dinner was a subdued affair, which was the least surprising thing ever, considering how we were staring down the barrel of yet another deadly game. No one made conversation, and I also noticed a lot of people purposefully avoiding each other’s eyes. Paranoia was building in all of us, and it finally boiled over fifteen minutes before the game was due to start.

“You know what, guys? I’ve been thinking about this all day,” Kiara suddenly said, putting her fork down with a clatter. She didn’t wait for any of us to respond before she continued, head swiveled to stare right at Rhys. “Where did you go before?”

Rhys stared back at her. “Huh?”

“This morning, while we were hanging out in Mav’s room. We were all in there for ages, just chatting or whatever. Butyou… you weren’t. You insisted on going off alone to ‘explore’,” she said, lifting her hands to put the word in air quotes.

“And?”

“Well, like April said earlier, the window shutter was closed in the morning. Then, after you wandered off alone, it was suddenly open. You’re also the one who just so happened to discover that it was open.” Kiara paused and arched an eyebrow.“Coincidence? Or are you the one who opened it to mess with us?”

Rhys narrowed his eyes. “Are you seriously implying that I’m the Game Master?”

“You have to admit, itiskinda weird, man,” Tate said.

Rhys turned his fierce gaze to him. “Are you fucking serious? Your last theory about the Game Master got Evankilled. Now you’re jumping in on the conspiracy theories all over again?”

Tate bristled. “I’m just saying, Kiara has a point. Where did you go earlier?”

“I told you. I went to explore.”

“Did you find anything?” Courteney chimed in from across the table.

“Yes, I actually did.” Rhys cocked his head in her direction. “I found every single camera and mic in the hall and foyer, just like I said I would. So now I know exactly how much surveillance we’re under in this place. And let me tell you… it’s a lot. The Game Master is always watching and listening. So you should probably be careful about what you say.”

“Is that a threat?” Zach asked, leaning forward.

Rhys rolled his eyes. “Of course you’re immediately jumping to defend her, given your pathetic little crush,” he said, voice dripping with condescension. “We can all tell, by the way, in case you actually thought you were hiding it well.”

Zach’s nostrils flared. “I’m just asking a question based on what you said, because it sounded like a threat.”

“It was just a comment.”

“Oh,sure.”

Maverick finally spoke up from the head of the table. “Guys, seriously. We agreed to stop arguing. We need to—”

“Work as a team, blah, blah, blah,” Rhys cut in. “I know, Mav. We’ve all heard this bullshit out of your mouth a hundred times today, and I think most of us are sick of it.”

“For once, I actually agree with you,” Tate said. “I don’t want to be in a team with any of you, and I’m sick of pretending I don’t suspect everyone in this fucking room.”

Brooke leaned forward, brows drawn into a quizzical expression. “I thought we all decided my theory was right. That the Game Master isn’t really one of us. He just said that to make us all fight.”

“No.” Tate shook his head. “Youdecided that. I never said I agreed. In fact, only a few people said they agree. Everyone else just stayed silent. So I’m willing to bet most of us secretly have a suspect when it comes to the Game Master’s identity. I’m also willing to bet most of us think it’s someone in this room. Just like they said in the video.”

That comment was like a lit match thrown in a powder keg. Almost everyone at the table began to snipe at each other, throwing out wild accusations while simultaneously defending themselves.

I was one of the few who remained silent, figuring it was better to keep my head down and draw as little attention to myself as possible. After all, I was one of the first people to be accused earlier, and I didn’t want or need any more of that bullshit flung at me. April, Brooke, and Zach joined in with some of the arguments, but they all stayed true to their word and kept our earlier discussion about Rhys to themselves.

Maverick abruptly stood and slammed his hand on the table. “Calm the fuck down! The game is about to start!”

The room fell silent, and every pair of eyes flew to the closest speaker. Maverick was right—just ten seconds later, the speaker crackled to life. “Players, please proceed to Gaming Room 2.”

The fear and tension in the room was palpable now. We marched outside and headed down the open east wing hall to find the door marked ‘Gaming Room 2’. Maverick pushed itopen, and once we were all inside, it automatically closed and locked with a soft hiss.

“That’s weird,” Rhys muttered. “It’s a different sort of door than the last one.”

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