Page 44 of Wicked Games

“Not necessarily. You can only see Icarus Hall and the island from the Babylon dorms on very clear days, and even then, it’s just a tiny speck on the horizon,” Brooke said. “It goes both ways, and the weather today is awful. The mainland is probably shrouded in mist right now, so it’s not visible on the horizon. It just looks like clouds and nothing else.”

Rhys’s lips twisted in contemplation as he drummed his fingertips against his left knee. “Shit. You guys might be right. We could be at Icarus Hall,” he finally said, turning to glance at Carey. “Nice catch, Crim.”

“Drop the shitty nicknames, man,” I said, narrowing my eyes. “Now is really not the time.”

“Someone’s got a crush,” Kiara said under her breath so that only Jasmine and I could hear.

I glared at her. I didn’t have a crush on Carey. Firstly, this wasn’t the seventh grade. Secondly, the fact that I didn’t think this was the time nor the place for shitty attitudes didn’t necessarily mean I wanted to fuck Carey. I just wanted some peace and harmony in this hellhole while we were trying to bang out an escape plan.

Oh, fuck, who was I kidding?

It was obvious that I found Carey attractive. Everyone did. She was objectively beautiful. I’d screw her brains out if I had the opportunity. None of that meant I had feelings for her though, like Kiara was implying. Attraction was just a physical thing. It didn’t mean anything more.

“Three miles is a pretty long way to swim. Especially when it’s this cold,” Zach said. “Four would be even worse.”

“Yeah, there’s no way any of us are making that distance. Not in this weather.” April replied, shaking her head. “If it was warmer and the water wasn’t so rough, it would probably be okay for someone strong and fit. But right now, anyone who tries to swim away from here could be risking their life.”

Hudson snorted. “Fuck that. I’m not dying of hypothermia for you guys.”

“No one asked you to, dumbass,” Jasmine snapped. “In fact, no one asked you for anything.”

I lifted a palm. “Guys. We need to stay calm. No arguments.”

Carey was the first to reply, and my eyes shot to meet hers as she spoke. “He’s right. I know some of us really don’t like each other, but we’re all in this together, so we need to work as a team and try to put aside our differences for now.” She dropped her gaze from my face and went on. “As difficult as that might be.”

Jasmine pouted. “Whatever. I actually might have an idea,” she said. “Icarus Hall was last used in the 60s, right?”

April nodded. “I think so.”

“They used boats to get back and forth from the mainland, so they might have left some behind,” Jasmine went on. “They’d be super old, but we could still try to use one.”

Tate finally piped up from his spot by the window. “We should use Rhys’s sheet rope idea to go outside and look for them.”

“Are you serious?” April’s face twisted with incredulity. “Look, props to you for the idea, Jasmine, but this wholenightmare shit-show has clearly been planned by someone for a very long time. Don’t you think part of that plan would involve them removing any boats that happen to be lying around outside?”

Kiara’s upper lip curled. “You don’t need to be such a bitch about it.”

April let out an exasperated sigh and threw up her hands. “I’m just trying to be realistic. I’m not trying to be a bitch to anyone.”

“You’re right,” Jasmine muttered. “There are no boats anywhere. It was a stupid idea.”

“Maybe not,” Carey cut in. “I mean, how did the Game Master transport us here? Or himself?”

Brooke’s brows shot up. “Good point. There must be at leastoneboat here,” she said. “It would obviously be hidden somewhere, but still, it has to be on the island somewhere, right?”

An invisible bubble of hope seemed to float through the room, brightening everyone’s faces. Unfortunately, someone had to burst it.

“You guys could be right. But boats aren’t the only transport option, and while we were up in that tower, I saw a spot on the ground where a helicopter could land. They could’ve used that instead,” Zach said. “Also, if more than one person is involved in this scheme—which seems really likely—then they could’ve dropped us and the Game Master off in a boat and then gone back to shore. That way there’s no boat left here for us to find.”

Shit.He was right.

April piggybacked off his point. “Even if thereisa boat somewhere, there’s no way they would’ve left it lying around outside for us to find,” she said. “I mean, think about it. That window shutter being left open was no accident. It was fine this morning, and then it was suddenly cracked open. The GameMaster obviously did it just to mess with us. He wanted us to crack it open all the way. Hewantedus to know we’re on an island, so we’d all feel totally hopeless.”

The bleak expressions returned to everyone’s faces as they realized Zach and April had made some good points. This place was very likely an inescapable prison, and I was running out of ideas on how to keep everyone’s hopes up. How could I, when there probably wasn’t any fucking hope for us at all?

A series of pings went through the room, alerting us to our phones. With a sinking feeling in my stomach, I checked the latest message from our captor.

Dinner is served in the drawing room. Please eat as much as you can handle, because you’ll need your energy. Game two will begin in one hour.

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