Page 114 of The Hunt

I scrubbed a hand over my face as my pulse thundered in my ears, drowning out every sound except the hammering of my own heartbeat.

Everything I thought I knew about the Hunt—the society, the rules, the reason we all played this game—was shifting under me like quicksand, dragging me down. What the fuck had I been a part of all this time? Who had I killed? People who genuinely deserved death, or innocents?

“Why?” I managed to grind out. “Why do they do it?”

“Because there aren’tthatmany death-row prisoners and terminally ill people out there, so they need to bump up thenumbers somehow,” JJ said. “It’s no fun to only have a few players in a Hunt, is it? We need a lot of prey to go after to make it fun and worthwhile.”

“But why the fuck do they trick us into participating?” I asked. “Why not just be honest from the start and find hunters who are actually willing to kill anyone with no remorse?”

“Because the Patriarchs know the vast majority of people aren’t total psychopaths, and that includes the Wilders. Most of them are likeyou—even after all their training, they only want to kill people they perceive as deserving of death, or people who are already on death’s door anyway. So… the Patriarchs lie. They pretend Group 3 is filled with the dregs of humanity. That way no one feels bad about hunting them down and fucking them up like total savages.”

“Butwhy?” Ev said in a shrill voice. “Why do the Patriarchs even run this horrible game in the first place? Especially if they know most of the players are innocent people.”

“Think about it,” JJ replied. “What doeseverythingcome down to at the end of the day?”

“I don’t know.”

“Yes, you do. I already hinted at it when I told you how they convince most of the Group 3 players to sign up.”

Ev’s frown deepened. “Money?”

“Yup. Money and power.” JJ winced as he pushed himself up slightly. “The Wilders are told that they’re the only ones who get to watch and bet on the Hunt while all the surveillance footage from the island streams on our server. If they’re not participating as hunters that year, I mean. But it’s not true. Others watch too.”

“Who?”

“A ton of online weirdos who pay for access on the dark web, and then pay even more to place bets on the hunters and prey as the game goes on. Of course, all that money gives the Patriarchsa hell of a lot more clout in the world, because we all know money equals power.” JJ’s gaze swiveled back to me. “You’ve already made them $20 million on those bets during this game, Rhett.And you, Everly… you’re making a lot for them too. You’re a real underdog story. People thought you’d be the first one to get taken out, butfuck… it’s like you’ve had a guardian angel on your side.”

Ev looked over at me. “You’re right,” she said, voice scarcely above a whisper. “I have.”

My hands curled into fists, nails digging into my palms until the pain cut through the chaos in my head. Fury flared, hot and unrelenting, but it wasn’t solely aimed at JJ—it was aimed atthem.The Patriarchs. The ones who’d designed this sick, twisted system. And maybe at myself for being too fucking ignorant to see it.

“Do all of them know?” I asked in a low voice. “Every single Patriarch?”

“Yes, Rhett, your father knows,” JJ said in a taunting tone, cocking his head. “That was the question you really wanted to ask, wasn’t it?”

Fuck.

My father could be a prick sometimes, but I never would’ve thought he was capable of something like this. Never thought he’d be able to lie and hide so much from me after all the shit our family had endured over the years.

“You can’t even do anything about it,” JJ went on. A smug note had appeared in his voice. “I told you earlier; you’re in deep. Especially with such a high body count. So even if you go running to the FBI, or whoever, you’re going down just like everyone else in the society.”

“Don’t be a cunt, Jake,” Ev spat out. “You’re already in enough trouble, don’t you think? Do you really want to piss us off even more?”

The mocking expression vanished from JJ’s face. “Sorry,” he muttered. “I was just saying.”

“Who else knows the truth?” I asked, crossing my arms over my chest. I wanted a mental list of people I needed to confront apart from my father and Peter Jennings.

JJ averted his eyes. “What makes you think anyone else knows?”

Ev kicked him in the ribs again. “Obviously, your dad toldyou,” she said hotly. “So it stands to reason that other non-Patriarchs might’ve been trusted with the big, bad secret too.”

“Okay… fine. You’re right,” JJ mumbled, grimacing. “The recruiters who work for us know the whole story too. But they have their own reasons to stay silent about it, so there’s no concern about any of them trying to tell the world.”

“Who are the recruiters?”

“I’ve told you guys enough. No more information until I’m free,” he said, squirming in his spot. “That’s the new deal.”

I took a deep breath, my jaw clenching. “You know what? I think you’re right,” I said, voice edged with barely-restrained rage. “You’ve told us enough. We can figure out the rest between us.”

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