Page 142 of The Hunt

“Yes.” I paused, letting out a short sigh. “Earlier, I thought about potentially ending the travel lockdown from the island by setting a fire. But I don’t think that would work in the end.”

Nikki frowned. “Yeah, Wildercliff Manor iswaytoo big for that. Almost 200,000 square feet with multiple wings branching off in different directions. So the chances of setting a fire big enough to cause problems is low at best,” she said. She paused for a beat and sat up straighter. “But I think you’re on the right track with that idea. If we could cause some sort of mass panic situation, the Patriarchs wouldhaveto allow travel to open up, because everyone would be scrambling to get off the island.”

“Good point,” Rhett murmured, nodding slowly.

“How many people are here altogether?” I asked.

Nikki’s lips twisted with contemplation. “I was told seventy-three Wilders are staying here while the Hunt is on, including the eight Patriarchs. But that’s not counting the thirty hunters. So there’s over a hundred of them altogether. There’s also about fifty staff members—cleaners, cooks, maintenance, tech support, and… me.”

“And the players?”

“Last I heard, there were nineteen still alive. That’s counting you. So eighteen are still out on the hunting grounds.”

“And no kills registered today,” Rhett muttered, rubbing his jaw. “That’s good.”

Nikki nodded. “Yeah, after the first two or three days, the players that are still left tend to be the more experienced or resourceful ones. They can hide better. Hold out longer. So it could take days for the hunters to get all of them. Maybe even weeks.”

Suddenly my mind was whirling. “How do things work with the staff members?” I asked, cocking my head slightly to the side. “You all sleep in separate quarters, right?”

“Yeah, in the south wing. North and east are for the Wilders. Can’t let them mix with the riff-raff too much, can we?” she said, rolling her eyes.

“So… you eat separately, right?”

“Yeah. There’s two cooks assigned to our wing, and six for the Wilders.” She snorted, eyes rolling upward again. “It has to be done that way, because all the rich guys justhaveto have their filet mignons and truffle risottos. But of course, the staff aren’t good enough for that sort of food.”

“What are you thinking, Ev?” Rhett asked, staring at me through slightly-narrowed eyes. “Some sort of food poisoning incident to induce mass panic?”

“Yeah, maybe,” I muttered. My mind was still scrambling, working overtime. “I have a question for you. Remember what you told me at the bonfire party? About how you gain access to the society secrets as soon as you become a full member.”

“Yup.” Rhett let out a low, bitter laugh. “What bullshit that turned out to be. We only know what the Patriarchs want us to know.”

“Yes, but how exactly does it work?” I asked. “Is there some sort of physical place where all the society information is stored? Like a vault somewhere?”

“Yeah, there is, in the back of the Wilder headquarters. But these days, the files are also digitized to make things easier for us,” he replied. “The way that works is: we all have an encrypted app on our phone. It can only be opened if you know the five-digit code, and that code changes twice a day. Whenever it changes, the new one is sent to us via secondary devices that we’re all given after the final trial. Smart watches. So even if someone stole a Wilder’s phone, they still wouldn’t be able to open the app. Not without the code from the watch.”

“So, your app only has the information the Patriarchs want you to know. Buttheirapps probably have it all, right?”

“Yeah, probably.”

“Your dad is a Patriarch. Could you get his phone and get on his app? Send all the info to yourself?”

Rhett rubbed his jaw, frowning slightly. “I could try,” he said. “If the code is the same for the Patriarch version of the app, then I can definitely open it on his phone, as long as I can get it from him in the first place. But if the codes are different… there’s probably no way, short of kidnapping him and holding a gun to his head.”

“Sounds like it’s worth a try, though,” Nikki replied. “If you get that information, it’ll go a long way to proving our case against the society once we try this whole takedown thing.”

“For sure.” Rhett nodded. “I’ll give it my best shot.”

Nikki looked back at me. “I’m getting the impression you have a serious plan percolating,” she said. “Am I right?”

“Yes. But whether it works or not depends on a ton of different things,” I said, mind still racing through possibilities and contingencies. I sat up straight again. “Earlier, you said you’ve been wearing a wig and glasses to disguise yourself in recruitment meetings, so the players wouldn’t recognize you during the game. Do you happen to have those here?”

Nikki nodded, one thumb jerking toward the duffel bag she’d brought in earlier. “I’ve had to travel all over the place for those meetings, so they’re always in my bag,” she said. “Why?”

I didn’t answer just yet. “Do you happen to have eye drops too?”

“Yup. I packed some because sea breezes always give me major dry-eye.”

“I have some too,” Rhett added. “In my first aid kit.”

---