Page 66 of The Hunt

“Actually, yeah, that would explain why so many of us passed out,” Nathan said, nodding slowly.

“It’s all pretty fuzzy,” Nikki went on. “But I saw the crew carrying everyone onto the life rafts. Or guiding people like me, who were still awake. They were so strong and brave. So…”

She trailed off and sniffed as more tears spilled down her cheeks. I patted her on the back. “It’s okay. Take your time,” I murmured.

She sucked in a few deep breaths and continued her story. “The last thing I remember is being guided toward a life raft by one of the crew members. And then… I think I passed out. I was just so overwhelmed. Then I woke up here.”

“Do you think the crew are dead?” someone asked her bluntly. “We haven’t seen any of them.”

“I think they survived,” she said. “At least… some of them.”

Nathan’s forehead creased. “You’ve seen them?”

Nikki shook her head and pointed down the beach. “No, but when I woke up, I saw lots of footprints in the sand going in either direction,” she said. “I came this way first. But if we all head the other way, I think we’ll find more people. Maybe the crew are there.”

“Shit, that’s the first piece of good news I’ve heard since I woke up,” Peter said. “Let’s go.”

We turned to head down the beach, palpable hope flickering in the air. After a few minutes, Nikki gently prodded me in the side. “Do you see that?” she asked, pointing to the left.

I followed her gaze to a thick tree at the edge of the forest. A black ribbon was tied around the trunk. My brows shot up. “Yeah, I see it. Any idea what it is?”

“It could be some sort of marker for forestry workers, right? Like a signal that the tree needs attention,” she said. “And that could mean there are workers somewhere nearby. Or maybe even a road.”

I nodded. “We should go and take a proper look once we’ve found the others.”

“Yeah. They can’t be too far away now,” she said, wrapping her thin arms around herself for warmth. “I wasn’t running for that long.”

As we moved toward the area where the footprints led, the sound of voices reached our ears. A mix of confusion and desperation hung in the air, carried by the breeze.

We rounded a bend in the sand, and there they were—around thirty people, gathered in a loose cluster near the edge of the forest.

They all looked just as lost as I felt. Some were huddled together in groups, while others stood apart, their faces drawn with exhaustion and fear. I recognized Cheryl amongst the loners and waved at her to draw her attention.

Her brows shot up when she saw me, and she hurried over. “I thought you were gone,” she said breathlessly. “Thank god you’re okay.”

“You too. Do you know, um… anything at all?” I asked, gesturing vaguely around us.

Cheryl shook her head. “We all woke up here. There’s stuff from the yacht lying around, but not much else.”

“Any crew?”

“No.” She frowned. “Only contestants.”

“That has to mean something, right?” I said. “I mean, what are the odds that all these players happened to survive the sinking while none of the crew did?”

“Yeah, it’s really weird,” Nikki interjected. She looked around, eyes narrowing slightly. “How many of us are there altogether?”

“There were twenty-two of us back there, and then you showed up. So twenty-three plus—” I stopped and looked at Cheryl again. “How many were here before we arrived?”

“Twenty-eight.”

“So fifty-one all up.”

She nodded, lips setting in a thin line. Then she picked up a piece of driftwood, held it in the air, and raised her voice.

“Listen up, everyone,” she called out. “Someone needs to take charge of this whole thing, so for now, I’m appointing myself as the speaker. Can everyone be quiet and gather around me? Just for a minute or two while we figure out the best way to handle this situation.”

There were a few grumbles and mutters, but everyone did as they were asked and gathered in a close crowd.

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