Page 103 of The Way We Win

I take another turn and another, and suddenly, I’m face to face with a dead end.

“No!” I scream, ready to collapse.

I’m shaking all over. Tears are in my eyes, and I try to go back the way I came. But the person in the gorilla costume is there, blocking the only way out.

He tilts his head to the side, like he’s trying to understand something he’s never seen before. It’s dark, but I can see his white-blue eyes through the holes in the mask. They’re eerily fixed on me.

I know it’s all an act, but I don’t like it. I don’t like it at all.

Still, I have to get control.It’s just a kid, Allie. It’s just a game.

But all the fear I’ve been holding back since that first alert that Rip was out of prison is breaking loose and crashing down on my head.

“D-do I know you?” I try to calm my shaking voice, to dry the tears on my cheeks with my gloved hands as I force a smile. “Are you one of my students?”

The person shakes his head no, slowly like the monster in theHalloweenmovie, and I hiccup a breath.

“I know it’s fun to scare people, but I really need to get back to my friends, to Coach Jack.” I hold my hand out, doing my best to maintain distance as I try to circle around him to the only exit. “They’re all looking for me.”

The gorilla doesn’t speak, and he doesn’t move. He only stands, watching me.

“I’m going to pass you now.” I’m as close as I want to get, and my words are for me as much as for him. “You’re not supposed to touch us, remember? Those are the rules.”

His eyes narrow, almost as if he’s grinning at me.“You know me better than that, Allie.”

Ice filters through my veins. Yes, I’d know that scratchy voice anywhere. It hasn’t changed in eight years.

“Rip?” His name slips out on a cracked whisper. “What are you doing here?”

“I told you I’d be back.” He spreads his arms wide. “Here’s Johnny!”

“No!” I grab my dress again, breaking into a run, doing my best to dodge him as I try to get out of this dead end.

“Nope!” He grabs me around the waist, lifting me off my feet with ease. “You’re not going anywhere. Not without me.”

His arm is tight around me, pinning my arms to my sides so I can’t escape.

“You can’t do this.” I struggle against him. “You’re not supposed to leave the state!”

“Don’t fight me, Allie.” His voice is a sing-song like something I’ve heard in a scary movie. “This’ll be so much easier if you don’t fight me.”

I lean my head back, opening my mouth to scream as hard as I can when my nose and mouth are covered tightly with a soft cloth. I’m breathing fast, and it only takes two inhales for everything to go dark.

24

Jack

“Something’s wrong.” I’m standing at the end of the hay maze with my hands on my hips.

I’m pacing, and we’ve been out for ten minutes with no sign of Allie.

“I’m going back in there.” I start for the door when Garrett catches me around the shoulders, stopping me.

“Hang on, bro.” His voice is soothing. “You’ll go in there, then Allie will come out, then we’ll have to go in to look for you… It’s a vicious cycle.”

“Does she have her phone?” Dylan skips up to where we’re standing. “We’ve all been texting. Try calling her!”

Garrett and I exchange a glance.

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