Page 19 of The Players

But he wouldn’t let his former friends drown… would he?

“Listen,” I said, holding my hands up and trying to slow the terrified beating of my heart. “I’ll do whatever you want. Just let the guys down.”

A giggle sounded overhead. “Oh, we’ll let them down.”

At that moment, the lights above the three aquariums flicked on, the chains attached to the guys jerked, and the guys dropped at least a yard. Mills’ sneakers hit the water, sending some splashing to the floor. Muffled shouts escaped from behind their duct-taped mouths as their eyes went wide. Lowell rocked back and forth as he struggled against the duct tape, but it did no good. They were thoroughly bound.

“Don’t!” I said, glancing around, but the rest of the room was dark. “What do you want me to do? I’ll do it. Don’t drop them in!”

There was a pause. The only sound was the water in Mills’ aquarium trickling over the side and puddling on the floor.

I’m sorry, I mouthed at them. I meant it too. They were in this predicament because of me. Maybe if I’d clued them in on what was going on, they wouldn’t be—

“You need to choose,” Savannah’s voice said.

“Choose?”

Another light clicked on. On the far side of the warehouse, there were three electrical panels each with a big red button in the center. Above each button sat a plaque matching one of the guys’ names.

A sinking sensation began to build in my chest.

“No…”

“Choose who you want to save. Choose who you like best. You won’t have time to save them all, so choose wisely.”

“No, listen. This is stupid. I can’t choose. Please don’t make me—”

The voice cut in over mine. “You have thirty seconds.”

A clanking sound began. My eyes snapped back to the guys. All three of them were being lowered into the water.

This could not be happening. I couldn’t choose who to save!

But I couldn’t stand here and think or even vent my rage because I had thirty seconds.

I turned and sprinted toward the control panels like my life… no, strike that…the guys’ livesdepended on it.

Chapter nine

IranfasterthanI’d ever run in my life.

I’d never been what anyone would call athletic. In gym class, no one picked me first. I’d tried out for volleyball in middle school and was cut the first day.

But tonight, I ran like Usain Bolt.

My sneakers slapped on the concrete floor as I tried to reach the far side of the warehouse in time. Thirty seconds. I had thirty seconds. How long had it been since she’d started the timer? I had no idea. I could hear water sloshing and muffled shouts as the guys were being lowered into the water. Risking a glance over my shoulder, I saw that all three were already waist-deep in water.

Shit!I was running out of time.

I tried to push my legs to pump harder, but I was running on all cylinders as it was. Another problem was that I would need to decide soon which button to hit first. They were not close to each other, a fact that I was sure they’d thought of specifically to torture me. Worse, the guys would be able to see who I picked first. They’d know if I chose them last. However, not deciding would doom them all.

He won’t let them drown, I thought as I ran.Right?

But I had no confidence. He’d been the one to pull the hose from my coffin that night. He wanted me dead. And I hadn’t betrayed him like the guys had. He might let them die. His family had enough money to cover it up. Rich boys like him got away with murder, didn’t they? They could dump their bodies in the river and call it a boating accident.

Shit. This was a nightmare.

Still, I ran. More water splashed onto the floor. When I glanced back, the guys were chest-deep in water. I hated to see their thrashing, to look at their scared or rage-filled faces as they sunk deeper and deeper.

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