“But our contracts forbid that,” Shawn said.
“Plus, the rest of us outnumber them with Royce gone,” I added.
“Camdon approached me and Greta to replace Royce on Aspen’s orders,” PB replied.
“So my dear partner decided to convene your little Scooby Gang,” Greta continued. “And as much as I would rather beanywhereelse, we need to get on the same page fast.”
I was unable to deny my nerves. “What did you say to him? Are you going—”
PB’s eyes flashed. “No! I’ve had enough insider trading, thank you very much. But we need to play along so Aspen doesn’t recruit Fortune instead.That’s the nightmare, and why I waited for this until Troy took Erika. We can’t risk her telling Fortune, so this info stays here.”
Melange shook her head. “Erika won’t let Fortune cross us.”
“Or just tell Zara,” Imogen said. “Shawn’s right. ‘Prize-split’ deals are totally outlawed. She’ll boot Aspen and Camdon.”
“Or end the whole season instead!” PB argued. “Thanks to this cheating ring, the network could legally scrap everything we’ve filmed under their insurance policy, which means they’ll get refunded for all expensesandsave the $5 million prize. What we’ve shot will be a wash, and nobody ever sees any of it. Best case, they begin again from scratch, but do we really want to return to the start of the Monopoly board?”
I’d racked up a gracious heap of cash, but my recent panic attack aside, I wasn’t ready for this game to end—not when I was getting Imogen back, not when I was exploring what Shawn and I might be. Besides, after my victories in the Trials and pushing my body to compete again, I was remembering what it felt like to be a winner, to bemyself. And as much as I hated to admit it, I didn’t relish my most favorable public appearance in years never seeing the light of day…
“Nobody’s rushing to be a Boy Scout now, are they?” Greta husked.
“Can’t we vote Aspen into the Trial?” I asked. “I know that affects Jiamin—”
“Jiamin’s irrelevant here,” PB dismissed quickly. “And we can’t just ‘vote him in.’ Who knows what he’d do as retribution? He’s a nuke that can detonate whenever he wants.”
“So who goes in if not him? We don’t have many pairs that aren’tus.”
The door banged loudly. “What’s going on in there?” Troy demanded. “The sound department says you’re all offline!”
PB stared intensely at us—but mostly me. “I’ll figure out the play, just wait for my cue.”
“Well, do it fast, and then let’s never talk about the”—I noticed the half-eaten pancakes still clutched in Shawn’s hand—“pancakesagain.”
A silent vow passed between us, everyone grudgingly nodding, and Greta flung the door open. “Troy, they trapped me here so this little succubus could force another fake apology on me!” She snatched a bewildered Shawn by the chin. “I’ll never forgive you. It’s…unthinkable!” With a moan, she bolted away.
PB shrugged, the innocent kid in the back of class. “Why can’t we all just get along?”
Troy scanned our little quorum, unconvinced, but his focus was elsewhere. “Luke, we need you in the dining room. Your presence has been requested.”
Jiamin reigned at the head of the mahogany table, a taupe cashmere sweater draped over her sharp shoulders. She smiled wryly. “This feels very corporate, doesn’t it?”
Jiamin had been even more reclusive since arriving in China. That I’d just learned her teammate was rigging the game made this chat all the more loaded. I was positive she had no idea, but I couldn’t warn her about Aspen with Troy there. “All okay?” I asked.
“I want to get some information on camera. If I tellyou, they’ll definitely air it,” she answered evenly. “And I need you to vote me into the Trial.”
I didn’t see that coming. Maybe shehadalready deduced Aspen’s scheme and sought an escape hatch? “Jiamin, why risk your shot at themoney?”
“This is about more than money at this point.”
“Then why? You clearly didn’t come back here for the attention.”
“That’s the nicest thing anyone’s said to me lately,” she laughed feebly. “I’m assuming PB told you about my parents?”
I blushed. “Not much.”
“They’re very well-off, very traditional. But they’ve always given me everything I’ve ever wanted. I wanted to be a model at seventeen, so they sent me to America.Model Citizenswas a hit, they were proud.” She paused, picking at her nails, virtually raw now. “When I met PB, they weren’t thrilled, but he was American, successful. At least at the time.”
“Yeah, he gave me the highlights…”
