“Citizens of Denver!”
I jolt at the booming sound of Hector’s voice above us.
“Put your masks on,” the guards say, kicking those who stall.
My panic surges the second I can no longer see. The sour scent of someone else’s sweat lingers on the fabric. If I can’t see my attackers, how am I going to defend myself? I no longer feel numb. I have to survive this. I want to see Timothy again, andRiver and Josh and Dino and Caden—more people than I ever thought I’d care about.
They order us to stand, then steer us to form a line. A large man stands in front of me and another one behind, making me feel squashed. Above us, Hector promises that tonight’s fight for freedom will be more exciting than usual.“Whoever wins is really going to earn it!”
They open the doors and nudge us out. My bare feet step on soft and warm sand. The crowd’s cheers are deafening, an assault from all directions. A guard moves me to a different spot and tells me to wait. I can’t tell if I’m at the center or closer to the sides of the arena’s floor, and I can’t tell how close the others stand.
Through the loudspeakers, Hector orders us to take out our weapons. I carefully unwrap my package and pull out a knife that feels smaller than the one I usually carry with me. I’ll need to get lucky and hit an artery or stab multiple times to keep my opponents down. There won’t be many clean deaths tonight, though killing someone is never truly clean.
My hand shakes as I try to hold the knife firmly. I can’t start running blindly in the hopes of stabbing someone before they can stab me. I have to be smarter.
“Contestants,fight for your freedom!”
I go down on my hands and knees in a heartbeat. When they led me to this spot, they steered me to the right side of the arena and turned me around, which means the closest wall is to my left. I hurry toward it, hoping it will make it harder for others to find me.
A man screams close by, but the screams turn into gurgles as he chokes on his own blood. I keep walking on all fours, wondering if I messed up the directions, then someone tumbles over me. They crash close enough for long hair to brush against the side of my face. I wish to keep walking, but I can’t take the risk. With only a split second to react, I grab the person’s hair to get a better idea of where to locate the neck, then I shove the blade into their flesh. I can feel the person thrashing, but I keep myself low to make it harder for them to slash my face.
Warm blood covers my hands, and based on the gasps of suffocation, the one I’m killing is a young woman. I don’t allow myself to feel remorse, not now. When I feel she’s no longer a threat, I pull my knife out and continue to crawl on the sand, the mask itching over my sweaty face. Finally, my head bangs against the wooden wall. I’m relieved, but I worry that others might have had the same idea, so I move back a few feet.
Seconds later, I sense someone coming closer, walking against the wall. I hold tightly to my knife, now slippery with blood. I don’t want to risk another fight unless I have to, especially since it feels like the other person is walking on two legs, making it easier for him to stab downward and hit my head.
Luckily, they walk past me. I keep myself as small as possible, trying to force my senses to take in every nearby movement. Screams of pain and death come from different directions, followed by a loud cheer from the satisfied crowd. I feel relieved with every cheer, since it means I’m one step closer to surviving this hell.
I don’t believe they’ll allow me and possibly others to stay on the ground much longer, and true enough, Hector’s voice soundsthrough the loudspeakers. “It seems we have eight… hmm, brave contestants left!”
The crowd laughs, and all I can think of are the seven rivals I still need to survive against. I thought there would be fewer by now.
“Since we don’t have all night, it’s time to take off your masks and start proving you are worthy of freedom!”
The crowd cheers louder, and I hurry to pull off my mask before the others can beat me to it. On the other side of the arena, a large man runs toward a woman who struggles to pull off her mask. I look away right before he falls on top of her, but I can’t escape her screams.
I jump to my feet, relieved there isn’t anyone close enough to be an immediate threat. Two men are fighting to my left and stabbing each other on the ground. Since being passive is no longer going to help me, I run toward them. Right as the man on top stabs the other through the heart, I send my hand forward and slice his throat.
He stumbles to his side, eyes wide and staring at me in horror as blood gushes from the cut.
I hurry to look around, and my heart drops at the sight of two men running toward me from both sides of the arena. The three of us are the only ones left, and they clearly decided to take me out before ultimately facing each other. I start to dash between them, but the man whose throat I just slashed reaches out and grabs my ankle.
I lose my footing and crash on my hands and knees, my knife flying ahead.
I curse and look up to see both men almost upon me, knives in hand.
I have nowhere left to run.
Chapter 21
Caden
“You seem bored.”
I take a sip of beer. “Could be because I am.”
“I can think of less boring things than watching men and women fighting for their lives.”
“I didn’t ask to be here.”
