I chuckled.
When we were finished signing everything and had been given a lecture on trying not to break things we found in the room, we were all herded through a large door that one hundred percent reminded me of the detailed carvings on the old ships I’d toured. Excitement careened through my chest.
“I love this,” I whispered to Maurice.
“Yes, it looks a bit like the painting in your office.” He rolled his eyes slightly.
I could’ve kissed him for remembering that. No one else cared about my strange obsessions enough to recall them later. I held him closer.
Once we were inside, I was in pure ecstasy. The room looked exactly the way I’d imagined the rich captain’s quarters of a pirate, hellbent on having a debauched journey across all seven seas. There was a bed anchored in one wall, draped with luxurious silks, books along the other side, a table set with fine silver, and a wall constructed to resemble the forward-facing windows of the bow on a ship. The view of the ocean outside was lit up and flashed with lightning as a storm raged on the other side, and over hidden speakers we heard the crash of thunder. The view changed to spray from waves hammering the windows, which had to be screens, but it was all so well done it felt real. My heart raced.
“Oh wow!” Lacey bounced around, and Celestine stared at me and Maurice. He caught me looking and pasted on a nervous smile.
Maurice’s mouth was set in a determined line, and I wasn’t sure if he was very into games and winning or if he was upset about this for real.
“Okay! Attention, please! I’m Felipe, your guide!” The attendant was all smiles as we turned to face him, and then he held up four sets of handcuffs that had me swallowing. They clinked as he moved them around, and maybe calling them shackles would be more accurate. They belonged to this adventure room as much as the sturdy supports on the bed and the scent of sea spray and cedar hanging in the air. “You have one hour to escape. This week’s record is ten minutes, but it’s not unusual for people to run out of time. You don’t want to find out what happens if the clock ends and you’re still in here,” he said ominously, then snickered. “We take your photograph for our wall of shame. The employees laugh mercilessly at you, and we post it on the internet for your friends and family to laugh at as well.” He seemed far too pleased.
Celestine was cuffed first with his hands behind his back, and I didn’t mind that so much, but then Lacey was cuffed, and I hated seeing the boy put the shackles on Maurice. Then it was my turn and sweat broke out on my forehead as the cool metal snapped home on my wrists.
“You’re all set.” Felipe tugged on my shackles, then backed off toward the door. “The first key you need is somewhere in this room! You’ll have to work as a team to find it and release yourself, and then you’ll be seeking a series of clues. Don’t give up! The things you need do exist!” He paused for us to laugh, I assumed, but I couldn’t force one. Everyone else seemed fine, though, and they all chuckled. “As soon as I lock you in, the timer will start. Good luck!” He went to the ornate door, exited, and then closed it. The lock that clunked was loud. A shiver raced down my spine.
“Uh, do they watch us to make sure we’re okay?”
“Yeah, for sure,” Lacey said, and she sounded as chipper as the first time I’d met her when she was four cocktails in for the night.
“It was on the sheet you signed. Didn’t you read it?” Maurice asked, lifting his eyebrows in my direction.
“No.” I shrugged.
“You don’t have an ounce of shame, do you?” He sighed.
“That’s what you’re for. You read my paperwork.”
He groaned, and I had the overwhelming urge to keep talking to distract myself.
Celestine cleared his throat. “So, Mr. Guidry. You and Maurice....”
I knocked my shoulder against Maurice’s, and he turned to face Celestine with me, giving him a very innocent face. “Yes? What about us?”
Lacey giggled and if she wasn’t careful, she would give the game away. I tugged against the metal on my wrists and strained.
Maurice leaned close. “Are you all right?”
“Not a fan of cuffs,” I murmured. “Didn’t expect this.”
Maurice stared around the room. Thunder rumbled, lightning flashed, and the crash of waves echoed loudly, sending my pulse rushing faster. “Let’s get them off you, then.”
“Yes, we have to find the key! We’re wasting time.”
We broke apart to search for the key as best we could with our hands behind our backs, and I scoured the table, then began using my nose to flip over plates while Lacey giggled over it. I wanted to be having a good time, too, but the longer it took to find the key, the worse I felt. My clothes stuck to my body and my heart smashed against my ribs every time I strained my wrists.
Maurice nudged me, mouth twisted down in a frown. “Are you still doing all right?”
I studied his serious face, but I didn’t want to ruin this for him, especially if he hadn’t been out in a while. “Sure.”
He glanced around—Lacey and Celestine were having a ball using their elbows to knock books off a shelf.
“Oh!” Lacey let out a happy squeal that scared a year off my life. “I found the second clue!” She stared down at the mess on the floor.
