Mr. Pierce made the rules simple: them or me.
I hear heavy footsteps stomping up the stairs behind me, accompanied by heavy breathing.
Which door? Right or left?
My bare feet throb in sync with my pounding heart as I whisper a silent prayer that the door I choose is unlocked. I throw myself at the door on the left. I enter quickly, just as Ahmed hits the top of the stairs with Quinn right on his heels. Quinn is holding the small table over his head. I let out a strangled scream when he brings it down on Ahmed’s head.
“Teagan!” Quinn shouts as I slam the door behind me. The door has a thick beam of wood, like something you’d find in a castle dungeon. Iquickly fling it down. It fits into a metal latch on the opposite side of the door, locking me inside and Quinn out.
I lean against the door as the pounding starts. “Let me in, Teagan! We can figure this out together! I’m not going to hurt you! I swear on my own life, I won’t hurt you!”
My breathing is erratic, and my chest burns with fire as I struggle to calm myself down. This door won’t open unless I open it. Nobody can get me if I stay here.
I’m momentarily safe, but I need a plan.
Quinn pounds on the door again. “Please. I won’t hurt you.” His voice sounds as broken and betrayed as I feel. I want more than anything to believe that he’s telling the truth, but even if he is, only one of us will make it to the finish line.
And it has to be me. I have to save my friends at whatever cost.
I hear what I assume is Quinn sliding down the door and to the floor. I step away from my side as quietly as I can, wincing when the top of my foot blazes in pain. Blood pours out of it at an alarming rate. I must have cut it on a shard of glass after I hit Travis with the vase.
I’ve basically left a trail of breadcrumbs right to me. If I have any chance of hiding from the rest of them, I need to staunch the bleeding. Looking around the room, I see I’m in a small bedroom. There’s another window sitting above an old wooden dresser on the wall across from me, with a twin-size bed next to it. Dust clings to every inch of surface here, so I don’t think anyone has stayed here in some time, whereverthisis.
I start opening the drawers at random, hunting for anything I can use to wrap my foot. It looks like mainly men’s clothing, but beggars can’t be choosers. I find a few pairs of long socks and do my best to clean the wound on my foot. It isn’t deep, so I don’t think it’ll need stitches, but I wish I had a first-aid kit with some clean bandages and antibiotic cream.Instead, I use one of the socks, wrap it around my foot to cover the cut, and slip on two more pairs of socks.
Once that’s handled, I pull out a pair of pants that look about five times my size, a black t-shirt, and a green and blue thick flannel. I shed my dirty dress and put them on. The black pants are huge on me, but I pull a shoestring out of one of the discarded pairs of shoes thrown at the end of the bed and use it as a makeshift belt before putting on a pair of tan hiking boots. Again, they are much too big, but the doubled-up socks fill in some of the space.
Now, if only I were lucky enough to find a weapon and some food in this abandoned room. I search under the bed, find a small duffel bag, and throw some extra clothing into it. One more sweep around the room tells me that there is nothing else of use in here.
A door slams loudly from the hallway, and I throw my hand over my mouth to mute the scream snaking up my throat. I need to get the hell out of here before they find a way to break the door open.
Travis’s voice slips into the room. I cease to breathe. “Where is she? Did you find her?”
“She went through there,” Quinn answers after a beat of silence.
The handle shakes viciously as Travis tries to open the room I’m in.
“That door is locked, clearly,” Quinn says, his voice oozing with arrogance. “That’s why I said she went this way. And I’m assuming she took off down the steps and ran into the forest. If she’s smart, she’ll be long gone by now.”
Steps? What is he talking about?
Travis scoffs loudly. “And what happened to Ahmed?”
“He was gone by the time I got up the stairs. He probably chased her into the forest. We need to hurry so we can help him. Nobody else needs to die if we kill her first.”
Loud, heavy footsteps pace in the hallway. I’m too scared to even breathe. I don’t know why Quinn is lying to Travis, but I can’t screw up this opportunity. He’s pretty much told me where Travis is going and how to get out of here.
“Where’s David?” Quinn asks.
Travis stops pacing and lets out a boisterous laugh. “The fool knocked himself unconscious. I tried to wake him, but it was pointless. I snapped his neck instead. One less idiot to screw things up. Now let’s go find our little princess and end this thing.”
I hear movement again; this time, it sounds like Travis’s steps are moving farther away. I finally let out a small, painful breath just as there is a quiet tap on the door. Goosebumps prick my skin as I press my ear against the wood separating us.
“There’s a broken table leg sitting in the hallway out here. Use it. And be safe. I’ll keep him away from you for as long as I can,” Quinn whispers. “Whatever you do, don’t go into the woods.”
Can I actually trust Quinn? Or is this another trick that ends up with him leading me right into my own grave?
A long, torturous half hour or so passes by with no noise from the other side of my chosen prison before I risk opening the door. I hold my breath and tug the wooden barricade up, pausing to listen for sounds. I hear nothing except the lull of the ocean waves. I set the wooden plank on the bed since it’s too heavy for me to use as a weapon anyway. I finally open the door.
