“Legend’s hand is caught in the net. I think he broke it,” Silver yells.
No questions asked, Missy takes off running toward them, and so I follow her.
Missy and I stop next to where they sway in midair. The ropes of the net are pulled so taut that Silver and Legendare sandwiched together with very little wiggle room. Legend grimaces in pain.
“I can’t move my hand. It’s pinned behind my back,” he says.
“Hurry.” Silver readjusts her arm that’s angled awkwardly outside of one of the holes in the net and points to the nearest tree trunk. “The saw is right there. Can you cut us down, please?”
Silver saying please? Wow, her brother must really be hurt. Missy and I both turn toward the trunk of the tree that has a fuchsia saw hanging from it. It’s then that I spot a similar tree several yards away with a teal saw on it. My heart lifts. It would be so easy to leave Silver and Legend here while we get our saw and make a run for today’s finish line. But when Legend cries out in pain, I know I can’t leave them.
Missy and I drop our paddles and I step toward the fuchsia saw, only for my feet to get pulled from under me and my body to slam right against Missy’s. A gasp of surprise escapes her lips as we both get pulled straight up into the air in a net identical to Legend and Silver’s.
“Are you okay?” I look at Missy who’s squashed against me. Her hands are balled into fists and are pinned against my chest, while my arms are wrapped oddly around her backpack, welded in place by the net that molds around us. “Are you hurt?”
“No,” she says breathlessly, her face just an inch from my own. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah,” I grunt as I try to remove my hands from between Missy’s backpack and the net, but I’m met with a sharp burn against my skin from the unyielding ropes that hold us together.
A mix of horror and frustration passes over Missy’s face.
“It wouldn’t be the final challenge—” I start to say.
“—without the show sabotaging us,” Missy finishes.
“Welcome to the party,” Silver says.
Missy and I whip our heads in Team Fuchsia’s direction. Legend—how are we supposed to help him now? But when Iscan Legend for any sign of pain, there is none. Legend tilts his head back as far as the net will allow and starts to whistle. That’s when I notice Silver’s face, and the complete absence of worry. In fact, she looks bored.
“Are you serious?” Missy says, with all the spice of a southern mama. “Y’all played us. Oh, I’m gonna …”
“What? What are you gonna do, Missy? Sing to the birds? Ask them to peck you out of that net?” Silver taunts, still frozen in place as their net gently spins counterclockwise.
“No, I’m gonna win this. That’s what I’m gonna do.” Missy’s accent thickens with her frustration.
“Great, let me know how you’re going to make it out of that net, will you?”
“Ugh.” Missy’s hands clench the fabric of my shirt. “Why, I never. After this show, I don’t think I’ll ever believe someone when they tell me they’re hurt.”
“Oh, bless your heart, Missy,” Silver says, mimicking Missy’s Southern drawl.
Missy’s jaw drops, and I can almost see her pulling off her metaphorical earrings for a fight. “Now, you listen here, Silver. You keep it up, and I’m gonna snatch you bald-headed.”
“Whatever cranks your tractor, sweetheart,” Silver says.
“Oh, give me strength or give me bail money.” Missy’s face turns beet red beneath the streaks of dried mud across her face.
At the moment, I don’t know what I’m more distracted by, the plan I’m formulating in my head or the entertainment of Missy’s Southern insults.
“Missy,” I whisper, pulling her from her rare moment of anger. “How much can you move your hands?”
Missy lets go of my shirt, looking sheepish, then gives her fingers a wiggle before tugging at them. With the movement, her hands shift closer to the sides of the net, and I think my evolving plan might work. Quickly, I think through everyone’s positions,motives, and likelihood to retaliate, making sure my idea is as airtight as possible. For a moment, excitement builds inside my chest, the kind I experienced in law school when I needed to negotiate with a defendant, working a situation to a client’s advantage.
With an idea at the ready, I dip my head closer to Missy’s to get her thoughts; all the while, the buzzing of the drones does a thorough job of masking our conversation.
Once we’ve worked through a strategy, Missy and I put part one of our plan into action.
“Silver. Legend,” I say, drawing their bored expressions in our direction. “Neither of our teams will get out of these nets unless we work together.”
