He couldn’t fathom who would do such a thing, or why.
His mind kept circling back to Elijah, who despised Sierra. He had keys to the villa and plenty of opportunity to sneak inside. Plus, he’d seen the message in Alicia’s coffin up close.
But there was no obvious motive. He wasn’t a contestant this season. He didn’t have stakes in this game.
Laser focus.
That irked Beck more than anything as he scrubbed.
He couldn’t afford to lose focus. And if he was stuck with Sierra Angelos, then he’d have to find a way to make it work.
“I wish she’d chosen a bed before she left.”
Beck stood next to Carter in the doorway of the second bedroom. The room was minimally decorated, with white comforters on twin beds, a vase of yellow roses on a desk, and a framed reproduction of one of Monet’s water lily paintings on the wall. The only thing that looked out of place were the prisonlike bars on the window, disrupting the view of the pinkening sky. It was an unnerving reminder of what had happened last season.
Carter looked at Beck, her voice strained as she added, “What if I accidentally choose the one she wants?”
“She doesn’t strike me as the type to care,” Beck assured her. “Why don’t you just pick one, and then we can see what’s in those?”
He gestured to the large black tote bags at the foot of each bed. He would’ve loved to dive into one himself, but he didn’t want to disturb Adi, who’d already fallen asleep in the other room.
Carter moved toward the bed near the window, then hesitated. “Do you think she’d want a view? Or maybe there’s a draft there, and she’d be too cold?”
“Carter,” Beck said, “if she’s cold, she can add a blanket. Really.”
“Easy for you to say,” Carter grumbled. “Your roommate isn’t likely to kill you in your sleep.”
“To be fair, that’s yet to be established.”
Carter gave him a look of despair as she picked up the tote bag on her chosen bed. But her misery transformed as she peeked inside.
“Oooh!” She withdrew a mug branded with theEscape Gamelogo.
Beck joined her, digging out a magnifying glass. He held it to his eye.“It is the little gray cells on which one must rely.”
“Check it out!” squealed Carter.
She was holding a glossy magazine with a man on the cover. Beck didn’t have to read the headline to recognize Victor Cunningham, founder and owner of Victory Escapades, Inc.tm Beloved by escape room fanatics everywhere, he was considered the master of mazes. The prince of puzzles. The king of codes. Not only had he built a worldwide franchise of escape rooms, but his brand carried everything from at-home puzzle boxes to murder mystery party kits. He was the genius behind Sweetbrier Resort, and the reason Beck was going to do whatever it took—including put up with an alleged killer as a teammate—to win an invitation to that Clue Master mecca.
Apparently not able to maintain attention on a single piece of swag, Carter tossed the magazine aside, whooping as she withdrew a small book of sudoku puzzles. “Sweet! I don’t have this one.”
They continued inspecting the gifts. A fancy gold Cryptex lock, a branded USB drive, a small box of hand-carved wooden brain teasers courtesy of Victory Escapades, Inc.tm Carter gave Beck the Rubik’s Cube, claiming she already owned several, and then fan-girled as she held up a T-shirt signed by Fitzy and Louis.
Beck pulled out the final item—a tiny flashlight with various settings. “Cool. You never know when you’re going to need a black light.”
“To . . . search for blood spatter?”
“I was thinking more, like, an impromptu rave.”
Carter laughed. “Right. Sorry. This whole thing with Sierra has me on edge.”
And Beck hadn’t even told her about the beef heart and creepy note. Her anxious expression confirmed that it had been a good decision.
“I think she’s got us all on edge.”
“I don’t know. Adi doesn’t seem too put off by her.”
“He might be one of those people that doesn’t emote a whole lot. I have no idea what that would be like. I’m, like, the ultimateemoter.”
