Classy.
Adi appeared seconds later, clutching a fizzy yellowish drink and sliding his way into the group like he’d been there all along.
“What are you drinking?” said Beck. “You know if we’re caught with alcohol—”
“Relax, it’s Mountain Dew. Listen. We need to talk about the periodic table in the snag round.”
Sierra rolled her eyes. “Move on, Adi. There was no anagr—”
“Alicia Angelos.”
The name sent a shock wave down Beck’s spine.
Sierra inhaled sharply. “What?”
“Itwasan anagram, and it spelled your sister’s name.” Adi lifted an eyebrow. “Any thoughts on why that might be?”
For a brief moment, a crack appeared in Sierra’s guarded expression. A hint of vulnerability. But as soon as Beck saw it, she covered it up again, growing even thornier than usual. “Why the hell would I know anything about that?”
“I thought maybe you told someone to plant it in the episode.”
“Like who? The Game Master?” Sierra scoffed. “News flash, nobody liked me last season, and this season, theyreallyhate me. If you’re right about this, I guarantee it was intended as some sick joke to throw me off my game during the round.”
“Maybe not,” Beck mused, while Carter ordered another round of drinks. “Maybe it was intended as, like, a memorial. It pays homage to her as a contestant, not just a”—he cut off suddenly, but then gulped and finished—“a victim.”
Sierra’s eyes blazed. “No one here gives a shit about my sister or her memory.”
“All right, fine,” said Adi. “That couldn’t have been an easy puzzle to orchestrate, with the numbers, the colors, the elements . . . It’s an awful lot of work to mess with one contestant.”
Sierra grunted. “All these people ever want to do is mess with us.”
“You sound very cynical,” said Carter, stumbling into Elijah as she reached past him to grab her juice. “Oops. Sorry.”
Sierra glared at the back of Elijah’s head. Then she glared at Carter. “Four weeks from now, you will be, too. If we last that long.”
Carter opened her mouth to retort, but then her gaze slid past Adi and Sierra.
Beck followed the look.
Fitzy and the Game Master were talking with Delphi and Gabriela. Gabriela had a martini glass in her hand—a mocktail? She tried to offer Fitzy a sip, but Louis scooped it up instead. He looked like he was giving Fitzy a hard time, although Fitzy took it in stride.
“I’m tired,” Carter said, loudly and unprompted. She chugged her drink and left the glass on a nearby table. “When can we go?”
“Agreed,” said Sierra. “We’ve paid our dues. Let’s get out of here.”
“Should we let someone know we’re leaving?” asked Beck.
Sierra waved the question away. “They aren’t our parents.”
“Yeah,” said Carter, taking a step toward the door. “Besides. We’re responsible teenagers, and—” She lurched sideways, her shoulder colliding with Adi’s chest.
Adi steadied her. “You okay?”
“Yep! Just fine!” Carter pulled away from him for a second, but then reached for his supporting arm. “Why is the room spinning?”
Beck traded looks with his other teammates, then glanced at Carter’s abandoned glass. “How many of those have you had?”
Carter frowned at him, confused, then counted on her fingers. “Three? I think? But it’s just pineapple juice.” Her words were starting to slur. Her brow glistened.
