Claire ignored that. “—and Mariana rigs the engine to explode above the cave opening.”
“Terrible plan,” Reyva snapped. “Much too dangerous. Why is it you who sets the snares and Mariana who rigs the engine? You know how much danger you’ll both be in? The dead man isn’t going to sit politely by while you fuss with your trap.”
A fox, a chicken, and a bag of corn need to cross a river...This was how they could solve the puzzle. Maybe there was a better way, but it was the only solution she’d thought of that didn’t require leaving anyone behind. “It has to be us,” Claire said. “Mariana is the one who understands engines. It will have to be her who sets it to blow. No choice there. And since Reyva’s arm is brokenandI’m the one who helped Jack make snares, I have to be the one to climb into the cave and set the snares.” Her voice faltered a bit as she said it. The idea of going back into the cave, after seeing the dead man crawl out of it...
But she’d do it. For them.
It wasn’t as if they had much choice. If they didn’t trap the spirit in the cave, they had zero chance of making it off this island. Look at Arthur. He’d lost decades. If they didn’t want to share his fate, then she had to do it.
“No, hate this,” Reyva said. “You aren’t doing this without me.”
“Your arm is broken,” Mariana said. “Not to be blunt, but you can’t—”
“He’ll catch you, and then what?” Reyva said. She was scowling harder than Claire had ever seen her scowl. “Only way this will work is if I distract him while you two set the trap. I have to get him to chase me and keep him away from you until you have everything in position. And then I’ll lead him back to your trap.”
Claire had to admit it was a sensible plan. They’d need to haul the engine to the hole without the dead man noticing, and they’d need time to set the trap. Plus someone had to tell him that Claire had volunteered to stay and get him to take the bait. Except Reyva was injured, so how could they ask her to be the decoy? What if he caught her? What if she had to fight? How could she defend herself with a broken bone?
“Absolutely not,” Mariana said.
Reyva glared at her. “I am not going to sit by when you two endanger your lives—”
Mariana shook her head and said mulishly, “You can’t run with a broken bone.”
“I don’t run on my arms,” Reyva argued.
“You’ll jostle it,” Mariana said. “You’ll be in incredible pain.”
And then Reyva erupted. “I’m always in pain!” Tears sprang up in her eyes, and her uninjured hand clenched into a fist at her side.
Shocked, Claire took a step backward.
Mariana reached toward Reyva. “Reyva—”
Reyva pulled away. She was breathing heavily, and tears werestreaking down her cheeks. “You want to know my secret? You want to know why I am the way I am? That’s it. I amalwaysin pain.”
Claire had never seen so much emotion in her face or heard so much pain in her voice. “Reyva? What are you talking about?”
She shook her head, wordless.
“Reyva, talk to us,” Mariana pleaded.
Reyva turned to face the lake, no longer meeting their eyes. She took a deep, shaky breath, while Claire held hers—she thought of all the times that Reyva had cut herself off and swallowed her words and her feelings. She could do it again and push everything down.She’s been doing this for a long time, Claire thought.Months? Years?
She should have seen it. After all, she was an expert at hiding her own problems. She wondered how long Reyva had been close to bursting. She thought of what Mariana had said the night they’d first hid from the man with the gun and the wild man, about Reyva having plenty of feelings but always squashing them down. Mariana had been right.
Softly, Reyva said, “Three years ago... there was a car accident. My mom was driving. She looked down at her phone—my dad had texted, and she’d been waiting to hear from him. A pickup truck ran a red light. She didn’t see it in time. I was... I had a lot of broken bones. Seriously broken. Two surgeries on my left leg. Also one on my shoulder. And when I finally started PT... I pushed myself. I didn’t want anyone to look at me with pity. I didn’t want them to know... My parents, especially my mom, blamed themselves so much. I didn’t want to deal withthat. They’re happier pretending it’s in the past, and I’m their strong fighter who they didn’t damage at all. They need me to ace my classes and win championships, because otherwise...” She trailed off.
“They don’t know you’re hurting?” Mariana said gently.
“No one does,” Reyva said. Her lips twisted into a sour smile. “Or no one did.”
Maybe there was something the doctors could do, if they knew. And maybe her parents wouldn’t push her so hard. Claire began to speak. “If you—”
Reyva stopped her. “I refuse to let pain define me. Not then. Not now. The dead man will chase me, I’ll lead him to the trap, and you will spring it. End of discussion.” She wiped her cheeks with the back of her uninjured hand.
Both of them stared at her, and Reyva glared back, defiant.
“It’s your choice,” Mariana said at last.
