Page 149 of Stay Scared

“Before Owen started bringing you my routines.”

Ash’s fingers shift against the paper. “Yes, before Owen.”

I turn another page. One of my old reviews has been printed beneath his notes.

THE HAUNT THAT CONFUSED RESTRAINT WITH FEAR.

A paragraph is underlined where I wrote that surrender means nothing if the person taking control can’t give it back.

“You were already studying me.”

“I read your work.”

“You were building a route around a woman you had never spoken to.”

“I had read enough.”

“You had seen reviews.”

“They were enough to make me curious.”

I look around the room. “You do curiosity at an alarming scale.”

Ash’s expression stays flat. A concept drawing of the red room waits beneath the review. The bolted chair sits under cameras while THE VOICE stands behind the participant. My name was added in darker ink.

“What was the first ending?”

Ash’s gaze moves toward the empty seats. “You reached the final room.”

“And then?”

“I offered you a place here.”

“As what?”

“On the design floor. Someone authorized to tell me when I had gone too far.”

I turn toward him. “You designed an entire attraction because you wanted criticism.”

“No, that wasn’t why.”

His answer comes fast. I wait.

Ash looks down at the pages. “I wanted you inside it.”

“You could have emailed me.”

“You would have refused.”

“You have no idea what I would have said.”

His eyes lift. “I had already decided what I wanted you to say.”

There it is. Ash wanted an answer and built a route intended to corner me into giving it.

“You built the question until only your preferred answer fit.”

His mouth hardens. “At the time, I considered that efficient.”