A few minutes later, Madison joins us with an air of impatient resignation. She glances around at the last stragglers and scuffs her sneaker against the ground. “If they’re going to make us go to this much trouble, it’d better at least count toward our ranking.”
Stella arches her eyebrows at our other friend. “I don’t know if you should wish for that. Knowing Cosgrave’s reputation, it might put a criminal in the number one spot.”
I bite my tongue against the urge to defend Salvatore. He’d probably like that she thinks that way about him.
And we don’t want to give anyone the idea that we knew about our bond before we see tonight’s plan through.
Captain Ross scans our group and must determine that everyone he’s expecting is here. He produces a black fabric bag that he holds out in front of him. “All right, students. First things first: We want you relying on your own skills rather than others’ observations. Please turn in your phones. They’ll be returned to you after the exercise is complete.”
My pulse skips a beat. We hadn’t anticipated this request.
Thank all that’s bright we did agree on additional contingencies in case my phone was disabled or broken.
I type a hasty message to Cole letting him know we’ll be going phone silent and turn the device right off before I reach the captain. His firm gaze shows no sign of hostility as I add my phone to the bag.
I don’t even know if he’s my enemy too or only Jovak.
Once he’s collected all of our phones, Ross lifts his voice again. “As my initial request implied, we’re looking at your individual performance here. You can’t assume you’ll have friends or even friendly acquaintances nearby when you face a threat. We expect you to spread out through the parkmaintaining plenty of distance from each other. There’s enough room to roam that it shouldn’t be hard to manage.”
One of the younger seniors raises his hand. “What if we run into someone else by accident?”
Ross’s tone turns dry. “If you see a fellow student, walk away until you can’t see them anymore. There shouldn’t be any regular civilians in the park—we’ve ensured it’ll stay clear.”
Do the containers Cole noticed have anything to do with that goal? There’s no way for him to tell us any details he uncovers now.
I hold myself back from nibbling at my lower lip, tamping down all the nervous questions I want to ask. I’m portraying a girl who hasn’t the slightest suspicion of impending foul play.
Cadance speaks up for me, forcing a little gratitude I’d rather not feel. “What exactly are we going to be doing while we’re wandering around?”
Ross offers her a thin smile. “We have various challenges set up around the park, some similar to what you’ve encountered in past exercises, others more of a surprise. Nothing you shouldn’t be able to handle at this point. Our goal is to evaluate how well you do and see where there’s room for further improvement.”
And to “accidentally” murder me, I have to assume.
He sweeps his arm toward the sprawling forestland that leads to the rest of the park. “You’ll set off in a few waves to help you spread out. Tonight’s seminar begins… now.”
Forty-Five
Elodie
Salvatore ends up in the first wave of students Captain Ross sends off. My sense of his presence fades alongside the streaks of flashlight beams, but not by much. He’ll be proceeding slowly, not wanting to get too far ahead of me.
I end up in the middle group with Asher nearby. We part ways without glancing at each other, but I can’t help rubbing the links of his bracelet under the sleeve of my hoodie.
Stella flashes me a smile as our paths diverge too. “Good luck, and hope you don’t need much of it.”
My laugh comes out a bit shaky. “Same to you.”
As I pick my way between the trees not far from one of the official paths, I register when Byron must head out as well. His presence follows mine, not tracing my route exactly but staying close by.
None of my matches can see me, but the three of them in this exercise should be able to run to my side in the space ofa minute. Now I need to provoke the attack that’ll bring them running, or we won’t get any closer to ending this conspiracy.
More security lamps push back the darkness along the pathways. I purposefully veer deeper into the forested stretch, aiming the thin beam of my flashlight toward the ground.
My enemies will prefer to strike when there’s the least chance anyone will see what’s happening.
As the night thickens around me and my feet crunch over fallen twigs, a yelp carries from the distance. A faint sizzling sound filters through the trees from the opposite direction.
The official challenges of this exercise have started. All the better to conceal any noises of alarm I make when the unofficial attack is launched.
