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It wasn’t like I’d been good fr
iends with any of them, but that didn’t mean I’d wanted them dead. I didn’t know why, and I knew it was irrational, but I felt personally responsible somehow. As if my grabbing the gem had somehow been a death sentence for them.
I slowly walked toward the last two pictures, recognizing the faces far too well.
Brielle and Shane.
Not only did I see them every night in my dreams, but they were in my memories too. They had been right behind us as we’d raced for the gems. I was sure of it. I knew for a fact that we hadn’t killed them; we’d only stunned them so that one of us would have a chance to win.
So why did they die?
What killed them in the final few moments while me and the guys were battling our way toward the gem?
It just doesn’t make any fucking sense.
“Hey. Are you okay?” Eden asked, making me jump.
“Yeah. Yeah, I’m fine,” I lied. “I’m just gonna go outside and get some air. I’ll meet you in the cafeteria.”
Before she could answer, I turned and hurried off, making my way back through the corridors until I reached the front door.
I burst through into the cold air outside, jogging down the steps and turning the corner, backing into a small hideaway spot next to the stairs. I leaned my head back with my eyes closed and took in long, deep breaths, trying desperately to get a hold of myself.
This is the kind of shit I wish I could talk to the guys about. Dammit, how did everything get so fucked up?
Low voices filtered into my ears, but I blocked them out, focusing on drawing in oxygen through my nose and releasing it slowly through my mouth. Finally, my heart rate began to slow, and I was about to step out and head back toward the building when the voices finally caught my attention.
They were low and hushed, and the speakers must’ve been just outside the school doors.
One of them I recognized as Fallon, the administrator who’d grabbed the gem off the ground and given it back to me the day I’d returned from the Gods’ Challenge. His gravelly voice was hard to miss.
The other was softer, female, but I couldn’t quite place it.
“It was just sloppy, that’s what it was,” Fallon said.
“Well, I don’t know if it’s our place to say that. But it was hard to watch, I agree with you there.”
“It was a mess.”
“I just think they handled it poorly this time,” the woman replied. “To be honest, I don’t know why we do this every semester. It’s barbaric, I think.”
“It’s the only way,” Fallon grunted, a note of resignation in his voice.
“I suppose. At least only four died. It could’ve been worse.”
They continued speaking, but I lost the words as they opened the door and went back inside the school.
I pressed up against the stone wall, shivering in the cold air as my mind raced.
What had that been about? They’d definitely been talking about the Gods’ Challenge, but why? What about it had been sloppy?
My blood chilled.
Were those four students’ deaths an accident? Fuck. I should’ve started paying attention to what they were saying earlier.
I hid in the little nook for a while longer, but when the admins didn’t step outside again, I finally headed up the steps into the massive academy build, cursing myself for being so distracted when they’d first stepped outside. By the time I had tuned in, they were already deep into their conversation, and I felt like I’d missed important pieces.
Pieces that might explain what the hell was going on around here.
