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“Why would we meet them?” I asked. “Aren’t you guys just gonna put your heads together and figure out some sadistic way to get Wyatt and me killed?”
Barely paying attention as he tapped away at his phone, Von nodded absently. “Yes, yes, you’ll more than likely be eliminated soon. Still, they’ll want you there. Best to keep your mouths shut unless they ask questions.” He glanced at the hulking fallen angel. “Come, Samael, the helicopter will be here soon. I want to have refreshments ready for our guests.”
Von vanished out the door. The fallen angel followed him, walking backward to keep an eye on us until he was at the door. With a final glance, he turned and left the room.
“We’re fucked,” I groaned, running my hands through my hair.
Everything was falling apart. J.D. and Chelsey knew our secret, but the others—Abel, Tate, Gavin—would be blindsided. Gavin knew, but he didn’t understand the depth of my and Wyatt’s relationship. Tate would bepissed, and gods only knew how he’d react. Abel? If I had to guess, he’d be hurt or dejected by the betrayal.
Then there were the fans. Even if we survived whatever punishment the showrunners threw at us, I was sure Von would add more chances for the audience to vote, and you could bet your ass they’d be voting against us at every turn.
Wyatt must have seen on my face that I was spiraling. He strode over to me and put his hands on my arms. “Calm down, we’ll figure this out.”
“How? We worked so hard to make sure it wouldn’t be so bad when he revealed it. He caught us fucking on camera. It can’t get much worse.”
Wyatt smiled humorlessly. “Well, he at least didn’t catch us in the act. I think that could have been worse.”
I moaned in frustration. “You know what I mean. All this has been for nothing. If we get kicked off the show, then I won’t be able to help the others survive. I won’t be able to ask Heline to stop the war. My pack will be defenseless. All this would have been a waste of time. How the fuck will I help Zoe get off the island? This is a nightmare I—”
“Enough,” Wyatt cut me off. “We can fix this. Let me think about it.”
There was no way out of this that I could see. Instead of trying to fix it, we needed to figure out a way to survive. Wyatt frowned in deep thought. All I could think of was how he’d look dead, torn apart by some beast because the show had put him in even worse danger than usual. This had all gone bad too quickly.
“Okay, we can play it like this,” Wyatt said. “We knew each other before, yeah, but I was stalking you. I coerced you into sex one night, then followed you on the show. I’m like a psycho and twisting things to my benefit. You can go on camera, crying and talking about how unsafe you felt. Maybe even say I forced myself on you today.”
He might as well have kicked me in the chest. He didn’t give a damn about himself. That story would only put him in more danger. If we went that route and he somehowdidsurvive and get home, his reputation would be ruined. Even his unofficial pack would kick him out if they thought he was a stalker and a rapist.
No. Absolutely not. I wouldn’t allow him to throw his good name in the gutter to make me into some blameless princess.
“Wyatt, shut up,” I snapped.
He blinked, surprised. “What?”
“You’re a dumbass.” I leaned forward and kissed him. After pulling away, I could see he was in shock. “We aren’t doing that. In fact, we don’t even need to worry about a plan until after this meeting. Quit trying to think up ways to make yourself out to be a monster. We may never even get the chance to say anything. The people coming hold all the power. They may just kick us off the island immediately.”
“Maybe not,” Wyatt said. “My uncle Rob might be one of them.”
“What do you mean?”
“He’s the one who pulled the strings to get me on the show. A bunch of people in my family work for the studio that owns the show, but he’s one of the main execs who runs things. There’s a chance he could be one of the people who comes. I’m not sure who he answers to, but it might be an ace in our deck.” He shrugged. “Possibly.”
If Wyatt did have a relative that deep in the inner workings of the show, then it might help us. If nothing else, we’d at least have one person arguing for us.
“Let’s get ready,” I said. “The last thing I want is to be late for this thing.”
We showered together, and it was as unsexy as could be. We were both too consumed with what was to come. A lot hung in the balance. I had a worrying thought that they might kill us on the spot. Technically, the deaths on the island were “collateral damage.” We’d all signed legally binding paperwork that basically gave the show the rights to our lives while the show was going on. Even our dead bodies weren’t sent home if we were found; they were left to rot on the island. Who was to say they wouldn’t get us out of the way and give the authorities some story that we’d suffered a tragic end in the jungle?
Thoughts like that kept bouncing through my head while I dressed. As I finished tying my shoes, there was a knock at my splintered, destroyed door. A staff witch entered without waiting for me to invite her in.
“I’m to lead you to your meeting. Mr. Thornton says it’s time.”
“Are you good?” I asked Wyatt, his hair still damp from the shower.
“As ready as I’ll ever be,” he said.
We joined the witch at the door. She gestured at the ruined entryway. “I’ll have someone come to fix this while you’re out. A few spells and some elbow grease, and it should be good as new.”
“While we’re out?” I said. “Does that mean we’ll get to come back?”
