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“Eight.” Sarah went on alert as Iris addressed her next. “Which contestant in the second round was your favorite?”
Sarah’s throat bobbed as she swallowed nervously. She took her time to answer, her thoughts stirring as she contemplated how to answer based off what she had witnessed so far. It was truly an unfair game to those who were asked first, who weren’t given any time to see the trend.
“Three,” Sarah answered hoarsely, but confidently.
“Based off the votes from the audience, they agree. Do you know which contestant was your Advocate in the second round?”
Sarah nodded. “Five.”
“Would you like to switch?”
The room grew so silent I swore we had all been turned to statues as we weighed the question Iris had just asked.
Sarah answers, “No.” Answering honestly, no matter what, seems to be the way.
“Very well,” Iris says, moving on. “Seven.” She turns to Lily. “Who was your favorite contestant in the first round?”
“Five,” Lily answers quickly, but she appears torn up about it. That tells me her fifth contestant wasn’t Heathe, but someone else.
“Who was your favorite in the second round?” Iris asks, her method for questions switching up again, and I feel like I’m getting whiplash, that these questions are catered to each of our experiences in the game. I wonder what my questions will be.
“Two,” Lily answers in the same tone.
“Interesting,” Iris notes, a strange response from her as she appears to be entertained by Lily’s answer. “Who was your Advocate in round one and round two?”
It seems unfair for Lily to receive the full line of questioning. It seems she had an interesting game today.
“My Advocate was contestant three in the first round. He wasn’t in the second round.” Lily frowns, awaiting her verdict.
Iris doesn’t miss a beat. “Would you like to switch Advocates?”
Lily weighs the question for a moment. Her brows pinch together, but she looks down at the ground when she answers. “Yes.”
“Very well,” Iris says, but doesn’t address Lily any further. If Lily switches Advocates, that opens up the floor to the possibility that anyone could—including me,again.I knew it seemed like Carrick was trying to poach me. The twist in the games today must be driven by some ulterior motive, and I worried for the twists that await us in days to come.
Iris’ gaze lands on me, and I can sense Lily’s palpable relief that she wasn’t eliminated.
All I have to do is answer honestly, I told myself.
“Ten, which contestant in the second round was your Advocate?”
“None of them,” I answer quickly, and suddenly I think I might have been too sure as Iris stares at me blankly. She doesn’t give me confirmation, and I begin to sweat.
“That is correct. Which contestant from the second round was your favorite?” she asks, and I think howunfairthis game is. I wrack my brain for which contestant I enjoyed the most, and I am left with a sour taste in my mouth, knowing who it was. Maybe it was the familiarity of it, but I answer the number I knew Carrick was. “Two.”
“Based off the votes from the audience, that is correct. Would you like to switch Advocates?”
“No,” I answer even quicker than the first time. That part is a no-brainer. This entire game is one big trap.
I watch as Player Two, a woman named Tasha, who I never had the chance to speak to, is drilled with the same unfair questions and eliminated. That puts us down to six Players left by the end of Kiss and Tell. The number of Players are lessening, but the stakes are higher than they’ve ever been, andmost of them don’t even know it. The two eliminated Players are unaware of the fate that awaits them.
As Iris shuffles us out of the game room, bidding us to return to our Advocate’s quarters, I see Tasha being led out the front door of the estate and into the grasp of the Echelon Society.
As if they didn’t already have a tight grasp on our fate.
Chapter Seventeen: Eve
The Space Between Us
