Sixteen

My heart’s beating so damn fast—probably for the last time—like it’s one solid thumpthumpthumpthumpthump. I can’t get my feet and brain to agree on what to do. I need to know what’s happening to Trip behind me, to know where Seph is, if he’s okay, but I can’t look away from the train wreck that’s about to happen and take me down with it. This would be a great moment to get some clarity on my life, but I’m too focused on dying that even that isn’t happening.

In one poetic motion, the cat creature jumps forward as I throw myself to the ground under the arc of its leap. Its giant clawed paws hit the ground right where I had just been standing, but it doesn’t turn back at me. It lunges toward the creature, latching on to the back of its neck. The cat-thing is only about half the size of the other beast, but it doesn’t seem to care as it bites into its jugular.

My stomach can’t take it, and I heave into the grass. Everything inside comes out until there’s nothing left.

Trip nudges my foot with his. “Come on, let’s go.”

Seph. It’s my first thought. Where the hell is he? My gaze shoots to where I expected to see him before, except this time he’s there, charging our way, arms pumping at his sides. Relief rushes over me as I press up from the ground and run. Trip takes the lead with his extra-long legs. My heart still hasn’t recovered from the scare with the cat-thing, and now as I push myself to exhaustion, trying to get as far away from those creatures as possible, I think it might explode. Everything hurts. My feet. My calves. My chest. But I don’t stop. I can’t stop. Not until I’m safe and far, far away. Seph stays a step behind me, and it’s not because I’m faster. We’ve already established that. Maybe he’s ready to catch me if I fall or collapse, which I’m worried might happen any second.

“There!” Trip yells and points toward a cluster of oversized ferns.

I glance behind me. The creatures are out of sight, but is it far enough for them not to want to follow? Don’t think. Keep moving.

Trip’s the first to duck inside, holding up a large leaf for me to run under it. After Seph steps through, he lets go of the leaf and closes us off from the rest of the jungle. As much as I want to keep moving, I’m glad I have a second to catch my breath. I brace my hands on my knees and suck in as much air as possible.

Seph lays his hand on my back, and my stomach flutters. “Are you okay?”

I give him a thumbs-up. Does he really care like I want him to, or is this some big elaborate scheme he has with Trip? “I’m in one piece still, so yeah, I’m fine.” Although my pulse hasn’t returned to normal.

Trip uses his shirt to wipe sweat from his face. “That was intense.”

“That was reckless.” Seph’s gentle face has transformed into something fierce. His voice loud and full of anger. “You said you weren’t gonna take off. You could’ve gotten us all killed.” He shoves Trip by the shoulders, not super hard, but enough to let him know this isn’t a game.

Trip stumbles back into an extra-large palm frond and crashes to the ground. “What the hell, man?”

I hold up a hand and glance at Seph. Yeah, he heard it, too. Something’s rustling around near us, and it’s getting closer. Trip gets to his feet, and I huddle together with them. There’s nowhere to run, and even if there was, I’m not sure I have the strength to.

“Ouch,” a girl shouts, and it’s the best sound in the world.

“Clara!” I yell back.

There’s more rustling, and finally Clara and Ruthie push through the brush and meet us in our hiding spot. A dark bruise is under Clara’s right eye, and Ruthie has one on her neck. Looks like they’ve had a rough time in this terrain, too. It’s weird how good it feels to see them. To know that they’re okay even if they are a little battered like us.

Clara yanks me in for a hug, and I hug her back. “Oh my God, I’m so glad you’re okay,” she says. “I thought you were right in front of us, and then suddenly you weren’t. It’s like you and Seph just disappeared and we were so scared.” She squeezes me tighter. “How did you…” She pulls away, her gaze falling on Trip, and her face changes, her body tenses. She steps forward and slams Trip in the chest. Harder than Seph pushed him. “What are you doing here?”

Seph and I exchange a what-the-hell-is-going-on glance. Yes, he might’ve ditched us before, but that’s because he’s a selfish ass. Ruthie stands behind Clara, her arms folded over her chest.

Clara’s lips press into a thin line. I’ve never seen her look so mad. “Why are you even here?” she challenges. Trip’s face pales. “Why didn’t dear old daddy keep you out of here?”

“Why? Who’s his dad?” Seph asks.

Clara pokes Trip in the chest. “Fredrick Tripton the fifth.”

Seph’s mouth falls open. I dig my nails into my hands. Trip as in Tripton. And Fredrick, his father it seems, is the sole owner of VolTon industries. I can’t believe I didn’t make the connection before. Dwayne all but spelled it out for me in his journal.

“And what about your father?” Trip fires back. “What, the builder of these places couldn’t keep his own daughter out of one?” he asks.

Clara doesn’t back down. “My dad builds the buildings, not everything that’s inside them. All the WALTERs. This.” Now it’s her turn to gesture to our surroundings. “That’s where your dad comes in. How does he do all this anyway?”

“And she’s been up-front with that,” Ruthie says. “When were you going to tell us your real name is Fredrick?”

Clara told me right away about her dad. Well, right after she started talking to me at least. She must’ve told Ruthie when they got separated from us.

“She’s known this whole time. If it mattered, why didn’t she say anything?” Trip echoes my thoughts, which makes my skin crawl. I don’t like thinking Trip and I are alike at all. “My father,” he says with venom in his voice, “has decided I’m a blemish on the family name. He’s cut me off completely. Said it’s time for me to grow up. Anyway, do you honestly think I would be here if I didn’t have to be?”

“And you think I would?” Clara challenges.

I step between them. “Stop it, both of you.” I want to take time to process all of this, but there isn’t any. “Fighting isn’t going to get us anywhere.” I look at Clara. “Your dad built this place.” My gaze shifts to Trip. “And your dad’s WALTERs run it. So if we all work together and stop keeping secrets, maybe we can get the hell out of here.” Maybe it’s naive, or wishful thinking that everyone will start telling the truth right now, but we have to do something. I give Trip a death stare. “Start talking.”

Trip hitches his thumbs under the straps of his backpack. “What I told you before about why I’m here is true. I didn’t know anything about my dad having any connection to this place until I ended up here.” He hits one of the huge leaves. “We’re in a simulation. I know my dad’s work when I see it.”

“Then before,” Seph says, “why did you ask if we thought we were still in the prison?”

Trip shrugs. “I guess I didn’t want to believe my dad would do something like this. Plus, it doesn’t make any sense. Why here? Why us? I don’t have any answers, so why even bring it up?”

I walk over to the closest plant and run my hand over its smooth leaves. It’s like I thought. But this is nothing like the VR games Noah used to play. Everything about it, the sights, sounds, smells, tastes, are like I’m really here. “But how is this possible?” I ask. “We’re not hooked up to anything.”

He shrugs again. “I don’t know. I wasn’t exactly set to inherit the family business like my brother.”

Clara crosses her arms over her chest. “This isn’t funny. You have to tell us how we get out of here.”

Trip shakes his head. “Do I look like I’m laughing? I told you. My dad disowned me. I don’t know anything about this place or how any of this shit works.”

A loud roar cuts through the air, and it sounds close. Too close. Shit. While we’ve been here arguing, I forgot there were beasts out there that want to kill us. I’m not even sure if they can, but I’m not waiting around to find out.

“We need to go,” Clara says. She turns the way the boys and I had come from.

I grab her arm. “No. Not that way.”

Ruthie points in the direction they came from. “Well we can’t go that way, either.”

The thing roars again. So loud the plants around us shake. I pull Clara forward, and soon everyone is moving. Something out there’s hunting us, and I don’t have the time to be quiet or think about where I’m going, I just have to go. This time, no one races ahead. We all stay clumped together in a pack, dodging thorny vines and huge plants with hand-like leaves that look like they want to reach out and grab any one of us.

Ruthie stumbles, but before she hits the ground, Trip grabs her and puts her back on her feet. She looks almost angry that he didn’t let her fall. The noises grow louder the farther I go. Above, the trees seem to be alive. Howls reverberate from creatures that live up there, like they’re tracking us and letting everyone know we’re coming. This isn’t good. I need a second to think. To figure out what to do. But there’s no way to stop now.

I glance up and immediately wish I hadn’t. Hundreds of creatures with long arms and legs swing from branch to branch above, baring their razor-sharp teeth. “We need to hurry.”

Seph makes the mistake of looking up, too. “Shit.” As soon as he says it, the creatures get louder and start throwing stuff at us. Something hard hits my head.

I grab Seph’s hand, then Clara’s. Everyone links up to help pull each other through the haze of debris. The pummeling gets worse before I break through the trees and start running in a field of grass so tall that if I wasn’t holding someone’s hand, I wouldn’t even know they were with me. My legs are burning again. I’ve never done so much running in all my life.

The grass clears, and I stop with the others. A tiny hut stands before me. Rickety stairs lead to the small porch of a little round building with a door and only one window. None of us move toward it. Anything or anyone could be inside.

The light next to the door flickers. Oh shit. This can’t be good.