I leave Grayson gaping at the ghosts, and I run. I’m not sacrificing my place in this competition for anyone, especially not him. Maybe he’ll make it; maybe he won’t. That’s his problem.
I’m sprinting toward the river when suddenly everything stops. The ghosts freeze with their talons outstretched and their jagged teeth bared. I slow to a walk. As I pass the ghosts, they distort like optical illusions that only make sense when you look directly at them.
Among them all, balanced on his ridiculous Segway and holding a tablet, is Matthew. His faux-hawk is flat, and he appears to be breaking out in hives—there are several raised blotches on his neck, red where he’s been scratching. I prefer this messy version of him. At least it’s real.
He gestures at the frozen ghosts. “Makes things easier for you, right?” he says, his voice raspy.
“I was doing OK by myself.”
“I suppose you were,” he admits. “But it’s early days.”
I cross my arms and wait for him to tell me why he’s interrupted the game to speak to me. I’ll play my part for the cameras, flirting and laughing. But there are no cameras here now. He’s frozen the game for a reason, and I’m betting it’s because he doesn’t want Anton finding out about our conversation.
He clears his throat. “I wanted to talk to you about this Rose nonsense,” he says. “I saw you following Emma98 and meeting up with my sister. Why are you getting involved in this?”
“Anton asked me to.”
He does a double take and nearly drops the tablet. “Anton?”
“Didn’t you know that? I thought he told you everything.”
I shouldn’t stir the pot. It’s what my mother would do, and I’m nothing like her. But Matthew’s an easy target, so convinced of his own importance that he can’t comprehend not being at the center of everything.
“No, he doesn’t,” he says. “Anton’s losing it over the interruptions to his game. I haven’t seen him so worked up since…”
“Since Rose?”
He changes the subject. “What does he want you to do?”
“Find the person who’s behind that ghost.” For some reason I don’t admit that he’s specifically asked me to spy on Grayson. I’m not letting anyone, especially not Matthew, get in the way of my plans.
Matthew’s jaw twitches. “You need to walk away from this. Focus on the game and forget everything else.”
“I can manage both,” I say with a shrug.
“I don’t think you understand. Take a look at your map and find Alic91. She’s just down the road.”
I do what I’m told. “Who is she?”
“Nobody.” Matthew types on his tablet. As I watch, her spot vanishes. He lowers the tablet to his side. “I can edit you out of the competition in seconds, like I did Alic91.”
Blackmail? Not happening. I take a step toward him and place a single finger on his chest. He swallows heavily. “Only you can’t,” I say. “I’m not a nobody. I’m top of the leaderboard, and people would notice if I vanished. I suspect your boss would be very unhappy with you.”
His face goes still and loses its usual expressiveness. I know I’ve struck a nerve.
“I’m Anton’s business partner. I don’t work for him. What makes you think he’d pick you over me?”
I laugh. “To annoy you?”
He manages a hint of a surprised smile. “Fair enough.”
“What’s it to you anyway, whether I get involved or not? Unless you killed Rose.”
His smile vanishes. “Of course I didn’t kill Rose. I’m trying to protect Anton from having his name dragged into this drama again. Because that’s my job—being the voice of reason while he sends teenagers to investigate a ghost.”
“You believe she’s real now?”
“Don’t be ridiculous.” He runs a hand through his hair and takes a deep breath. “This won’t end well for you, you know?”
“Is that a threat?”
He doesn’t answer the question. “Why did you enter? You hate this whole online world.”
This is unexpected. Matthew seems completely self-absorbed. It feels weird that he’s noticed my lack of enthusiasm when it comes to fame.
“It’s a lot of money,” I say.
“Ahh, right. Money. And I imagine Amber had plenty to do with that part.”
I shrug.
“I’m surprised she didn’t enter herself.”
“She tried to,” I admit. “The age cutoff is twenty-one though.”
Matthew shudders. “Thank god.” He fixes me with an appraising look. “You could win this, you know?”
The unspoken part of his sentence—you could win this if you stop poking your nose where it doesn’t belong—is clear. I hold his stare and don’t back down.
“All right. Your choice. I’ll give you ten seconds before I unpause the game.” He winks at me. Urgh. “Ten, nine, eight—”
I don’t stick around to hear the rest of the countdown. I shoot Matthew one last dirty glare and break into a sprint. I’ve made it most of the way to the path running along the edge of the river when the ghosts shudder back to life. I easily weave between them though. My bracelet buzzes, and I step into the geofenced area. I’m safe, and the ghosts are gone.
I pause to catch my breath, then send a surreptitious text to Jesse. We need to talk.
I find a bench overlooking the river and wait for further instructions. The pavement is wide and lined with trees. Behind me, a four-lane road is packed with traffic, but the river’s more peaceful. Several barges are moored near to an ugly concrete bridge. A river bus powers past.
I’m one of the first contestants here. I can see a couple of others: two girls chatting by a coffee truck and a boy resting on the ground with his head in his hands. No sign of Charlotte or Grayson.
Five minutes later, I get a text from Jesse. I’m busy setting up for the next challenge. Can’t get away.
My heart sinks. So much has happened since I last saw him, and he still can’t find the time to even chat. Suddenly, I’m hit by a wave of red-hot anger. I need him and he’s ignoring me. So I text him something that I know will get his attention: Matthew came to speak to me. He was flirting with me.
This isn’t entirely true. A wink is hardly a proposition, and Matthew winks at everyone. But I’m feeling hurt that Jesse’s pushed me into entering this competition and then abandoned me to the wolves. I guess I want to make him feel bad for a second.
He texts me almost immediately. Turn right and keep walking.
I head along the river, passing a lifeboat station along the way. Suddenly, I’m grabbed from behind and pulled down a flight of unlit steps leading to a basement bar. My signal goes out of range. Before I can get my balance back, Jesse spins me around and kisses me hungrily like we haven’t seen each other for weeks rather than hours.
He pulls back, and I look up into his hazel eyes. “I missed you,” I say.
“What did that son of a bitch say to you?” he says.
“Matthew? Oh, nothing really. He doesn’t want me sticking my nose into this whole thing with Rose.”
“Rose? Why are you sticking your nose in?”
“Anton asked me to. He thinks someone has set up this Rose ghost act to sabotage the game. He suspects that Grayson boy from the museum.”
He shakes his head dismissively. “The ghost thing is a stupid distraction. Forget it. You should be concentrating on the competition.”
“The one that I’m winning? Besides, Anton offered me money to keep tabs on Grayson. Twenty grand. I couldn’t say no.”
He thinks about this. “Twenty grand is nothing compared to a hundred.”
“But a hundred and twenty is better than a hundred.”
“You’re evil. I love it.” He kisses me again, more hurriedly this time, and then pulls away. “What else did Matthew say to you? You said he was flirting?”
“He winked at me, that’s all.”
His hands form fists at his sides. “I don’t trust him with you. He’ll hit on you, and you won’t be able to say no.”
“What did you say?” I step away from him. I won’t be able to say no? I’ve said no to more people than Jesse’s dated in his entire life. I’m not some naive little girl who would have her head turned by a pretty boy like Matthew. Is that seriously how Jesse sees me? “What the fuck, Jesse? I can handle Matthew.”
“I bet you can.” He laughs, loudly like it’s the funniest thing ever. “Like mother, like daughter.”
I hold both hands up. “Whoa. No. You don’t get to say that sort of shit to me.”
“I’m sorry,” he says, reaching for me. I catch the smallest roll of his eyes as he does. “I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I’m sorry.”
I yank my hand free of his. Maybe it’s this stupid competition; maybe it’s the way Jesse’s been too busy for me all night until I mentioned Matthew. But it feels like a flashlight’s pointing at the cracks in my relationship , and I’m too tired and cold and scared to deny that they’re there.
Jesse’s jealous streak has always made me uncomfortable, but I told myself it was a sign that he cared. Now I feel as much of a possession as I do with my mother. A thing that needs to be controlled. An object to be owned. And I’m…done.
I back away from him, raising a shaking finger. “You need to grow the hell up, Jesse,” I say, my voice quiet and dangerous.
“I’m sorry. Come on.”
I duck away from his arms and run up the steps.
“Erin,” he calls after me. “Don’t walk away from me. Fine! Screw you, then. Run to your little friend, Matthew. See if I care. Bitch!”
Each word is a bullet. There’s so much viciousness in his voice, hatred, even. My legs feel wobbly beneath me. My heart beats like a tiny bird, quivering in my chest. But in my belly, there’s a rising pool of rage.
Suddenly, my eyes are fully open, and I can see my relationship with Jesse for what it really is. A way out of one life that would have led me straight back to more of the same shit that I was trying to escape in the first place. Jesse, like Amber, wants to mold me around his own life. Only, I’m getting tired of being the daughter or the girlfriend. I want to be me, not the final piece to someone else’s puzzle.
I wipe a tear and I walk away. I spot Grayson, and a weak little part of me wants to run over to him to see a semifriendly face. But I don’t know anything about him, not really. He’s not my friend. I don’t have friends. I turn in the opposite direction.
I’m going to show Jesse that I’m not the girl he thinks I am. I don’t need him; I don’t need anyone.