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“You don’t know what you’re talking about.” There’s doubt in his black eyes though. I’ve touched a nerve.
We spent our childhoods racing, climbing and competing. Trying to be the best and out run, out do and outsmart one another. I’m a fast runner, a damn good swimmer and an excellent climber. It’s on Axel for forgetting that.
“Don't I?” I press with a smirk. His eyes zero in on my mouth. I might not know what I’m talking about but if I’m winding Axel up, I’m going to keep going. How many buttons can I press? Always one more.
“You know nothing about my childhood.”
“Yeah, and whose fault is that?” I mutter under my breath. “What happens now?” I ask, snapping out of the weird tension-filled trance between us and getting back to business.
“Well the plan was to kick out anyone who didn’t shoot you, but as no one managed it, we have to keep everyone in. Can’t have the contest over before it begins.”
“Why not? I won, let’s call it a day.”
“Sorry, princess, but the sponsors wouldn’t like that.”
“Sponsors?”
“You don’t think we do this just for shits and giggles do you?”
“What do you mean?”
“I mean, not everyone taking part wants to be the next Holy Trinity.” I snort. I can’t imagine anyone wanting to be the next Holy Trinity. “Some people are competing by proxy. They have sponsors supporting them through this process, and scouts looking for potential recruits.”
“Is it…filmed? Put online or something?”
“Some parts are.”
“So what does that all mean?”
“It means there’s a lot of money involved, and even higher stakes. No one is going to let this go after one task. They’ll be pissed enough as it is that there was so little action last night. You didn’t exactly help the games start with a bang.”
“Sorry for not providing more entertainment,” I say dryly, folding my arms over my chest.
“You’ll do better next time,” he replies, completely missing my sarcasm.
“Undoubtedly. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need a shower. That wasn’t the most fun I’ve had spending the night in the woods.”
Axel’s dark eyes flash with something I can’t name, but I’m pretty sure I’ve pissed him off.
“You have to tell me how you did it.”
“Why?” I sigh.
“Because…” He runs his hand through his hair and steps away from me, pacing my room. “Because…I need to make sure you’re safe.”
I almost snort at that. Why on earth does he suddenly give a fuck after treating me like I’m dead for the last two years?
“Maybe if you’d left me out of the bloody games, I wouldn’t need to be kept safe,” I snap, which causes Axel to scoff.
“Yeah, keep telling yourself that.”
“There’s no getting out of this is there?” I ask, deflated. I’m not entirely resigned to my fate but I’m feeling crushed.
I don’t even know where to begin fighting back.
“You’re starting to get it. Now tell me how you managed it.”
“Axel, I’m used to going long periods of time without food or water, six hours in a forest is nothing. I laid a fake trail and doubled back by using the river and the trees. It wasn’t that big a deal. Now leave me alone because none of the contestants are allowed to bother me for an entire week. And that includes you and your band of merry arseholes. That’s seven whole days or one-hundred-sixty-eight blissful hours of not being bothered, contacted or controlled by you. If you want those numbers in minutes and seconds, it’s ten-thousand-eighty minutes or—”
