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The woman who’d attacked me read her watch, and her face went gray as she let out a squeal. The sound sent ice-cold trickles down my spine. It was like no scream I’d ever heard, full of fear, horror, and rage.
A blonde woman further down the table stood. “I’m sorry, Elise. It says I have to be the one.”
She walked to a large wooden china cabinet and opened the door. From my vantage point, I couldn’t see what was inside. When she turned back after shutting the door, she held what looked like a gun in her hand. I froze in shock, unable to make myself move. What was happening here? Was the woman who’d attacked me going to die?
Elise shook with fear when the other woman returned. As she lifted the gun, I realized that it was, in fact, not a firearm. It looked like a stun gun in the shape of a bulky pistol. Without hesitating, the other woman jammed it against Elise’s neck and pulled the trigger. Elise went rigid as an electric tic-tic-tic-tic sound fired off. The veins in her neck stood out and her teeth clamped together so tight I was worried she’d shatter them. Her eyes bulged and tears trickled down her cheeks. It went on for what seemed like forever. Finally, the other girl pulled the gun away and Elise slumped forward. Her face crashed into the heavy wood of the table. An angry red spot was left on her neck where she’d been burned by the barbs.
The air hissed in and out of me, and my hands shook in terror. Was she coming for me next? Would I have that thing shoved into my neck? Why? All because I didn’t sit when I was supposed to? This made no sense.
Thankfully, instead of coming toward me, the other woman turned and put the weapon back in the cabinet.
My nails dug into the table as I watched whatever this strange ritual was. That’s exactly what this was, a ritual, or some combination of rules that they all understood but was just madness to me.
Sitting down, the girl who’d electrocuted Elise sighed and shook her head. “I used the least painful weapon in the cabinet. I’ll probably get punished for that later.”
Elise raised her head and clamped a hand on her injured neck. “It’s fine, Bri. I get it.” Elise turned her eyes toward me and glared with more hatred than I thought was possible for one person to contain. “Fuck you, though. That was all your fault. How goddamned hard is it to sit your ass the fuck down? Bitch.”
Bong. The voice again. “Eat your breakfast. We have a busy day of activities. You have twenty minutes to eat, starting now.” Bong.
Everyone reached forward and lifted the domes off the trays. I was shocked to see what looked like actual good food. One tray contained a massive pile of scrambled eggs. Another held a plate of sausages and bacon. A third and fourth tray held buttered toast and hash browns, and the final tray had slices of oranges.
The group dug in, scooping piles of food onto their plates and making idle conversation. Bri looked across at the guy who’d helped me. “How’d you sleep last night, Drake?”
Drake? I didn’t recognize that name, but I still felt like I’d seen him somewhere before. Maybe he’d been a customer at the diner at some point. There were so many faces there they tended to blur together.
He stuffed a piece of bacon into his mouth. “Not great. As usual. Jeffery? How about you?”
A man down the table shrugged. He looked like he was in his late thirties, the oldest of us all. He’d carefully combed his light brown hair to try to cover a receding hairline. “It was fine. One thing I can say about this place is we at least have nice beds.” He stuffed a whole piece of toast into his mouth an instant later.
“Hey, new girl,” Elise hissed. “Unless you want someone to get screwed over again, you’d better eat.”
“Christ, it’s her first day. She’s probably scared out of her damned mind,” Drake said.
Elise pounded a fist on the table. “You didn’t just get electrocuted. So, fuck off, pretty boy.”
Bri leaned forward. “Forgive us. You should know who you’re sharing this place with.” She nodded to the girl she’d electrocuted. “This is Elise. Your good Samaritan there,” she pointed beside me, “is Drake. My name is Bri, and down there, those two guys are Liam and Jeffery.”
Terrified of getting someone else or myself in trouble, I grabbed a couple of small sausages and put them on my plate. “My name is Dahlia,” I said. “Where are we? What is this place?”
There was silence for a few seconds before Bri spoke again. “We don’t know. All we know is that you have to follow the rules. Follow them or you get punished. That?” She nodded back to the cabinet. “What I did to Elise? That was the easy stuff. Trust me, you don’t want to get punished.”
She glanced around at the table, making eye contact with everyone. “It can get bad. All I can say is be ready and eat. Also, the voice you hear, we call him Sam.”
Drake leaned over and said, “Some Asshole Manipulator.”
Made Sense. The last thing I wanted was food, but I followed her advice about the rules and ate a piece of toast and a small pile of eggs. The only thing that I enjoyed was the oranges. My body craved fresh produce. I rarely got any other than a few scraps at the diner. It was too expensive otherwise. Still, as soon as the food hit my stomach, my guts twisted and it all tried to come back up. It didn’t sit right on top of the adrenaline and fear.
We ate in silence until another chime went off. Everyone dropped their silverware and stood. Not wanting to be singled out again, I rose as well after only a brief hesitation. My stomach churned with horrid anticipation.
“Please return to your rooms. Await further instructions,” Sam said.
The group melded into a single-file line and waited at the door until it swung open. I was at the back, behind Drake, and followed them out into the corridor. Now that I wasn’t being pulled along in a frantic hurry, I could get a better look at the surroundings. There were rooms set off from the hallway, most with their doors standing open. All were well-appointed and decorated like a normal, if upscale, house. A mansion was a better description, actually.
The first room I was able to get a clear view of looked like a living room. Big thick cushioned couches and chairs sat around end tables and a massive gas fireplace at the center. I froze at what was at the far end of that room. A front door. Beside it was a blacked-out window. The glass panes were either heavily tinted or painted over with black paint, but if there was a window beside that door, I could leave.
Bolting, I sprinted into the living room and rushed to the door. If a window was beside the door, that meant it had to lead outside. There was no other explanation. This had to be an exit. My survival instinct overrode all logical thought. The need to survive, to run, to escape shadowed any fear I had about punishment or retribution. My ears seemed to be full of static as the only thing I could think about was getting through that door.
The knob wouldn’t turn, of course. I kicked at the blacked-out windows, but the glass was as heavy and strong as steel. Bulletproof? I slammed my shoulder into the door over and over, panic overwhelming me until a hand touched my back. I spun, yelping. Drake stood there and gave me a stern look.
