Archard is standing at the end of the yacht with papers to read us in his hand.
“What happens if I withdraw?” I ask.
Liesel smiles.
Langston’s mouth falls wide.
And Enzo frowns.
I don’t know why any of them care if I withdraw. They all know Enzo is the better person to run the organization. I want nothing to do with it. I want to get as far away from here as possible.
“At this point in the game, I would highly recommend you don’t withdraw,” Archard says in a mysterious tone. He doesn’t tell me why I shouldn’t withdraw. He doesn’t say I can’t withdraw. Just that he recommends I don’t.
All eyes are on me, as more dark clouds roll overhead. Something dark is coming. My whole life is nothing but darkness, so it doesn’t shock me. But Milo is dead. My biggest threat is gone. All that is left is finishing this stupid game.
Something deep in my gut tells me not to withdraw. So I don’t say anything further.
Archard hitches an eyebrow looking directly at me. “Should I start?”
I nod.
And then Liesel and Langston’s eyes are on Archard, not on me. But Enzo stays focused on me, like I’m his whole world. Hiding my pregnancy from him is going to be near impossible. He knows everything about me. And even if our connection isn’t what it used to be, he still can see through any lie I tell.
I need to get out of here before he finds out.
“This round was created by Enzo’s father to test your bravery, courage, and self-sacrifice,” Archard says.
Enzo snorts. “My father knew nothing about any of those qualities.”
Archard ignores him, choosing to continue speaking. “This game will test all of those qualities and more. The winner of this round won’t be decided by me. The winner will be chosen by a team of five people selected to represent the men and women who work for you.”
What?
Every game before has been very straightforward. Very easy to determine the winner. But this time we will be judged by a team of people who work for us. This doesn’t even seem fair, if I cared about winning. Enzo has grown up in this world, around these people. He knows them on a personal level. Of course, they would vote for him over me.
“I will introduce you to the five people deciding your fate after I finish discussing the rules. The game will last one month. This is a test to see who is the better leader. Each of you will take turns leading the Black empire, and proving you are the best fit for the job.”
This seems too easy. We just do the job we’ve already been doing but individually?
“Enzo will be the first to have his leadership abilities tested. Each night the five-member team will vote to decide if he has done a good enough job to stay in power or if Kai should take over,” Archard continues.
“Wait, Kai doesn’t even get a chance to prove herself unless Enzo screws up? That doesn’t seem fair,” Liesel says.
“This game isn’t fair. It was created by Enzo’s father, so of course it will favor him,” Archard says, defiance in his eyes.
Liesel growls back and looks like she’s about to punch Archard, but Langston steps in, wrapping his arms around Liesel which only ignites her further.
“It’s fine, I don’t need a fair fight in order to win,” I say. But I don’t want to win. I just want out of here.
Liesel relaxes before pushing Langston away from her.
“What’s the catch?” Enzo asks.
“What do you mean?” Archard asks.
“I mean, this is too easy. Just do the job we are both competing to do. That’s it? That’s too easy and doesn’t involve much danger. So what’s the catch?” Enzo asks again.
Archard sighs reading over the papers again. “A month isn’t a long time. You could have a relatively easy month, which wouldn’t test your abilities fairly. So your father arranged a series of events guaranteed to happen during the month-long period. But the events will be very real, with real-life consequences.”