by Gina LaManna
“What do you mean?” My pulse sped up, and I leaned forward. “What happened?”
“His pupils were dilated and. . . I don’t know, I can’t explain it. I’m probably sounding crazy, but I know what I saw. He was empty in there, almost like his soul had left his body.”
“What did he do then?”
“Well, a few minutes later he just seemed to snap out of it. One second he had that crazy look in his eyes and the next. . . we were talking about the type of olives he liked best.”
“He didn’t do anything besides look at you?”
“I told you it sounds crazy, but I swear it happened. All I know is that I don’t want to be around the next time he turns weird.”
“What makes you think there’ll be a next time?”
Zin looked down, the starlight reflecting off her milky white skin. “You weren’t there, Lily. You didn’t see the look in his eyes. It was empty, yes, but there was something more—a hunger. The way he looked at me, it was like I had a target on my forehead, and he zoned in on it.”
“I’ll tell Ranger X,” I said. “Maybe he can do something about it. Look into Camden, or—”
“No! Don’t say anything.” She raised her hands, pleading with me. “He can’t know about this. He can’t know I told you. If I’m wrong, if what I saw was my imagination. . . ”
“It wasn’t,” I assured her. I couldn’t explain about mind bending in the amount of time we had left together. Ranger X had strolled a good distance away from us, but he had begun to head back. “X can help, I promise.”
“No. Camden could get disqualified or treated unfairly. And for what? Me thinking he looked hungry? No. Just… just look into him, Lily. Don’t say anything, please.”
Ranger X approached faster and faster, and I only had seconds left to ask my final question. “Zin, will you consider dropping out? The Ranger Trials can’t be worth all of this. The danger, the fear, the stress… please, consider it.”
“No,” she said, her eyes holding a touch of disappointment. “I’ve worked my entire life for this. A Ranger never gives up. I don’t plan to, either. Sorry.”
I sighed. “I knew you’d say that. Worth a shot, I suppose.”
She gave me a smile tinged with stubbornness. “Thanks for coming, Lil. I knew you’d understand.”
“I do understand, trust me. But you need to understand where I’m coming from,” I said. “I am the Mixologist, and I’ve taken an oath to Do Good. This is not a job to me, it’s more than that. It’s who I am, and I can’t let myself keep this a secret if lives are at risk. If your life is at risk.”
“Let’s compromise.” Zin responded so fast, I imagined she’d already planned her words. “The next public Trial is approaching quickly. Look into Camden—if you find something suspicious, if you uncover any evidence he has a reason to hurt any Candidate, you can tell Ranger X everything.”
“Deal.” I stuck my hand out eventually and shook my cousin’s, her fingers cold to the touch.
“It’s time to go, Lily,” Ranger X called, ignoring Zin. “I’ll walk you home.”
“Exciting.” I turned to face him. “Will we be needing the blindfold again?”
“Zin,” he said, this time ignoring me, “we’ll escort you to your room on the way.”
CHAPTER 14
“Sir, wait.”
We’d hardly dropped Zin off at her room before another Ranger called to us, jogging across The Oasis and gesturing for X to stop. When he reached us, he fixed me with a frown, waiting until I excused myself and stepped away before he started speaking.
The two Rangers held a brief, murmured conversation. I tried not to eavesdrop, but a few words made it through. Something about Healers, pain… someone was injured. My heart thudded—it couldn’t be Zin. She’d been standing here just minutes before.
“Lily, join us, please.” Ranger X waved for me to join them. “Do you have your Aloe Ale with you?”
“Yes, of course. I always carry it.”
“Would you mind taking a look at Dillan’s arm? After he fell during the Trial, he’s been in constant pain. We released the Healers for the evening, but apparently it’s acting up now, and the closest Healer can’t be here for another hour.”
“I’ll do what I can.”
Ranger X brought me around to a tent set up in the corner of The Oasis out of view from the rest of the Candidates. X tapped on the entrance and waited for a greeting before entering. “Dillan, I have someone here to help you.”
Dillan looked up in surprise as we stepped through the door. He’d been in the cubes when I first counted heads, which meant he must’ve just arrived at the tent.
His face was contorted in pain, and he held his arm pressed across his chest. It’d already been bound, but whatever he’d been given to dull the pain had clearly worn off. “The Mixologist?” he grunted. “Sorry, ma’am, I didn’t mean to bother you. I thought a Healer—”
“She was in the area, and she’s as good as any Healer,” X said. “Do you mind if she takes a look?”
“I’m nowhere near as skilled as a Healer, but I do have something to dull the pain,” I said. “Until more qualified help arrives. May I?”
He forced a smile, his teeth gritted. “That would be great.”
I sat down, murmuring words I hoped were sympathetic. For all X’s confidence, I was no more a Healer than he—but over these past few weeks, I had been learning to Mix basic medicinal potions. I carried several essentials with me at all times, including the Aloe Ale, which was a stronger, magical version of painkillers.
“This might hurt…” I unwrapped a portion of his arm to apply the Ale. “Sorry. Hang in there.”
He hissed, jerked back, and then came to a stop. “Sorry.”
“I’m sorry. I saw the fall, and it looked excruciating,” I said. “Try and think of something else while I get this applied. It won’t take long to begin easing the pain.”
“You could say it hurt.” His eyes flicked toward the ground as he spoke. “It certainly wasn’t fun.”
His gaze landed there only for a second, but it was long enough for me to follow his line of sight. A slip of paper fluttered to the ground. I reached for it at the same time as X and Dillan, but I got there first.
“Ouch.” I winced, holding the slip in one hand and pressing the injured finger to my shirt. “Paper cut.”
“I’ll take that,” X said, pulling the note from my hand.
I caught a glimpse of numbers and letters, but nothing that made sense before it was whisked away.
While Ranger X read over the paper, I dabbed a bit of ointment on my finger, then continued to apply the salve to Dillan’s arm. His shoulders tensed, and it wasn’t until Ranger X handed the paper back to the Candidate that he relaxed.
“It’s from my mother,” Dillan explained. “It’s the only thing I have of hers. She left me that note the day before she died.”
“I’m sorry,” I said, meaning it. “I heard she passed away when you were young.”
“Of course you did,” he said, a note of bitterness to his voice. “The media’s been running stories about my history for months, just like the rest of the Candidates and their families. Some things are better left private.”
The media had featured a story about Dillan, as it had with every other Candidate. They’d focused on the fact that Dillan had grown up in a single parent home, his mother having passed away while he was just a child.
I finished applying the salve and rewrapped his arm. “Better?”
“Much,” he said. “Thank you for coming, Miss Locke. Goodnight.”
“Goodnight,” I said, watching as he walked out of the tent, followed closely by a Ranger escort.
As I cleaned up my supplies, I murmured to X. “Did you understand the note?”
“I read it,” he said. “A series of numbers and letters, but it didn’t mean anything to me.”
“Do you think it was actually from his mom?”
“It’s h
ard to say.”
I let the subject drop, since clearly X didn’t want to talk about it. “Well, I hope the salve helps until the Healer arrives.”
“I’m sure it will.” X tucked me under his arm, leading me out through The Oasis and into The Forest before he stopped with a thoughtful expression on his face. “So where did we land on the blindfold?”
CHAPTER 15
One week later, I had no new information on Camden, but I did have more doughnuts, croissants, and cakes than I’d ever need. The number of trips I’d made across The Isle to the bakery had run into the double digits. Except for an overload of carbs, I hadn’t gained anything from my visits.
I reread all of Camden’s interviews. I watched the replay of the first Trial a hundred times, and I spoke with his friends and family. Nobody had a bad thing to say. Even his family was sweet—his father had given me baskets of baked goods, and his mother had hand-written me six recipes for how I could use the leftovers.
All this brought me right back to square one—back to the very theory I’d hoped to disprove. If Camden was acting strangely, it was likely due to mind bending. A part of me had hoped for a different explanation, but the second public Trial was approaching quickly, and I had no evidence to the contrary.
During the past week, I also hadn’t rested in my investigation surrounding The Puppeteer. It was hard to unearth information about someone who’d been locked away for years, and even harder because everyone clammed up once I mentioned her name.
I was in the same place I’d been the night I’d visited Zin. I’d even tried to scribble down the numbers from the note in Dillan’s pocket, but I couldn’t remember most of them. From what I could tell, it wasn’t a phone number, a location, or a code. Maybe, as Ranger X suggested, it was nothing.
Now, the second Trial would begin in ten minutes, and I had nothing. Absolutely nothing.
“Wait!” I called, scurrying after Ranger X as he strode toward the stage. We were back at the arena, the memories of last week heavy in the air. “One more thing before you go.”
“What’s wrong?” He stopped, despite the roar of the crowd pulling him forward.
Wringing my hands together, I debated for one final second. Though I’d promised Zin not to say anything, I couldn’t do it. “It’s about Zin.”
Some of the tension left his gaze, though his muscles were taut, his posture stiff. “You have nothing to worry about. We’ve given each of the Candidates a thorough screening. Security has been increased tenfold. We have the entire Ranger staff working this afternoon—at least half will be on the pitch itself, and the rest interspersed throughout the island. There won’t be trouble.”
“But—”
“We can’t hide from this, Lily. You said so yourself.” His fingers traced tender lines across my cheek. “What message would it send if we canceled the event today? If the Rangers went into hiding?”
“I’m not asking you to cancel anything!” I sighed, tilted my head against his hand and relished the warmth of his skin against mine. “But I’m not sure that’d be such a bad thing. Surely you’ve already adjusted the Trials in one form or another.”
“What do you mean?”
“You’ve said a hundred times that the public events are just a tiny snapshot of the entire Trial process. They’re more for fun and island bonding. I thought you were supposed to be monitoring the Candidates on the streets as they went about their business, not keeping them holed up in some Oasis!”
“Some adjustments have been made admittedly, but this is different. Cancelling the public Trial would be admitting defeat loud and clear. It’d be sending a message to the Islanders—and The Faction—that we’re scared. I’m not willing to do that.”
“Well, how will you select the appropriate Candidates if you’re keeping them locked up?”
“Lily, please. Take a deep breath—the Candidates have been under surveillance for months, and I promise you we won’t make our choices until we’re sure. The Trials will last as long as we need them to last.”
“But Zin—”
“—Zin can handle herself.”
“Just… keep an eye on her, okay? I know I’ve already asked you to, but I’m more worried than ever.”
Discomfort crept onto his face. “We keep an eye on all of the Candidates equally, and their safety is of utmost importance. Zin is no exception.”
“I know, I believe you, but. . . ”
“Good.” Ranger X leaned toward me, his lips brushing against my cheek. “I love you, Lily.”
“I love you, too,” I said, my hand sliding around his neck. I held him close. I held him so close that he couldn’t help but hear as I whispered Camden’s name in his ear.
Ranger X straightened at the name. “What about him?”
I released X and stepped back. The crowd swarmed in the distance, emotions running higher than ever. The Candidates were lined up in the wings, awaiting the starting whistle.
“That’s all I can say,” I said, turning to leave before he could ask more of me. “Good luck, X.”
“Lily, wait—”
A throat cleared behind Ranger X. It was Elle, a stunning woman who ran Ranger HQ. Though she was hundreds of years old, she didn’t look a day over thirty, thanks to Fae magic. She flicked her shimmering blonde hair over her shoulder.
“Hi, Lily, Ranger X,” she said, her voice a thin melody over the roar of the crowd. She tapped her slender fingers against the clipboard in her hands. “I’m sorry to interrupt, but we’re ready for you, X. It’s time.”
I waved goodbye to both, leaving Ranger X to stare as I hurried away from him.
“X, is everything okay?” Elle asked. I could hardly make out her words as I rushed to the stands.
“It’s fine,” he said, his voice gruff. “It’s time to start. Security is in place?”
I wormed my way through the crowd, making it into the West Isle Witches box just before the beginning whistle sounded. I’d missed the announcements on my trek through the audience, but I needn’t have worried. The second I took a seat next to my family, Poppy launched into her play-by-play.
“Did you see what Camden is wearing?” She sighed, fanning herself. She wasn’t the only girl who’d had her eye on that particular Candidate with his movie-star good looks. “His… pants are nice.”
I stared at Camden, pretending to analyze his pants. Instead, I watched his face, waiting for something, anything to happen. Except for his look of intense concentration, however, there was nothing—no emotion, no reaction, no empty, vacant expression.
The Candidates were spaced equidistant from one another around the outskirts of the arena. Though the starting whistle had blown, none of them moved. From the edges of the arena, a thick, dark smoke began billowing up—so thick that as it rose and covered the arena, we lost sight of the Candidates.
It took less than three minutes before the entire pitch had been covered by this smoke.
“What are they doing?” I tried to keep my voice steady. “I can’t see anything!”
Trinket and her children sat on the other end of the bleacher, all of them watching with rapt attention. Mimsey sat next to them, just to the right of Poppy. I was last on the bench, though Gus and a few other friends wandered around behind us, too nervous to sit.
A man who was most likely a Companion, a different Companion than last time, perched near the rear of the box with his eyes trained on my back. Probably X’s doing.
“Just watch,” Hettie said. Her eyes didn’t once leave the smog, though I couldn’t figure out what she was seeing. “It’ll go away.”
It did. The smoke vanished as quickly as it’d arrived. The Candidates looked slightly stunned to be standing in bright daylight again, and even more surprised when they realized that a door had materialized next to each of them.
“What the heck?” Poppy said. “What are they supposed to do with a bunch of doors?”
I shrugged. Apparently the Candidates had no clue, either. A few
of them tentatively tested their respective handles. One or two gained confidence and rattled the knobs, while the boldest of the group shoved their shoulders against the wooden panels. None of the doors budged.
“Physical fitness is only one part involved in becoming a Ranger,” Hettie explained. “It’s the mental Trials that are the most challenging.”
Poppy frowned. “Well, what are they doing?”
“That smoke in the arena forced each Candidate into a deep sleep. If you look, you can see their eyes are closed.” Hettie paused, letting us see for ourselves. “They’ve been forced into an individual nightmare based on their worst fears. The clock has begun its countdown, and they must escape before the time is up.”
Sure enough, a large timepiece had descended in the middle of the arena. It was in the shape of a cube, hovering over the center for all to watch. Just under ten minutes remained.
“Ten minutes isn’t a long time,” I murmured.
Hettie snorted a laugh. “I don’t know about you, but ten minutes inside of my worst nightmare is plenty long.”
“How do they escape?”
“Well, at the end of the day, they are merely under a spell. In order to escape, they have to pull themselves out of the fog.” Hettie’s gaze bored into my head. “This Trial is meant to test the Candidates’ mental power—we all know that magic exists in this world that can cause hallucinations or alter one’s mind. It doesn’t matter how big a Ranger may be on the outside—if their brain is weak, they can be controlled. The bigger they are, the harder they fall.”
“Are you talking about mind—”
“No,” Hettie cut me off with a quick glance at Poppy. “That is impossible to fight. I’m talking about simple charms; you know the ones, Lily. A light love spell or a Persuasive Potion. What you’re referencing is different—that takes a piece of one’s soul and gives it to another.”
“What are you talking about?” Poppy leaned forward and threw a few kernels of fresh popcorn into her mouth. “I don’t like the sound of it.”