Page 113 of Fly's Path

There is no answer to give, so I stand there silently begging for her to see past all of this and know to trust me even though every part of her screams that I’m no longer trustworthy.

As the silence echoes around us, the zombie turns around and shuts the door on me…on us.

No More Tears

Fly

This is really a castle.

Why did I expect anything less?

How am I supposed to find Sheri inside this monster? I mean, if I were eight and we were playing a game of hide-and-seek, this place would be the best ever. But when it’s my woman hiding, and I’m trying to seek her without any clues, this is a nightmare.

“You ready to have some fun?” Bishop slaps me on the back.

“I need to find Sheri.”

Bishop chuckles.

“It’s not funny.”

“Just stay away from Vex today.”

“Like I have a death wish.”

Bishop raises an eyebrow at me.

“I don’t. I just need to make sure she’s okay.” That we’re okay. Watching her run in circles all night without a word messed with my head more than I would like to admit.

The date went amazing. She shouldn’t have cried. She shouldn’t have run laps until she collapsed.

None of it makes sense. Fine, she could have been mad at me for leaving without telling her. But Integer was supposed to tell her that something important came up.

Something more important than her? Never…but it shouldn’t be an either-or kind of thing. But I can’t explain, because if this doesn’t work out, she’d know where the bodies are buried.

Well, not literally buried. I don’t think they’re dead yet. Maddox spent the entire night chatting with our friend. That doesn’t mean they aren’t the walking dead, with a stay of execution until we rescue all those women at their base.

“Earth to Fly. The party has already started.” Bishop waves a hand at me and nods to the brothers who are entering the castle doors.

We’re in an actual castle playing a game. Last night I was covered in filth, fighting the dregs of society after the most perfect first date in the history of first dates.

The emotional roller coaster isn’t going to slow down until I have her in my arms. “Let’s do this.”

My stomach growls as we walk inside. Somewhere in the castle, they’re roasting meat.

“The game is already afoot.” A woman dressed to the nines, like she’s in the roaring forties, greets us at the door. “A murder has occurred within the castle. Your job is to find out who did it, why they did it, and how.” She holds out an envelope with a metal bracelet attached. “That is a tracker. Keep it on the entire time you’re here. If you figure out who did it, simply press thebutton once, and it will turn green, alerting all the players to meet in the main hall. Press and hold if you get lost.”

“Do people actually get lost here?” Bishop scans the area.

The woman shrugs. “That’s what I’ve heard. I haven’t had time to explore yet. Your costumes can be found in the library for the next several hours. After that, they’ll be moved to the cloakroom. I have no idea where that is, so I’d recommend taking enough for the weekend so you don’t need to go searching for them. The card inside will tell you all about your character and the clues you might have for people to figure out. Have fun.”

Like I care one bit about this game.

“Let’s get dressed so you can go hunt your woman.”

I am dressed. I don’t want to try on some silly outfit to play a game when I could be talking to her. “Fine.”

Bishop grins.