The Recall Trials Chapter 15: You Still Think It’s Just A Show?

4 seconds left.

"I have... not," I said.

The countdown alarm blared instantly after I spoke. My whole body froze.

Did I say it in ti?

Was I about to be shark food?

Was I going to die right there?

Was the trapdoor about to open beneath ?

My heart pounded so hard I thought everyone in the room could hear it. My hands were trembling uncontrollably. I stood there, frozen, staring at the floor below , bracing for sothing...anything.

Then, just as quickly, a new number flashed on the screen.

I let out a shaky breath.

Oh my god.

I wasn’t going to die.

No sharks. No water. No horror show.

I stepped out of the spotlight, my legs weak beneath . As I moved back into the crowd, Zaara rushed to and wrapped her arms around without saying a word. She held on tight.

"You scared the hell out of ," she whispered against my shoulder.

"Sa," I muttered, barely able to speak.

The next contestant made their way under the spotlight.

The ga continued.

One after the other, nas and numbers flashed on the screen. Questions were asked...brutal, personal questions, and this ti, everyone answered. No one hesitated. No one lied. No one wanted to end up like Piper.

The image of her being dragged under, her screams, that shark.....God, it was burned into everyone’s mory now. It wasn’t just a fear anymore. It was real. And it changed the ga.

Everyone was terrified, but alive. For now.

The ga had ended, but the fear it left behind hadn’t.

They led us back to the room in dead silence. No one said a word.. The hallways felt colder this ti, tighter sohow, like the walls were laughing at us, enjoying the sight of our broken spirits.

My legs dragged beneath , heavy and numb, but I kept moving. It’s not like I had a choice. That mont under the spotlight replayed on a loop in my head, the voice, the question, the ticking tir... Piper’s death. Over and over again like a nightmare I couldn’t wake up from.

When we finally made it back, the iron door slamd shut behind us.

Zaara sat quietly on her bed, rubbing her hands together like she was trying to scrub the mory off her skin.

I dropped down across from her, back against the icy wall. I didn’t even realize I was still trembling until she looked over at and asked,"Are you okay?"

I t her eyes. "I don’t know," I said truthfully. "That question they gave ... it wasn’t random. It was personal. Way too personal."

"You didn’t do anything wrong," she replied gently. "They want to break us down, one by one. That’s the ga."

"I know." I exhaled sharply. "But still... how the hell do they know everything about us? That one wasn’t just luck. It was targeted."

The room was still. Unsettlingly quiet. It felt like even the air didn’t want to move.

Then Carter, the limping ex-soldier broke the silence.

"You still think it’s just a show?" he asked, turning his tired eyes toward Theo. "You saw what happened.You still think this is fake after what we just saw?"

Theo didn’t answer. He just stayed hunched over, head buried in his knees. Whatever fight he had earlier... it was gone now.

No one else spoke.

And for the first ti since we got here, I think we all felt it.....really felt it.

We weren’t contestants anymore.

We were prisoners.

And this wasn’t a ga.

"I hate this place," soone muttered from the corner.

"We all do," I whispered back.

I leaned closer to Zaara and said under my breath, "They know everything... our secrets, our fears... maybe even our dreams."

Zaara’s eyes widened. "Oh my god, Vincent. Piper was right. She said sothing that makes sense now."

She grabbed my hand for a second and whispered fast, urgent, "There’s sothing you need to know. et in the restroom in three minutes. Sa one I saw you in last night. Don’t do anything that’ll draw attention. If anyone gets suspicious, we’re both screwed."

She stood up casually and walked off like nothing was wrong.

I sat there frozen for a second.

Why’d she have to ntion last night?

I was still trying to erase that mont from my brain, especially after everything that just happened.

I waited for a while, quietly counting down three minutes in my head, since there was no clock, it was the only way to keep track.

Once I was sure the ti was up, I casually slipped out of the room and walked down the hallway toward the restroom.Just as I reached the stalls, Zaara suddenly rushed out and grabbed my wrist, pulling inside with her.

She yanked close, that our bodies were touching in the tight space. Since I was taller, she had to tilt her head up to et my eyes, her finger pressed gently to my lips as she made a hush sound. I leaned down instinctively, trying to hear whatever it was she had to say.

But we were so close. Her breath was warm against my skin. My whole body tensed, not from fear this ti, but sothing else entirely. Her presence was magnetic. And those lips... oh my god those soft, pink, plump full lips. I tried to focus on what she was saying, but my eyes kept drifting. God, I couldn’t stop staring at them.

A part of , completely out of line, just wanted to lean in and taste them.