5. Harper Leigh

Scenes from the two video clips played on a loop in my mind as we entered the new space. What did that night have to do with why we were here?

I was jolted from my thoughts when the door slammed behind us, and the telltale sound of gears signaled the metal sheet was being lowered. We were trapped once again.

Landry grabbed hold of my hand and pulled me into his side. "Stay close," he instructed.

I wanted to press him for answers, but Conrad's shocked gasp stole my attention. "What the fuck is that smell?" he bellowed.

Turning, I surveyed the room. It looked like some sort of indoor pool area. A metal lid lay over the large rectangular area, but the scent of chlorine was absent from the space. In its place was the pungent aroma of mildew and death.

I lifted my arm in an attempt to block out the stench, then continued to look around. Like the ballroom, this room was also dilapidated. Greenery of some sort grew in the cracked stone flooring surrounding the pool. The once white paint, now beige and covered in grime, peeled from the walls, and the floor-to-ceiling windows were sealed over with sheets of wood at least three inches thick.

Once again, there was no way out.

"Bitches and punks, please take your places on both sides of the pool. I strongly suggest that you pair up–one dick and one pussy on each team, or I'm sure this will be over before it even truly gets started, and that would be a fucking shame," Jim singsonged through the sound system.

"Landry's with me," Addie blurted, and I rolled my eyes, preparing to pull from his side.

His grip tightened. "Are you dumb?" Landry snapped at her. "Why the hell would I partner with you and leave Harper with Conrad?"

I'd say it was the question of the evening if it weren't for the clusterfuck we found ourselves in. I couldn't even bask in the chastised look on her annoyed face. Addie's cheeks bloomed red, her lips thinning once she noticed my attention was on her.

"It's not fair for me to have a one armed partner." She gestured to the wound on Conrad's arm. "Whatever. Conrad, you're with me. Let's get this over with," she exclaimed, and as she strode around the pool to the other side closest to the windows, I swore she mumbled she hoped I'd die next.

Landry kissed the top of my head, and I had to fight not to smash him in the face. Something was going on, and I was the only one out of the loop. We were here because of that night at his family's lake house. They'd all behaved differently after that. Something I would've usually questioned if I wasn't lost in grief.

Huffing, I allowed myself to be tugged over to our side, finally noticing the large rope placed across the pool.

The stench from this spot made me gag. "We'll probably pass out from the smell before whatever these psychopaths have planned," I choked out.

"Well, that's not very nice, Harper Leigh. What would your folks say about you judging people?" Jim jested.

Telling him to fuck off was on the tip of my tongue, but I swallowed the retort, biting the inside of my cheek. The tang of copper slid down my throat. It was better to swallow blood than to anger these two sick fucks.

"Now I know y'all have played a round of tug of war at least a few times in your pathetic lives. Still, I'll give a brief refresher and then explain the object of the game," Jack stated.

If ever there was a time I was happy to be cornbread fed, it was now. Conrad was just shy of six feet and stocky, the perfect size for his nose tackle position. A strong gust off the coast could blow away Addie. On the other hand, Landry was over six feet tall and had two hundred pounds of lean muscle. Whatever this game turned out to be, my money was on us winning.

"When I say get ready, y'all are gonna pick up that rope. Then, when you hear the horn, you'll tug for your life, literally. The game doesn't end until one of you lands in the pool," Jack explained.

Conrad snorted, "What's the catch? After the last game, I don't believe for a single second it's that easy."

Nodding, I hummed my agreement. There was definitely more to this. Jack's instructions were far too simple.

"I guess you're not a dumb jock after all. Pick up the rope," Jack commanded. Jack was the asshat in this deadly duo. He was brusque and delivered his vitriolic words venomously.

"I'll anchor," Landry offered. "That should give us more leverage."

Addie watched, then turned and whispered something in Conrad's ear. He nodded, taking the same position as Landry. Having your strongest person on anchor is a beginner strategy in this game. I didn't know why she'd need to try and keep that a secret.

"Clock's ticking. You have one minute to get into your position before the game starts, with or without you. I strongly recommend you don't let that be the case," Jack snapped.

Bending, I grabbed the rope and then quickly dropped it. "Fuck," I shouted, twisting to see the slivers of cuts in my hand. "Glass?" I barked. "You put glass in the goddamn rope!"

"That's not very godlike, Harper Leigh," Jim tsked. "What's that? Ten Hail Mary's?"

"Wrong denomination, asshole," I quipped. I never wanted to stab a person in the eye so badly. The way he joked so easily when our lives were on the line stoked the rage in me I'd worked so hard to hide. "Breathe, Harper Leigh," I murmured low enough that only I could hear.

No one moved to lift the rope. We all stood there, trying to find another way. I searched the room to no avail, hoping to find something to protect our hands. If we played their way, it would embed shards of glass into our palms.

Sighing, I began to lift my shirt before a hand halted my movements.

"What are you doing?" Landry questioned.

I twisted, narrowing my gaze. "Wrapping my shirt around my hands."

"But they'll see you topless," Landry snapped. My nostrils flared. He couldn't seriously be worried about whether my tits were on display. I'd strip naked if it got us all out of this hellhole.

"Better to see my bra than to shred my palms," I argued through clenched teeth.

Landry's face flushed beet red with indignation, a rebuke on the tip of his lips.

"Thirty seconds," Jack declared, ending all discussions.

Wasting no more time, I yanked my shirt over and wrapped my hands as best as possible. Landry followed suit once he realized there was no other option, and when I gazed across the room, I noticed Addie and Conrad did the same. Conrad wrapped the rope around the aist of his jeans, desperately trying to compensate for the arm that had been injured.

I picked up the rope just as the horn sounded, and the cover of the pool slid open. Clear water revealed bright lights in a shiny underground metal pool. "Who designed the pool to be like the giant jambalaya cooker from Coop's in the French Quarter?" I twisted and whispered in Landry's ear.

He shrugged, puzzled by the sight in front of us. "We can worry about that after I ensure you and I make it out of this room. Now focus, Harper Leigh," Landry ordered. "If someone has to die in this room, it won't be one of us."

Spinning back around, I peered into the deceptively still water. I knew Landry was right, but something niggled in the back of my mind. There was no familiar chlorine fragrance. In fact, outside of the decay, I couldn't pick up any other scents.

A countdown began, and I shook off all thoughts of what was in the water. With our luck, there was a valve that would release piranhas. At the sound of the horn, we pulled. My face twisted in pain as glass pierced my skin. Even with my shirt for protection, it felt like I dragged my palms across razors.

"Ahhh," Addie cried. Blood dripped down her forearm before splashing to the ground. Her thin shirt was of no use, and I fought back the elation her anguish caused me.

"Don't you fucking let go of the fucking rope, Addie," Conrad screamed. They moved closer to the pool's edge, losing ground each time Landry and I heaved the rope. It wouldn't be long before another person died.

She whined, fighting to keep her grip strong, but there was too much blood. Her hands kept slipping. "I'm tryin'. Stop yelling at me and pull."

Landry and I had a system by this point–a cadence . . . one . . . two . . . three . . . pull. Each round, we tugged Conrad and Addie closer to the pungent water.

Anger built in Addie's eyes, its fury directed toward me. If she could, she'd push me in and say fuck this game. Another reminder of just how fake our friendship was and another reason to miss Vi.

Determination set in, and on the next tug, I yanked so hard Addie slid just shy of the edge. Realizing they couldn't win and she'd go in, Addie let go of the rope and tried to move out of the way.

Landry and I landed in a heap as Conrad slipped, barreling for the water.

"What the fuck are you doing, you dumb bitch?" he shrieked, grabbing her ankle before he fell in. The liquid splashed, hitting Addie down the side of her face, and she screamed.

But my focus was on the bubbling liquid that ate through Conrad's flesh. Whatever was in the water methodically broke him down. This was far worse than watching Raymond burn.

What the fuck was in the pool? It damn sure wasn't water.

Conrad didn't even have a chance to cry out. I covered my mouth and looked on in shock as his skin separated from bone and the bone slowly dissolved. Clumps of fatty tissue turned to brown sludge as it floated to the water's surface.

"Drop the rope, Harper," Landry screamed, snapping me from my trance. I released my hold as he continued. "We don't know what's in there. I don't want you hurt."

"My face," Addie squealed. "It burns!"

I couldn't spare her a glance. I transfixed my gaze on the pool of acid and the fact that the only recognizable part left of Conrad was the hand sitting at the pool's edge.

Arms wrapped around me, wiping away tears I didn't know were falling. I turned my head into Landry's chest. "Why is this happening? Who would want to do this to us?" I muttered between sobs.

The sound of the door opening drew my attention. I needed to get out of here.

"Someone cheated death," Jack snickered. "I hope you know death never loses. Enjoy your temporary reprieve. Move to the next game."

It was Jim's laughter that chased us out of the space and into the adjacent room, but it was Jack's words that weighed heavily on me.

Death was coming for us all.