Page 23 of The Player
“First, don’t bother trying to escape. The room you’re locked in can’t be breached. I’m sure you’ve already noticed there’s no windows, very limited ventilation, and the door is set on a timer that’s controlled by me. I will feed you, give you water. There’ll be a set number of hours that I’ll allow you to have light, and when you eventually venture off the mattress, you’ll see there’s a toilet just behind the wall to your right. No door though. Can’t have you hiding from me in the bathroom and getting any ideas, can we?”
“They’re coming for you, you know. They won’t stop until they’ve found us,” Will seethed.
“Your soldiers? The Brinton Manorboys,” the man in the mask sneered, mocking us. “Do you really believe that?” He shook his head and tutted. “I’m sorry to disappoint you, but that’s not gonna happen. The CCTV in your club was set on a loop by me. They have no record of you in the car park, or her at the maze. In fact, I wiped all the CCTV in the surrounding area so no one will ever know where we went or how we got here. Yes.” He nodded his head. “I’m that good.”
He lifted his hand up to the screen to show us what he was holding and added, “As for your mobile phones, I have those here. All tracking on them has been deactivated and I took the liberty of texting those closest to you to tell them you were both going away for a while. A little… getting to know each other break away.” He shook the mobiles in his hands as he spoke. “They really believed it too. You know, there’s a lot of people out there rooting for you two to get together. What a shame that might all come to a gruesome end, here, in my basement.”
“He can’t have texted everyone,” Will whispered, and as if to prove he was listening to every word we said, the mask replied, “Oh, but I did. I’m very thorough. I always do my homework. Leave no stone unturned, that’s what I always say.”
He started to tap on one of the phones.
“You’ve already had replies. The King,” he said, meaning Colton. “Said about fucking time. Don’t come back till you’ve sealed the deal.” He huffed a low laugh. “I agree with him. You won’t leave here until your work is done.”
“Motherfucker,” Will hissed under his breath.
“The Psycho”—that was Adam,— “said I hope you’ve got someone to cover your shifts.” The masked man looked up like he was peering at us through the TV. “I sorted that out for you too. Tyler wasn’t impressed. He said you owe him big time. And… you’re welcome. But I’m sure I’ll find a way for you to thank me properly soon enough.”
“What the fuck do you want from us?” I asked through gritted teeth.
“I want you to make right the wrongs that need to be addressed. And yes, I know that sounds vague, but I promise, it’ll all become clearer soon. For now, all you have to worry about is getting some rest, you’re going to need it. I will be depositing food and water into the room shortly. Take it. You’re no good to me or yourselves if you’re weak. If you want to win my game, you need to be strong, smart, and clever in the way you play.”
He moved backwards, letting the rest of his body fill the screen as he held his arms out to the side. “Welcome to my game of consequences. Player one and two, are you ready for the challenge of your life?” He tilted his head. “Or death, whichever one it turns out to be.”
“I’m ready to fuck you up,” Will growled, and the mask threw his head back and laughed.
“I look forward to it.” His mechanical voice cackled, then just before the screen cut out, he added, “And how rude of me not to introduce myself properly to my star players. I will be your host throughout this game, but you can call me…” He paused for effect. “The Taskmaster.”
And then the TV screen went blank.
ChapterTen
WILL
Iwanted to tear that fucking television off the wall. Hell, I wanted to rip down every wall in this damn prison cell.
I was no one’s plaything.
She wasn’t either.
And if he thought he could use us, he’d have a fight on his hands. Whatever sick, twisted games this fucker was trying to play, I was ready for it.
“We’re going to die here, aren’t we?” Bryony whispered, and I felt a surge of protectiveness wash over me again.
I didn’t like to hear her talk like that. It wasn’t like her. She’d always been a fighter. I wouldn’t let that change. No matter how shitty our predicament was.
“No. We won’t,” I stated. “I won’t let that fucking happen.”
“I don’t think we’re in a position to argue the point,” she replied, but I wasn’t having that. I wouldn’t give up, and neither would she.
“It’s not a case ofifwe get out, onlywhen. Things might look hopeless now, but that’ll change.” I paused, taking a deep breath. “I’ll make them change.”
I stood up, walking towards the TV and peering up at it, seeing if there was some way of pulling it down, or ripping something off that could be used as a weapon, but it was set into the wall behind clear glass.
“Do you have anything we could use to try and smash this glass?” I asked, turning to see if Bee was still wearing heels, but her feet were bare. He wasn’t stupid. He’d stripped us of anything that could be used against him.
“If you pick me up, I could try and pound it with my fists.” She suggested, and even though I knew that was fucking useless, I nodded.
“Okay, let’s give it a go.”
