Total pages in book: 48
Estimated words: 44459 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 222(@200wpm)___ 178(@250wpm)___ 148(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 44459 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 222(@200wpm)___ 178(@250wpm)___ 148(@300wpm)
Fine.
Bring it on.
Chapter 12
Josh stared at me from the other side of the conference table like I’d lost my damn mind. Chelsea and I had met him in the same room where I’d signed my paperwork earlier this evening, and since the last guest had finished their journey through Void, we now had Josh’s undivided attention.
The first thing he’d done when we sat down was blow up at Chelsea for fraternizing with a participant. Not only did it “break the illusion,” he’d said, but she’d likely violated her NDA, and with the worst person possible—a reporter.
But she wasn’t fazed by his angry tone. She asked if they’d found Roquan yet, and when he’d told her they hadn’t, she’d encouraged me to tell my story. I’d done my best to sound sane and logical, but judging by the way he was looking at me, I’d failed.
His tone was dismissive. “I’m sure you think that’s what you saw, but you were under a lot of stress, and the mind can do radical things to protect itself.”
Irritation coasted through me. “Sure, I was stressed, but trust me. That’s exactly how it happened. I’m not making it up.” It was clear there was no convincing him, so I moved on to collecting evidence to back my story. “Go watch the video, then. You’ve got cameras all over this place, so I’m sure you have one up there, recording everything.”
An emotion like unease cracked across his face and vanished as soon as it had appeared.
“There is a camera in the fifth-floor hall”—he sounded less confident than he’d been before—“but it stopped working after we opened tonight. We’ve been struggling with power surges ever since we got here because of the old wiring. We replaced the backup battery pack, but it didn’t help, and since guests are interacting with a cast member most of the time they’re on that floor, I made the call to go without it.”
I couldn’t believe what I was about to say. “All right. Let’s go up there and look around.”
Josh gave a humorless laugh. “Not a chance.”
He tapped the screen of his phone, activating the speakerphone, and set it face up on the table, allowing Chelsea and me to hear it ring. The man on the other end answered almost right away.
“Hey, Ahmed,” Josh said, “I need you to go up to the fifth floor and check the hallway for me.”
“Okay.” Ahmed’s voice was unsure. “What am I looking for?”
“Probably nothing. But look around the mirror at the end of the hall.”
“All right. I’ll call you back when I’m up there.”
When the call disconnected, Chelsea rubbed her temples in frustration before setting her gaze on Josh. “Do you think Tyler is lying to you? Why would he do that?”
His expression told her she was being naïve. “Because he’s a reporter? This story is the perfect excuse to get access behind the scenes. Even more access, I might add, than you’ve already given him.”
Her focus darted to me like she considered for a single moment that I might have been using her, and I didn’t like that one bit.
“Okay, first off”—I dropped my elbows on the table and leaned forward to give him a hard look—“don’t flatter yourself. I didn’t want to come back here, but I did because we thought I could help. I’m not some asshole after a story. And second of all, I’m a journalist because the truth matters to me.” I hoped he could hear the conviction in my words. “I don’t tell lies. And if I did? Jesus, at least I’d make up a believable one.”
His lips parted to say something, but his phone vibrated on the tabletop, and he punched the button to put it on speaker again.
“Everything looks normal to me,” Ahmed announced.
Josh’s focus was fixed on the phone. “Is there anyone else up there?”
“No, I don’t think so. The lights were off. I’m heading to the mirror now.”
Sounds of him walking came through the line, and my heart rate began to climb. I didn’t know what I wanted him to find. Any proof would mean I hadn’t made the story up, but then again—what did that say about what I’d witnessed?
“It’s just a mirror,” the guy said.
“Is there anything behind it?” I asked. “Like a door?”
“A door?” Confusion filled his voice, followed by a quiet grunt. “No way. The thing’s heavy as fuck. The only thing I see is a placard beside it that . . .” He paused so long, worry reached inside me and squeezed.
“What is it?” Josh demanded.
Ahmed sounded annoyed. “Sorry, the lights are acting up again. Flickering like crazy.”
Ice froze me in place.
Logic said this was coincidence. Bad old wiring as Josh had explained. But my gut didn’t listen to logic. It didn’t care if there were scientific reasons for what was happening.