Just Keep Playing

“Just put it into the slot!” Evan screamed. I stood, frozen as the sweat fell down my face.
This hadn’t been what I had in mind when I suggested a mystery trip holiday.

I slipped the small knife–which still dribbled blood onto the floor–into the door’s mail slot and exhaled. It was done.
The chilling voice from the speaker echoed, “well done. Stand by for further instructions.”
“Emily?” At the sound of Evan’s soft voice, I turned and frowned. “How are we going to get out of here?”
The room had been designed to keep occupants inside it; with no means of escape. I looked around it once again; up at the cameras and speakers lining the roof.
There were no doors and no windows in the room. Only a chair, and whatever instruments came through the slot in the door.
How had they ended up here?
“Let’s just keep playing the game. Maybe he’ll let us out if we keep playing.” I suggested. Evan gave a half-hearted shrug and collapsed onto the chair.
This was hour 3 of the nightmare they had endured, and the fatigue was written all over his face. I was feeling it too, but I refused to let it show.
The voice echoed once again, “Make sure to bandage your hand, Emily.”
The slot in the door opened, and a sealed medical package dropped onto the floor. It was only then that I remembered my injured hand.
They’d asked for a sample of my blood; apparently the only way to move onto the next level.
How had they ended up here?
Evan tended to her hand and when he had secured the bandage, the speaker sprung to life once again. “Thank you for playing the game. We appreciate your participation. Stand by for further instructions.”
How had they ended up here?
Emily’s memory was unusually foggy. They had just been out for a walk along the beach. Hadn’t they?
“We appreciate your participation. You have passed all the necessary tests. Quickly now, you don’t want to miss the boat.”
Emily shuffled backward as the door to the room unlocked. Cautiously, they stepped forward and pulled it open.
They quickly made their way through the house and exited through the front door. Nobody stopped them, nobody followed them.
After walking through dense shrubbery for an hour, a loud boat horn broke the silence. We stood in silence, staring out at a marina.
A boat. Just like he’d said.
We made our way to the closest one and explained our ordeal.
“You’re lucky. I was just about to ship out when you folks walked out,” the captain explained. We gave our thanks and boarded the ship, away from the trauma that we had experienced.
“We made it out,” Evan said quietly as we sailed away.
I frowned as a small flash of light flickered through the trees. It was coming from the direction of the house. “Just.”

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