So if we could get to the end, Alys and I could sit across from each other and see who people would vote for - me, because I played hard, or her, because she was an angel.
In the meantime, I was looking for ways to split Kissy and Leslie. If I didn’t win the next immunity challenge, I knew they’d be gunning for me. So I watched, and waited.
The day before the next immunity, I found a clue for Pandora’s Box in our tribal mail.
I stared at it for a long moment, and carefully shut the lid, leaving it there. According to Chip, Pandora’s Box could either be good or bad, and I’d already had good (well, theoretically) so I didn’t want to touch it, lest it automatically vote me out of the game. My game was already under control.
It was a calculated risk, but I’d take it. So I hunkered down in the bushes, hiding and waiting to see who found it.
Alys wandered toward the water hole a short time later, and paused at the tribal mailbox, lifting the lid nonchalantly. She stilled at the sight of the note in there, so I had to emerge from the bushes and warn her away from it. It took some convincing, but Alys was easily sway-able and in the end, she walked away and I went back to my hiding spot.
Leslie found it.
I watched her read the clue with excitement, then race into the jungle. I followed a short distance behind and watched, just in time, as she found a particular tree and reached into a hollow, pulling out the tiny red lacquered box. She opened it, dug out a piece of paper, and began to read.
“Shit,” she hissed under her breath, then quickly glanced around and stuffed the clue back into the box and into the tree.
I slunk away into the bushes. Bad news. That was all I needed to know.
The next challenge, I won, beating the others in a swimming-and-retrieving challenge. Kissy and Leslie were slower competitors, and Alys was my only real competition. I won easily, and felt proud going into Judgment that night, wearing the necklace so the jury - now comprised entirely of men - could see that I was kicking ass and taking names.
As usual, every time the jury filed in, I cast a longing look at Jendan. He was bulking up now that he was eating regularly, and his muscles were filling out again. The man was ripped. And gorgeous. And he made my girl parts tingle every time I saw him.
He never sent me an encouraging look, though, and I wondered if he was mad at me or if this was simply part of him playing the game.
What I wouldn’t have given for just one small smile, though!
Earlier that day, I’d convinced a nervous Alys that we didn’t need Kissy on our side to win the vote. Whatever Leslie had found in Pandora’s Box wasn’t a good thing. Even if we were wrong and it came down to a tie, Alys could beat her in a Judgment challenge. Leslie had been silent all day, except for the occasional snipe at how little work Kissy was doing around camp, and I knew she was trying to encourage us to vote in that direction.
Didn’t matter. When it came time for the vote, I wrote down Leslie’s name. A short time later, the votes were read, and we had a tie - two for Alys, two for Leslie.
“It’s a tie,” Chip said ominously. “In the form of a tie, we would normally go to a Judgment challenge. However…” He paused, milking the moment for all it was worth. “I am told we had someone open Pandora’s Box. Does anyone want to confess?”
Immediately, I felt the eyes of the jury looking my way. I wanted to yell out, wasn’t me! But I kept silent, watching Leslie.
The Judgment area was silent. “As a reminder,” Chip said, “We can kick people from the game for not following the rules.”
Leslie looked for a long moment as if she wasn’t going to speak, then sighed and raised her hand. “Me. I did it.”
“And what did it say?” Chip pushed.
Another huge sigh. “It said I would automatically receive a vote at the next Judgment.”
I shot Alys a triumphant look. I knew it would be bad news. I glanced over at the jury and found Jendan watching me, a thoughtful look on his face. My heart fluttered. Daring greatly, I gave him a wink and turned back to the other women seated next to me.
“That means you have three votes, Leslie. That’s enough. I’m sorry to say that you are now out of the game, and have become our sixth member of the jury.”
With heavy feet, Leslie stomped out of the Judgment area.
Chip turned back to the three of us still seated. “You’ve made it to the penultimate round of the game, ladies. Tomorrow is your last immunity challenge. Whoever wins that challenge decides who sits next to them in the finale. Are you ready?”
I practically bounced in my seat. I was more than ready. I wanted to be done with this.
If I won the next challenge, I could take this entire thing home. With a million dollars in the bank, I wouldn’t be Annabelle the Island Slut. I’d be Annabelle, the winner of Endurance Island.
No more waitressing. No more shame of being Annabelle the Island Ho.
And then…then maybe I could talk to Jendan and see if he hated me.
Chapter Twenty
“Annabelle has my vote. Always has. I’ve given this a lot of thought, and no one else has even come close to playing the same game she has. She’s out of their league – in every way possible.” — Jendan Abercrombie, Endurance Island: Power Players, Jury Interview
I didn’t win the final immunity. Naturally. Fate stepped in, and Alys beat me in a sand-castle building contest. No one ever said I was the most artistic person.
But honestly, sand castles? Come on.
Now, Alys got to decide who would go to the final two. It wouldn’t be my decision. Everything was out of my hands for the first time in two weeks and several votes.
I kept my cool, though. When we returned to camp, I let Kissy walk off into the jungle with Alys to make her plea. They were gone for well over an hour, and when Alys finally sat down in the shelter, and Kissy wandered off, I offered Alys a drink from my canteen.
“She working you?” I asked casually.
“Yeah,” Alys said, looking frustrated. “It’s a tough decision.”
“Not that tough,” I told her, and pretended to study my fingernails, totally casual. “You know you can’t take her to the end, right? It’s pretty obvious she’d win.”
Alys frowned and looked over at me. “How do you figure?”
I widened my eyes, acting surprised. “Her husband’s on the jury. You don’t think he’s lobbying to get her votes? He’s been there the entire time - every time someone’s voted off, don’t you think he’s pointing out how good she’s doing? She hasn’t made enemies. I mean, other than Kip, and he won’t vote for you because he thinks we’re working together. Which we are. And you know he hates me.”
She said nothing.
I laid it on a bit thicker before letting it rest. “I mean, she’s done really awesome so far if you think about it. She’s an out-of-shape mom who’s managed to make it down to the end. That’s pretty impressive, you know?”
“Yeah,” Alys said weakly. “If I took you…who do you think would win?”
I shrugged. “It’s a toss-up, don’t you think? I’ve made a lot of enemies. Kip, Saul, Emilio, Leslie, Jendan…” God, I hated thinking about Jendan being my enemy. “I guess it just depends on how bitter the jury is.”
In the meantime, I was looking for ways to split Kissy and Leslie. If I didn’t win the next immunity challenge, I knew they’d be gunning for me. So I watched, and waited.
The day before the next immunity, I found a clue for Pandora’s Box in our tribal mail.
I stared at it for a long moment, and carefully shut the lid, leaving it there. According to Chip, Pandora’s Box could either be good or bad, and I’d already had good (well, theoretically) so I didn’t want to touch it, lest it automatically vote me out of the game. My game was already under control.
It was a calculated risk, but I’d take it. So I hunkered down in the bushes, hiding and waiting to see who found it.
Alys wandered toward the water hole a short time later, and paused at the tribal mailbox, lifting the lid nonchalantly. She stilled at the sight of the note in there, so I had to emerge from the bushes and warn her away from it. It took some convincing, but Alys was easily sway-able and in the end, she walked away and I went back to my hiding spot.
Leslie found it.
I watched her read the clue with excitement, then race into the jungle. I followed a short distance behind and watched, just in time, as she found a particular tree and reached into a hollow, pulling out the tiny red lacquered box. She opened it, dug out a piece of paper, and began to read.
“Shit,” she hissed under her breath, then quickly glanced around and stuffed the clue back into the box and into the tree.
I slunk away into the bushes. Bad news. That was all I needed to know.
The next challenge, I won, beating the others in a swimming-and-retrieving challenge. Kissy and Leslie were slower competitors, and Alys was my only real competition. I won easily, and felt proud going into Judgment that night, wearing the necklace so the jury - now comprised entirely of men - could see that I was kicking ass and taking names.
As usual, every time the jury filed in, I cast a longing look at Jendan. He was bulking up now that he was eating regularly, and his muscles were filling out again. The man was ripped. And gorgeous. And he made my girl parts tingle every time I saw him.
He never sent me an encouraging look, though, and I wondered if he was mad at me or if this was simply part of him playing the game.
What I wouldn’t have given for just one small smile, though!
Earlier that day, I’d convinced a nervous Alys that we didn’t need Kissy on our side to win the vote. Whatever Leslie had found in Pandora’s Box wasn’t a good thing. Even if we were wrong and it came down to a tie, Alys could beat her in a Judgment challenge. Leslie had been silent all day, except for the occasional snipe at how little work Kissy was doing around camp, and I knew she was trying to encourage us to vote in that direction.
Didn’t matter. When it came time for the vote, I wrote down Leslie’s name. A short time later, the votes were read, and we had a tie - two for Alys, two for Leslie.
“It’s a tie,” Chip said ominously. “In the form of a tie, we would normally go to a Judgment challenge. However…” He paused, milking the moment for all it was worth. “I am told we had someone open Pandora’s Box. Does anyone want to confess?”
Immediately, I felt the eyes of the jury looking my way. I wanted to yell out, wasn’t me! But I kept silent, watching Leslie.
The Judgment area was silent. “As a reminder,” Chip said, “We can kick people from the game for not following the rules.”
Leslie looked for a long moment as if she wasn’t going to speak, then sighed and raised her hand. “Me. I did it.”
“And what did it say?” Chip pushed.
Another huge sigh. “It said I would automatically receive a vote at the next Judgment.”
I shot Alys a triumphant look. I knew it would be bad news. I glanced over at the jury and found Jendan watching me, a thoughtful look on his face. My heart fluttered. Daring greatly, I gave him a wink and turned back to the other women seated next to me.
“That means you have three votes, Leslie. That’s enough. I’m sorry to say that you are now out of the game, and have become our sixth member of the jury.”
With heavy feet, Leslie stomped out of the Judgment area.
Chip turned back to the three of us still seated. “You’ve made it to the penultimate round of the game, ladies. Tomorrow is your last immunity challenge. Whoever wins that challenge decides who sits next to them in the finale. Are you ready?”
I practically bounced in my seat. I was more than ready. I wanted to be done with this.
If I won the next challenge, I could take this entire thing home. With a million dollars in the bank, I wouldn’t be Annabelle the Island Slut. I’d be Annabelle, the winner of Endurance Island.
No more waitressing. No more shame of being Annabelle the Island Ho.
And then…then maybe I could talk to Jendan and see if he hated me.
Chapter Twenty
“Annabelle has my vote. Always has. I’ve given this a lot of thought, and no one else has even come close to playing the same game she has. She’s out of their league – in every way possible.” — Jendan Abercrombie, Endurance Island: Power Players, Jury Interview
I didn’t win the final immunity. Naturally. Fate stepped in, and Alys beat me in a sand-castle building contest. No one ever said I was the most artistic person.
But honestly, sand castles? Come on.
Now, Alys got to decide who would go to the final two. It wouldn’t be my decision. Everything was out of my hands for the first time in two weeks and several votes.
I kept my cool, though. When we returned to camp, I let Kissy walk off into the jungle with Alys to make her plea. They were gone for well over an hour, and when Alys finally sat down in the shelter, and Kissy wandered off, I offered Alys a drink from my canteen.
“She working you?” I asked casually.
“Yeah,” Alys said, looking frustrated. “It’s a tough decision.”
“Not that tough,” I told her, and pretended to study my fingernails, totally casual. “You know you can’t take her to the end, right? It’s pretty obvious she’d win.”
Alys frowned and looked over at me. “How do you figure?”
I widened my eyes, acting surprised. “Her husband’s on the jury. You don’t think he’s lobbying to get her votes? He’s been there the entire time - every time someone’s voted off, don’t you think he’s pointing out how good she’s doing? She hasn’t made enemies. I mean, other than Kip, and he won’t vote for you because he thinks we’re working together. Which we are. And you know he hates me.”
She said nothing.
I laid it on a bit thicker before letting it rest. “I mean, she’s done really awesome so far if you think about it. She’s an out-of-shape mom who’s managed to make it down to the end. That’s pretty impressive, you know?”
“Yeah,” Alys said weakly. “If I took you…who do you think would win?”
I shrugged. “It’s a toss-up, don’t you think? I’ve made a lot of enemies. Kip, Saul, Emilio, Leslie, Jendan…” God, I hated thinking about Jendan being my enemy. “I guess it just depends on how bitter the jury is.”
