Partner Games
Page 51

Our group of four charged forward and nearly crashed into the mat where the costumed woman was waiting. She gave us a nervous smile and gestured at an ornate box on a table next to her. The top of the box read: Choose one. To the side of the box, there was a tiny arrow pointing off to the west that said “Penalty Challenge”.
“Oh snap,” Plate said. “Penalty challenge time!”
I looked over at Georgie with worry. She shrugged at me, her eyes wide.
“So we pick one of whatever is in the box,” Swift said. “And I guess one team is going to have the penalty challenge?”
“I guess?” I stared at the box warily. The thought of a penalty challenge made me uneasy. Whoever got the penalty could lose the entire game, especially with another double-elimination.
“You girls pick first,” Swift said.
I looked at him, worried. “Why us?”
“Because you found the lady here,” Plate agreed, gesturing at the costumed woman. “And age before beauty.”
Georgie snort-giggled. “Fine, we’ll pick.” She elbowed me. “You pick.”
Why did everyone want me to pick the damn thing? With a sigh, I stepped forward and moved toward the box. The lid was a heavily-carved wood decorated with ornate swirls. I ran my fingers over the surface for a moment, then opened the box.
The interior was lined with a plush red velvet. There were two envelopes inside, both resting on their sides and branded with the World Races logo.
Two.
That meant three teams had already been here and selected their envelopes. We were officially the last two teams.
Shit. I stared down at the envelopes in horror. How had the others gotten ahead of us? Had we taken the wrong path? Maybe the taxis had allowed them to get here faster than the bus we’d taken? A hundred possible scenarios raced through my mind.
“Well?” Georgie asked.
“There’s only two.”
“Fuck,” Swift said, and he stalked away, hands on his hips. He was clearly upset.
“Dammit,” Plate said. “How the hell did they get here ahead of us?”
“Well, come on,” Georgie encouraged, antsy. “Pick one!”
I reached forward, my hand hovering over the envelopes. As I did, I realized one was…slightly thicker than the other.
Oh God. The penalty was still here. If I picked the other envelope, the guys would get stuck with the penalty. Fourth place might have a chance to slide into third place, but fifth? With a penalty? There was almost no way.
If I left it for them, they’d be out of the game.
If I took it for us, we’d be out of the game.
I looked over at Swift. His hands were on his hips and he was staring off into the misty trees, his back to me. I looked over at Georgie. My twin was biting her lip, her hands clasped under her chin. She practically quivered with excitement.
I was going to ruin the race for someone. My stomach felt like a knot.
“Pick already!” Georgie bellowed in my ear.
I’m sorry. I closed my eyes and picked an envelope.
 
 
Chapter Thirty-Three
 
 
“I feel completely gutted. I don’t know what else to say but totally, utterly gutted.” – Swift, Team One Percent, The World Races
 
 
My fingers closed around the thicker envelope and I held it out to Georgie. The knot in my stomach had migrated to my throat, and I couldn’t speak a word.
She plucked the envelope from my fingers as Plate moved forward and grabbed the envelope for his team. I watched in silence as Georgie opened it, her eyes scanning the contents. Her face fell. “Penalty. We got the penalty.”
I swallowed hard and nodded.
I didn’t know if Swift was lying about his dad being sick, but I knew if he wasn’t and I’d given him the penalty? I’d never be able to forgive myself. Georgie would be hurt, but she loved me. She’d understand my choice.
I hoped.
“Shit,” Plate said, peering over her shoulder to look at the notes. “That sucks. Is it something we can help you guys with?”
“I—I don’t know,” Georgie said. Her voice wobbled a little. I sniffed.
Swift’s arm went around my shoulders. He pulled me against him in a fierce hug. “You girls got this. I know you do. Read it out loud, Georgie. If we can help you, we will. We’ll all limp to the end together.”
“Penalty time,” Georgie read aloud. “You and your partner must both perform this penalty task. Go to the South Heavenly Gate. This marks the entrance to the infamous HuaShan Plank Road. Harness up and walk the plank to the end of the trail. There is a cave at the end and two World Race ribbons for your team to collect. Once you have both ribbons, you can move on to your next task.” Georgie looked up at me, worried. “Can you climb, Clemmy?”
Did it matter at this point? We were firmly in fifth. But I didn’t want to completely give up and disappoint my twin. “I can try.” I looked over at Swift, and his gorgeous, concerned face. “You and Plate should go on ahead. If it’s climbing a trail, it’s not something you guys can help us with.”
“She’s right,” Georgie agreed, sounding more like herself. “You guys go on ahead. We’ll do the task and see you again at the finish line.”
“You sure?” Plate asked. Swift just looked at me.
I nodded. “We’re sure.”
Swift immediately grabbed me and pulled me in for a brief, hard kiss. “Win this, Tiny. I know you can do it.” He smiled, pressed his forehead to mine, and then released me.
Georgie moved to my side as the guys raced off with their clue, consulting the paper. “Are we fucked?” she murmured to me in a low voice, waving to the guys.
“Pretty sure.” I watched the blurs of them blend in with the rest of the tourists.
“Question for you, Clemmy.” Georgie’s voice was neutral. “Did you know which envelope had the penalty in it when you picked?”
The knot returned to my throat. Did I lie to my twin and hope she didn’t pick it up? Or confess and deal with the fallout? I thought of Georgie’s meltdowns earlier in the race. The tantrums, the tears, the worry over her. Was my choice going to lead to a rift between me and my twin, now that we were so close again? I looked over at her, at her face so similar – but so different – to mine.
“His father has cancer,” I whispered, ashamed of my choice. I’d picked a guy over my twin. Tears pooled in my eyes. “I couldn’t pick us knowing that.”
Georgie’s long, lanky arms wrapped around my neck. “You big softie,” she told me. “We’re going to lose this race, aren’t we?”
“We could always try the penalty,” I told her, hugging her tightly. Tears slipped down my face – both from relief and love for my twin, who was being understanding as heck.
“Maybe the next challenge is a hard one. Maybe we can still catch up.”
“Then we should get going,” I said between sniffles.
“Don’t cry, Clemmy.” She rubbed my shoulder affectionately. “It was a hard choice, and you picked with your heart. I can’t hate on that.”
“I was worried you’d be mad at me,” I admitted. “Or that you’d think I was making the decision with my lady-parts.”