Chapter 19

    "You know, it doesn't have to end like this." I tell him. "They brought back a cure."

    It wasn't difficult to find Keaton. After all, he's so sick he can hardly move an inch. Not to mention, the tent he chose to hide in is my tent. Johnny probably won't come here tonight, and I doubt Keaton knew I'd come in.

    He shrugs his shoulders softly. "It won't work."

    Keaton looks awful. His skin is still as translucent as before, only now it has a blue tint to it. His shrived lips share the same tint as the rest of his body, and I can hear his heavy breathing from here. It's a wonder he can even speak.

    "Inali made a cure." I tell him, not sure if he even knows Inali. "Said you got poisoned from catfish weed or something."

    "Ketlish Weed?" He wheezes. "That's impossible."

    "Didn't make sense to me either." I tell him.

    It makes me feel eerie, agreeing with Keaton, especially on something as serious as this.

    He coughs. "No. Felix ate it. Only made him sick for a few days."

    "It's only been a few days." I tell him. Max got sick when I had nine days left. "You couldn't have been sick for a full week."

    He shakes his head. "This is worse."

    I reach into my hammock, pulling him out. "Come on, we're getting you back to the med tent."

    My skin crawls as I pull him across the camp, before entering the tent doors. Thankfully, he doesn't vomit on me. It would be awful, since I just took a shower after all. Even though I let the dried blood crust on my skin overnight, it still managed to come off easily.

When Keaton and I walk in the Med tent, nobody moves to help me. I sigh, lying him down on a cot, before bringing him a canteen.

    "I'm not going to make you drink this, but if you don't you'll probably die in the morning." I say, before glaring at Harry, Alex, Robert, and James, before storming out.

    Not in the mood.

    Absolutely not in the mood.

    I walk outside, peeking around for something or anything to do. Normally trouble finds me, and I don't have to go looking for it. Everyone's in the med tent right now, and I don't exactly feel like talking to any of them.

    I wonder if we are having a funeral tomorrow. I'd imagine so, now that the illness is taken care of. I just wish I could be setting Dominique's body on fire then sending it off into sea. Instead, he's still lurking around the island.

    At least those people tend not to last all that long. Wilbur is the only one out of Nick, Caleb, and himself to disappear and survive. Even then, Wilbur is a few screws short of functioning.

    I sit down along the table, grabbing some grapes and a bit of meat, slowly eating the food. I'm hungry, but not in the mood to eat. I take a few swigs from the canteen as I eat the food, watching the boys walk around me.

    There's so few boys on the island now that food is no longer as scarce as it used to be. Originally, we had 36 boys here, and as I count off the boys who have died or disappeared, I realize we are down to 23. A third of the boys here have died in the past couple weeks. It's awful.

    The remaining boys dance around a fire, without Pan in sight. They're probably happy the illness is gone, and that Felix is back. Probably so thrilled, as if we don't know if any of these victories will last. Stupid boys and their excitement over nothing. Honestly, it's embarrassing.

    There's not much to do around here, so as I finish my meal, I decide to go for a walk through the forest.

    I push myself away from the table, before standing up. With any luck, I'll run into Dominique in the forest and I'll get to kill him. Not quite as nervous as I used to be anyway.

    Without a destination in mind, I walk out into the dark forest. It's difficult to twist my way around trees and vines, but that's what makes the night so fun. Anything could happen out here, and maybe anything will.

    "You know, I thought you'd like to be back at camp," Pan's voice rings out.

    I almost laugh. "You pop up here now, but you couldn't manage to get to me while I was in the forest."

    "I thought you could handle yourself." He teases.

    "Even when I was tied in the cage?" I ask. "Or about to be executed?"

    He cocks an eyebrow. "Why would I jump in right before it gets fun?"

    I shrug back, almost chuckling. "Who knows? The same reason you let Fred go?"

    He picks up the anger in my voice. "He's not my problem."

    "Not anymore anyway." I say. "Not after you do the thing you adamantly opposed to doing in the first place."

    "I may have come to play," he leans against a tree, "but I also came to win."

    "Right," I explain. "You don't let people get off that easy."

    "I'm letting you, aren't I?" He asks. "I can't resist a game."

    I roll my eyes, resisting the urge to punch him square in the face. Not like it would do any good, he'd just dodge it.

    "Still haven't figured out how they alluded capture?" I ask.

    He doesn't respond.

    "I take that as a no." I answer for him. "Bested, are we? Funny, I thought I'd be the first to best you."

    "Are you talking about the bet?" He asks. "Believe me, I've got it all in the bag. Who's to say I don't already know?"

    "Please, you are many things but you aren't a gracious winner." I chuckle. "You'd have told me the second you knew. You're one to gloat, not one to sit idly."

    "Am I now?" He asks.

    I shrug. Maybe I'm wrong about him. I look at his smug face. Maybe I'm not wrong.

    "Good luck with that." I tell him, turning around and stalking off. "What is it they say, fake it until you make it?"

     "How do you like the night?"

    "The what?" I ask, turning around to face him.

    "The night." He answers. "I was thinking about keeping it."

    He could prolong the days until he wins the bet. "Nobody likes a cheater Peter."

    "Peter, wow." He says. "Trying to psych me out. Foolish boy, it's not going to work."

    I am definitely going to win this bet. Every shred of doubt has been erased from my mind. "Goodnight Peter."

    He scoffs, but doesn't say anything as I turn around and walk off to camp.

    See, that's what I call entertainment. Pan is calm, cool, and collected. Talking to him is like taking a break from everything else on this island. The illness, the fighting, the conspiracy, the drama. Everyone is always worked up about something there, myself included. I may not like it, but maybe I need to take a page out of Pan's book. After all, he's always calm.

    I make my way back to camp, relishing in the knowledge that I sleep here tonight, and I sleep here tomorrow, and then I'm free.

~~~~~~~~

This is short, but I'm trying to amp up the events of the finale. Just two chapters away from the big three part conclusion to the novel! What????

Leave a song recommendation for the first part of the finale. I haven't found a good one yet to suit the theme, so if you have any ideas just let me know. I love hearing from you.

Isn't the cover gorgeous. Thank you PeanutKay. I'm the happiest in the world!! Finally a real author according to my beta reader haha.

Have a good Halloween, and I'll see you Wednesday.