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ADELE

What was she doing here? She’d had this feeling before, a kind of vertiginous tilt to her perception. Once on her wedding day, when she’d stood at the altar with Miller, their friends and family—everyone she’d ever known in her life—watching, expectant. Smiles, happy tears, all eyes on Adele in a stunning silk confection from Paris upon which Miller had insisted, though it had literally cost more than her first car. On Miller’s side, there had been just a scattering of a family: a cousin from Duluth, an aunt and uncle from New Mexico, and the rest all friends and colleagues. She liked to think of them as the adoring hoards, people glamoured by Miller’s genius, his wealth, his magnetism. They came to each posh party and fundraiser, hanging on his every word. Wasn’t the wedding simply the most extravagant event he’d ever launched? And Miller. His wide grin, moist eyes, the way he looked at her, with such adoration. Who is he looking at? she remembered wondering. Who does he see?

Do you take this man? the Unitarian minister had asked.

And the world tilted. What am I doing here?

I do , she’d said, voice barely a whisper. The kiss, the cheers and rose petals, the drift down the aisle—it was like it was all happening to someone else.

Then on the day that Violet was born, a brutal natural childbirth had her experiencing altered states, not recognizing the sounds of her own anguished moaning. Then this little creature in her arms. Someone for whom she was totally responsible, expected to know things, to do right, protect, nurture.

Now a lifetime later, every illusion about love and parenthood shattered, here was that feeling again. A wobble, a tilt, like a glitch in the programming.

The retreating ATVs filled the air with a deafening swarm of sound, a powerful scent of fuel and burning rubber. Maverick, who Adele had only ever seen smiling for the camera, was bleeding from the mouth, his anger, his fear a palpable energy on the air.

This was not right.

They’ll call the game off, and I’ll go home. Disappointment and relief mingled.

Miller’s admonishment from her dream: You don’t belong here, Adele. You know that .

She did know that. On some very basic level she knew that she had forced herself into a situation that was inorganic, untenable.

“Are you okay?”

She found herself face-to-face with Wild Cody, another person she’d only ever seen on a screen. Taller than she’d imagined, with a rugged, earthy look, rubbing at a chiseled jaw, he had a hand on her arm, as if to steady her.

“I think so,” she said, too stunned, too in-the-moment to be starstruck. “What was that?”

He shook his head, looked over at Maverick and Angeline, who were huddled, talking in low tones.

“Hard to say. Maybe theater?”

Malinka, who was holding out her phone, talking excitedly, had obviously gone live during the—what?—the attack? Yes, that’s what it was. Armed men, a physical fight, guns drawn. Not theater.

Real danger had not been part of Adele’s plan.

Her phone was blowing up with frantic texts from Blake and Violet, who had, because this was the way of it now, watched the whole thing live on Malinka’s WeWatch channel.

It’s good. It’s fine , she thumbed out. I’m sure it was just for show.

“These things are always…unpredictable. Cody,” he said and offered his hand.

“Adele,” she said, taking it. His grip was warm and solid, his skin slightly calloused. Should she tell him that she was a fan, that she and her son had watched every single episode of Wild Cody ? He held her eyes, seemed to examine her, size her up. Something about his energy had her tongue-tied, awkward.

The sky had gone nearly dark with cloud cover, and Adele felt as though she’d been doused in ice water, every nerve ending tingling. She knew in her gut that whatever had happened, it was definitely not for show. The bad vibration still lingered. She glanced down the road. Those men—would they come back?

It looked real , texted Violet on their three-way text chain. She could imagine her kids sitting side by side at the kitchen bar, not speaking, just staring at their phones.

No way , wrote Blake. Obviously planned to ramp up views. Mom. Don’t freak out. It was just an act. They do stuff like that all the time. You’re good. We’re good.

Adele wrote back, Totally. It’s fine. 100%!

Then Maverick plastered on a big smile. Voice booming, he asked if they were ready to go live. There was a nonreality to it, a filtered strangeness, as if she were watching it all on-screen, not quite believing any of it.

What am I doing here?

She took a breath, pulled herself up tall. She wanted her kids to see her strong, ready for whatever came next. Not afraid and ready to bail, the way she actually felt. She wasn’t going to be another disappointment in their lives, another person who failed them.

“Did that just happen?” asked Malinka, coming to stand beside Adele and Cody. Mouth in a grim line, forehead furrowed, hair in tight braided pigtails, Malinka was just a few years older than Violet. But today the young woman’s eyes were as old and tired as any soldier’s. There was a mettle there, but also a sadness. For some reason, Adele’s mind flashed on the photograph she’d seen in Malinka’s tent.

Adele pressed back the urge to drop a comforting arm around Malinka’s slim shoulders, the way she would if Violet was panicking about whatever and trying not to show it.

“You took a video, right?” said Wild Cody with that enigmatic smile. “So it must be real.”

“Sheet ,” Malinka said softly. Her English grammar was as perfect as any native speaker, but Adele found her accent somehow soothing.

They exchanged a look, and Malinka, maybe unconsciously, moved a step closer to Adele.

“Wild Cody,” said Malinka. Eyes wide, she put a hand to her heart. “I watched every episode of your show when I was kid. You probably inspired every single person here.”

He touched the brim of his leather hat, offered a grateful nod. He was an odd one, and Adele couldn’t stop looking at him.

And then Maverick approached, Gustavo holding the phone camera. Angeline raised her voice and announced, “We are going live in one, two, three…”

Mav seemed to grow an inch and come to life like some animated version of himself.

“Hey, Extremists! We are live from Enchantments!”

Maverick was huge, broad, and powerful through the chest, towering over Adele, hands like bear claws, skin dewy with youth, eyes rimmed with fatigue. He moved like things hurt him, and Adele remembered those fail reels that Blake loved so much—all those falls, body bending, thrown, landing hard. Life. It takes its toll, leaves its scars.

“Malinka Nicqui, the youngest woman to climb all Seven Summits and the founder of the Yes I Can clothing line, a portion of proceeds devoted to empowering women and girls all over the world. Welcome to Extreme Hide and Seek at Enchantments.”

“Hey, Mav,” Malinka said to him. “Long time. Congrats on all your success.”

Was there something icy there? An edge to her tone and her gaze?

“Thank you so much,” he said as if he’d said it a million, a billion times. Not insincere but practiced. Malinka kept an unreadable stare on him, but he didn’t seem to notice, talking directly to the camera. “I don’t have to ask if you’re ready for the challenge. You were born ready, right?”

Malinka stuck her chin out, put her hands on her hips. “That’s right.”

“Do you have any strategies or plans?”

She smiled, her eyes narrow. Was there history? Did they know each other? “If I did,” she said, falsely bright, “I wouldn’t share them with you and the Extreme team, would I?”

His laughter boomed. “Fair enough. I’ve seen you compete at the Tough Be-atch competitions. No matter what the haters say, Malinka is the one to beat.”

Was that a dig? Malinka seemed to think so, her expression going dark, even though she managed to hold on to a tight smile. Adele remembered reading that some people felt that her summits shouldn’t count because her father had helped her. Knowing what Adele knew as a parent and a school counselor, she knew that Malinka’s relationship to her father must have been complicated. A teenager driven to achieve what she had must have had someone behind her pushing hard. But she didn’t have time to contemplate Malinka’s history.

“Adele!” Maverick turned his attention to her.

If she hadn’t witnessed him being tackled to the ground by those men, she never would have guessed something so traumatic had happened just minutes before. She’d seen that before, too. Children of abuse or neglect were often good at hiding their pain. Was that his story? “Your kids wanted you to apply for this challenge, right?”

The question reminded her that Extreme knew just about everything there was to know about her. Thinking back to the scare in the hotel last night, she realized that it wouldn’t have been hard for them to cross-reference, to discover what Miller’s favorite book was. He’d certainly mentioned it in interviews. Maybe the cigarettes were a lucky guess, or maybe she’d said something to Dr. Garvey and didn’t remember.

“They did.” She matched his tone, keeping it light and easy. “That’s right. My son is a big Extreme fan.”

“You were quite the runner, right? Back in the day.”

“That’s right,” she said again with a smile. Back in the day. Before half your viewers were born. Gustavo had his camera trained on her. “Then life got in the way. Marriage. Two kids.”

A lying con man of a husband who was currently on the run from federal authorities.

Maverick gave her a bobbing nod. “I hear you. I know how it is.”

No. He really didn’t. Maverick—was he even thirty? He knew literally nothing.

“And look at you now,” he went on. “Killing it. I’ve been watching your WeWatch channel. All those half-marathons, climbing walls, the Tough Be-atch wins. You went from Lunch Mom to Super Mom in like a year.”

It wasn’t condescending, exactly. It was just that he was young and privileged, and he didn’t know how painful adult life could be. He couldn’t understand how hard she had worked, and what was at stake for her now. Maverick Dillan seemed to float on a cloud of arrogance, looking down.

“It was hard work,” she said, holding her smile. “But worth it to be here.”

“Not everybody could overcome the things you have. Your husband—he left you, is accused of embezzlement and other crimes, and is still on the run from the law, is that right?”

She found she didn’t trust her voice. Why were they talking about this?

Finally, she managed, “We can’t always control what happens to us. But we can control how we respond.”

“Hey,” he said, clapping her on the shoulder. “I like that attitude. Maybe you’re the one to beat, Adele.”

“Thanks for the opportunity.”

He laughed. “Don’t thank me yet! You might want to punch me out before we’re through here.”

In fact , thought Adele still smiling, I’d like to punch you out right now . But he was already turning his attention away.

“Wild Cody! Man, you are the OG. Thanks for coming out.”

“I’m glad to be here,” he said.

“You’ve been open about the challenges you’ve faced over the years.”

Oh, right. There was something. A fall from grace, a scandal. It came rushing back. Oh, God. The lion! She still remembered the disturbing image of the bony carcass with Wild Cody standing beside it, boot on its haunches, a rifle strapped around his chest.

He nodded. “True,” he said with a nod. “I’ve made mistakes. I’ve battled demons. But I’m working to make amends to people I have hurt.”

Maverick nodded. The wind picked up, whispering through the trees. Up above, the same three buzzards that had been circling for a while still drifted, hunters patiently waiting. Adele flashed back to the bird ripping apart the carcass on the road, its sharp beak tearing. Its yellow eyes glowing.

“If you win, the money will go to the One Planet, One Love Foundation, dedicated to preserving the wild, untouched places so near to your heart.”

“That’s right,” he said. “Wild places, like this island, deserve our respect and need our protection.”

Maverick put prayer hands to his heart and bowed his head. “So true.” When he looked back at Cody, he wore a big grin. “Think of all the good that million dollars will do if you win. Think of all the lions you can save. Amiright?”

Okay, wow. Maverick was definitely messing with each of them, destabilizing, undermining, antagonizing. Adele guessed it made for good viewing, for drama.

Wild Cody seemed about to say something, but then the camera was back on Maverick. And he was talking about sponsors and about another contestant who still hadn’t arrived.

Malinka and Cody stood on either side of her. Cody had his arms folded around his middle, eyes trained on Maverick. Malinka was watching Maverick’s WeWatch live broadcast on her phone rather than actually looking at Maverick. For that generation, it seemed like the online world was more real than the actual one. They weren’t her allies; they were her opponents. But somehow after those interviews, it felt like them against Maverick.

Maverick was still talking.

In her pocket, her phone vibrated. Probably the kids, telling her how she did.

But no.

Another strange number.

Go home before it’s too late. You’re not safe.

There was that feeling again. That strange out-of-body wobble. Very faintly in the distance, Enchantments groaned.

What was she doing here?

Maverick’s voice boomed in the dim. “The next time we go live it will be game time. Ready or not, Extremists, here we come!”