Page 53 of Five Survive

The sofa sank as Maddy planted both knees on the other end, glancing at Red.

“Reyna, the passenger-side window, aiming your phone diagonally to the front. And I’ll take the rearview camera again.”

He walked over to the dashboard behind Reyna, dropping to his knees, head lowered to the screen. Red watched him and something stirred in her head, switching Oliver out with someone else. Didn’t he know people sometimes died like that, on their knees?

“Press record,” he said.

Red thumbed the red button on her screen. The birdsong high-pitched beeps from her phone, answered by Maddy’s, then Reyna’s.

“Get into position.”

Red pulled the bottom corner of the mattress up, sliding the handwith the phone through to the unknown outside, her wrist pressingagainst a shard of broken glass, but there was nothing she could do about it. She pointed her phone in the right direction and looked away, eyes on the back of Arthur’s head.

Red held her breath, counting the seconds.

“Is everyone ready?”

“NOW!”

“Wait!” Arthur shouted back, shifting his position, wiping his spare hand down the front of his jeans.

“Arthur, now!” Oliver screamed. “Open the door!”

“Fuck!”

Arthur reached forward, slamming his hand down on the handle and pushing hard.

The door to the RV swung open, the darkness waiting for them there, gaping and black. It must be a rectangle of light, looking from the other side.

Simon raised his knees like he was running, hurrying down the steps, his teeth gritted, eyes wild and afraid and—

Crack.

The mirror shattered.

“Fuck!” Arthur screamed as the mirror jumped out of his hands, crashing back against the counter.

“Close the door!” Oliver’s frantic voice filled Red’s ears. “Simon, pull the rope!”

Simon scrabbled with it, the rope almost sliding through his hands. He fell back against the closet and he pulled.

The door slammed shut with a thump, lock clicking into place, sealing them inside once more.

“Holy fuck!” Simon said, sinking to the floor, laughing or crying Red couldn’t quite tell. “We did it.”

Arthur was bent double, breathing hard. His hands were pressed against his thighs, head hanging upside down. Was he all right?

“Who’s got it?” Oliver was standing now. “He shot! Who got the muzzle flash on their phone?”

Red pulled hers inside, slotting the mattress back into position. There was a bead of blood there on the see-through skin of her wrist, where the glass had pierced through. Her very own red dot.

She stopped the recording, phone twittering at her, the same sound from Maddy and Reyna. She navigated to the video file and pressed play.

“Get into—”

“—Get into posi—”

“—Get into position,” Oliver’s voice said three times, overlapping. Reyna’s video was playing half a second before hers, Maddy’s just after.