Page 48 of Love at Full Tilt

Vale of Villainy, Fableland

Orlando, FL

Alistair and His Monsters was Fable Industry’s attempt to tell a Frankenstein story.

Except Alistair is a lonely thirteen-year-old who makes a wish in the wrong magic fountain and ends up bringing to life all the mismatched toys he’s cobbled together from his older brother’s castoffs.

Its companion attraction in Vale of Villainy remains a fan favorite.

Riders are taken on a tour of the labyrinth in the basement of Alistair’s grandparents’ ancient mansion, where he has trapped his toys before they cause more chaos.

And every day at eleven on the dot, the labyrinth opens up, allowing the creatures a chance to stretch their legs and wander the park to spook a few guests.

—Buzzworthy, “Fableland Rides Not to Miss”

“What do you think you’ll have to find in there?” Issy asks.

The three of us stare up at the gigantic metal doors where lines would normally form for Alistair’s Labyrinth.

In fifteen minutes, they’ll open up and release the creations, and I’ll need to run for the stairs to the workshop.

Usually, guests can only peer into this space through windows in the queue, but the remaining scavenger hunt contestants get to go inside and see Alistair’s experiments up close.

“I don’t know,” I mumble. “Maybe tools he used to make his monsters? Or Easter eggs from the film?”

“I always hated that movie,” Issy points out as she links her arm with mine.

Tess does the same on my left. “You would. There’s no love story.”

“Nah, you know Issy shipped those two hybrid robot-Barbie dolls,” I joke.

Issy’s laugh echoes around us. “Maybe a little. But those creatures he made were so…” She shudders without finishing her sentence.

“Creepy?” I suggest.

“Awesome?” Tess adds. No one loves a good horror story likeTess.

“Yes.” Issy points at me. “And no,” she says to Tess. “I’m very not excited to see them come to life while Lia rummages around in there.”

“We’ll miss you when you never find your way out.” Tess nudges me.

I roll my eyes. “You get lost in one corn maze in the fifth grade and you never hear the end of it.” Sure, I was crying by the time they found me, but no one needs to discuss that part.

After days of having to jump straight into every clue, the downtime this morning has rubbed off some of the edge of this moment. But now that I’m here, eclipsed by the shadow of this massive attraction, it hits me hard.

This is it. The beginning of the end. The final set of clues.

Some of us are going to walk out of the labyrinth eliminated.

In a few hours, one of us is going to win the money and it could very well be me.

I survey my surroundings. The delicious smells, the happy people, the perfect re-creation of the mansion where Alistair hides his creatures that blocks off this section of Vale of Villainy, one of the million ways that this resort immerses its visitors in Fable Industry’s stories.

This could be my future.

Maybe Rowan Sunsgrace, Princess Caelyssa’s nemesis, could have an attraction here someday. Right next to Alistair’s. Winged chariots that fly as high as Pillager’s Peak, that fall as fast and as far as Valyrad’s Flight.

Maybe this is the beginning of my dreams coming true.

My body is buzzing and itchy, the same feeling I get when my mom stresses me out. Time to keep moving.

With Tess and Issy in tow, I make my way over to the right side of the attraction, where a group of people mill around near a sign with the same design as our contestant pin.

At this point, a bunch of their faces look familiar from the leaderboard photos and from seeing them wandering the park.

Ember and Erica, not surprisingly, are both at the head of the pack.

Slightly apart from the rest of the contestants, I spot Mason. He’s so tall, and so damned good-looking, it’s impossible to miss him. My heart speeds up, and I must make some kind of noise because Tess and Issy follow my gaze.

Tess practically growls in his direction. “How dare he show his face here.”

“I’m actually glad he came,” I say. And I mean it. “He deserves a chance at that money as much as I do.” I would never want to be the reason Mason didn’t try to win the future he wants.

Issy nudges me. “Kick his ass in there.”

“Scavenger hunt the hell out of that place!” Tess pumps herfist.

I hug them both, then join the group.

As I mix in with the other contestants, my eyes drift toward Mason. Our gazes catch for a moment before I glance away.

I dig my heels into the asphalt. I can’t think about him right now.

None of us will know what we need to look for until we’re in the workshop.

And not all of us will be able to find the objects and scan the codes.

I have to have my knowledge of this movie and this ride at my fingertips.

There’s no time for hesitation. No room for Mason to take up space in my head.

A siren blasts, drowning out the other noises of the park, and in front of us, the iron doors of the labyrinth creak open achingly slowly.

Alistair’s squeaky voice belts out from speakers mounted on the labyrinth roof.

“Today’s a special day. While my creatures step out to make some new friends”—he pauses to chuckle—“twenty-five of our parks’ biggest fans will get a one-of-a-kind look at my workshop.

” He lets out a loud cackle. “And only fifteen of them will emerge.”

My body loses all sense of gravity. Fifteen? That’s just over half of the remaining contestants.

“Get ready, superfans,” Alistair continues. “Once my hippogator leaves the gate, it will be time for you to enter.” With that, the PA system goes silent, and the first creature stumbles into the light.

Part rabbit, part race car, it zooms toward the first kid it sees, and the small child squeals with delight.

After that, creature after creature lumbers forward.

They clearly spared no expense because every monster is here, even the ones that seem like they would have been impossible to re-create in real life.

A beautiful doll in a prom dress with the legs of a robot.

Her male counterpart with a human body and a mechanical head.

Crab claws on a dog. A cat with eight legs.

As the crowd reacts with joyful screams at each new member added to the procession, I swear I can hear Tess above them all, hollering like her favorite band just took the stage.

I take a deep breath and shake out my limbs. I can do this. I didn’t come this far to fail. I can practically feel the money in my hand, see my apartment nearby, envision myself at a desk collaborating with artists to bring Princess Caelyssa to life. Curves, thick thighs, round stomach, and all.

A cast member dressed like Alistair’s grandfather steps to the head of our group.

“The hippogator will come out next. Once he does, please follow me single file through the labyrinth doors.” He uses a wireless microphone so we can hear him.

“The event will not begin until you are in the workshop, so there’s no need to rush or shove or to put anyone at risk.

Please line up now so we’re ready to go. ”

Everyone obeys, shuffling into place. Ember and Erica hold the first two spots in line. I file in toward the back.

Despite being on the opposite side of the group, Mason somehow ends up behind me.

His stare causes the hairs on the back of my neck to rise. I can feel it there, pressed against me, as palpable as any hand.

I keep my eyes on the parade. The hippogator’s broad snout pushes out into the sun, and immediately, our line moves forward.

“Good luck,” I hear Mason whisper as the dark chasm of the labyrinth’s entrance looms ahead.

I glance back at him once. Let my eyes linger for only a second. “You too,” I murmur.

Alistair’s face appears on the large screen mounted outside the door to the workshop.

“Welcome, superfans!” he bellows, throwing his arms up.

“You are about to see something no visitor at Fableland ever has: the inside of my workshop, where I create all my friends.” A slightly manic smile takes over his acne-scarred face.

Abruptly, he surges forward so his eyes and the bridge of his nose overtake the screen.

“Careful not to become one yourself.” His laugh sounds more like a banshee screaming.

After a moment, he quiets, and the camera eases back.

“In exchange for giving you this supersecret access to my lair, I need your help. Granddad has locked me out after my last experiment went…sideways. But I can’t stop it from destroying the town without my tools.

Can you get them for me?” A list appears beside his head.

“I need my needle, my thread of life, and the jar of magic well water. Scan the code beside each item to return it to me. The fifteen of you that find all three first get to escape.”

I repeat the items in my head. Needle, thread, jar of water. They’re prominent items from Alistair and His Monsters, but that doesn’t mean they’ll be easy to locate in the workshop. Alistair is wily. In the movie, he’s always hiding things that matter to him so no one else can find them.

Mason is still behind me, but when I sneak a glimpse at him over my shoulder, his eyes are fixed on the screen, his jaw a hard line.

I don’t know how familiar he is with this film.

It’s pretty recent—just five years old—and Mason gave up on Fableland long before that.

He might have no idea what the three items look like or where to start searching for them.

Part of me itches to tell him, but I turn away. We’re not a team anymore. I’m on my own.

And so is he.