I was utterly speechless in the beginning. Even if I had wanted to speak, I wouldn’t have been able to find the words. Off of the cabin’s living room was a smaller room that would have normally been confused as a storage closet. It was hidden behind an inconspicuous door that would be easy to pass up if you weren’t looking specifically for it.

Beth had pulled the metal string hanging from the low ceiling which illuminated a yellow tinged light bulb. It cast our shadows along one of the side walls. The first thing I noticed were the photos. All along one of the walls were black and white photos of us. Grant, Will, Beth, and I. Cal and Aaron were also hung up next to us as though they somehow belonged with us. It made me sick to see their faces. Our names were each handwritten with a black marker on a piece of beige tape and stuck under our individual picture.

I stepped into the room and walked up to my photo; a black and white image of myself that I barely recognized. I was sure it was taken sometime when I had first arrived. Post-it notes were also stuck on the wall, scribbled with miscellaneous notations of minute details. Scanning over all of our photos and notes stuck on the wall, I was filled with an inner rage. I didn’t even realize I had started screaming as I viciously tore everything from the wall. I ripped the pictures down and they floated down the floor.

Grant heard the commotion and, with Will’s assistance, hobbled over to the door.

"Ry, what...what’s going on?" he struggled to ask.

I barely even heard him. Beth shot a worried look at Will, who was stuck holding Grant up.

"Ryleigh, stop!" Beth cried, but I didn’t listen.

I didn’t stop until every last thing was off that wall. As I stepped over it all on the floor, I broke down in tears. Beth carefully made her way to my side and placed her hand on my shoulder.

"There’s more," she said quietly.

"What?" I said as I sniffed and caught my breath.

Beth nodded toward the back wall and I spun around to look. A chalkboard on rusty wheels was positioned awkwardly in the tight space, but as I got closer to it, I could make out what was written on it in chalk. There was a diagram, a map of the island, and a list of what we all assumed were names of all the teams. Our team was simply entitled "The Campers".

Will had been added first, then Grant, and then me. Beth’s name was written in smaller, as though she was a last addition. In bolder capital letters were Aaron and Cal’s names. Next to our team was a list for the "Black Shadows", which I assumed were the ones wearing the black shirts. Some names were written, some with question marks, and some crossed out. None of them had any photos.

"Gina and Dean," I said. "They were only a part of us, not the others."

“When I first arrived here, I didn’t see this wall with the photos or the chalkboard, but I saw this,” Beth said and had me roll the chalkboard to the side, revealing a wall of television screens. Most of the screens had been turned off, but one was still on. It showed part of the island, in black and white, that would have otherwise looked incredibly serene. Whatever action had once taken place there was now quiet and still. A few trees were blowing in the breeze, but that was it. If you hadn’t known better, you would wonder why a camera was set up to record it at all.

"Do you hear that?" Grant mumbled. At first I feared he was hearing things, but as we all quieted down and listened, I heard it, too. A soft buzzing sound seemed to vibrate into the room from behind a wall.

"Ryleigh," Will motioned for me to hold up Grant so he could inspect the sound.

Numbly, I walked over to Grant and positioned his arm over my shoulders. We met eyes and he winked at me and then winced in pain. I gently gave him a kiss on the cheek. Placing my hand on his side, I helped keep the pressure against his wound. Will was up against the wall, pressing his ear up to it until he found a spot that seemed to have the most sound. He felt around and then suddenly pushed on the wall and part of it slid over to reveal a smaller room behind it. We should have figured; Gina and Dean seemed to like hidden rooms a bit too much.

"In here," Will said and stepped into the adjoining room.

I strained to look and was able to see generators set up in a dark space.

"It’s the cabin’s power source," Will said as he peeked back out. "Generators I’m assuming for this cabin and maybe the cameras on the island."

"Why though?" I asked. "I don’t get it. Why go through all of this trouble? For what?"

"We don’t know," Will said. "But, I really want to unplug them all."

"No," Grant told him. "We shouldn’t mess with anything too much."

We knew he was right, but I also couldn’t help but agree with Will. I, too, had an overwhelming urge to tear the entire place to shreds.

Will sighed and groaned loudly with frustration. "I know you’re right, but man, I really want to rip this place apart."

His face was turning red and I could see his muscles tensing up.

"Will..." Beth said softly.

Will glanced over at her and relaxed. She was like the Will Whisperer.

"When the police get here, I’m sure they’ll want to see this," Grant said and then bent over, holding his side.

I shot a nervous look over to Will and he came to help me, taking Grant’s other side.

As soon as Grant had mentioned police, we heard a loud rumbling coming from outside. Will came over and helped turn Grant around and instructed Beth to sit down. Then he placed Grant back onto the sofa and asked me to stand guard while he went outside. I watched him run up to the window and peek out before excitedly turning to us with a thumbs up.

"They’re here!" he exclaimed. "The police! They found us."

I stood frozen and let his words echo in my ears. I knew I should be sitting with Grant, resting his head on my lap as I whispered in his ear that everything would be all right. Or asking if Beth needed anything. But I couldn’t move. I went into a state of shock where my brain just couldn’t handle anymore. I had been dreaming of being rescued and going home for much too long, so when it finally happened, I wasn’t even sure it was real. I half-expected to be jolted awake, my head resting against Grant’s chest somewhere in the middle of the island as we rested on a makeshift bed on the ground.

Will ran to the front door of the cabin and waved his arms in the air, flagging down the police.

"The police are here," Will turned around to tell us. "It’s over! It’s finally over. We’re rescued!"

Next Chapter: Forty Nine