Uninvited (Uninvited, #1)(70)

We converge as a herd on the center of the grounds in front of the main building, where we meet up for our morning run. Several instructors wait there beside a table loaded with small black packs. Colored stripes mark each one. Guards on ATVs surround the table, watching us with their ever-wary stares.

Harris, the instructor in charge of the boys, calls out, “We have an exercise planned for you tonight.”

I glance to the sky, wondering how long this exercise will take. It will be dark soon.

“We are dividing you into seven groups, to be identified by color. When your name is called come forward with the rest of your team.”

Sabine inches a step closer. “What’s happening?”

“I’m sure it’s just a team exercise. Probably for morale.”

She nods, but her hazel eyes still look nervous.

Harris holds up a clipboard and shouts: “Blue team! Jones, Henke, O’Rourke, Morales, Stone, Bustros, and Ruiz.”

I jerk at the sound of Gil’s and Sean’s names and then quickly try to cover my reaction. Stare straight ahead, pretending that I’m unaffected to learn that I’ll be on a team with six or seven other carriers who aren’t Sean. Aren’t Gil. Not even Sabine, I realize as names for the red team are announced. With a glance full of regret, Sabine moves to join her group.

It soon becomes apparent there is only one girl for every team.

“Green team: Hong, Miller, Lionetti, Hamilton, Ramiro, Knolls, and Hauser. Step up.”

My legs walk a steady line to join my group. Tully’s on my team, his face gruesomely bruised and swollen from yesterday. That can’t feel good. He avoids looking at me. I haven’t had any dealings with my other teammates, and I’ll take that as a positive. We wait until the last team is announced. The packs sitting on the table are handed to us according to colored stripes.

“You will have however long it takes to capture and return the target.” Harris waves an arm and suddenly there is a new arrival in our midst. A guard leads a man forward. He’s nondescript, wearing workout clothes similar to our own. Only I’ve never seen him before. This guy is in his late twenties, his fierce, alert eyes at odds with his bland expression.

“Our volunteer here served in the Marines not too long ago. He should prove quite the challenge for you.”

The volunteer scans us all, and I get the impression that he’s memorizing and categorizing us in that one glance.

Harris claps him on the shoulder amiably. “Go ahead. You’ve already been briefed on the local geography. We’ll give you a five-minute lead.”

The volunteer takes off, practically a blur as he vanishes in the trees, and I know we shouldn’t underestimate him.

Dusty continues, “There is a GPS inside your pack along with a few other essentials. Your team may attempt to track the target however you see fit. I don’t need to remind you that your performance is being evaluated. Should your team successfully return the target, you shall be rewarded. You have five minutes to discuss and devise your plan, starting now.”

I turn to face the six other members of my team.

“We should split up,” a caramel-skinned boy announces. I think his name is Ty. He’s fast—usually runs at the front of the pack in the mornings.

“And go after him individually? That defeats the purpose of a team exercise,” Felix remarks. I’ve seen him walking with Gil into the computer lab for independent study and I’m pretty sure he’s another tech whiz. Whatever the case, he can’t be that bad if Gil voluntarily talks to him.

“No, not individually,” Ty says. “But we should split into pairs . . . increase our odds of finding him. I’ll go with Tully here.”

Nodding, the remaining four boys pair up. I shift uncomfortably on my feet, waiting to be noticed. They’re too busy rifling through their packs now, assessing supplies.

“Flashlight, pocketknife, some rope. Oh, look. A GPS. The school and perimeter walls are already plugged in. This is good.” Felix starts punching buttons on the device. “We’ll divide the area into three sections—one for each of us.”

Still, no one has claimed me as part of their pair. I’m not part of the plan. Annoyed, I start to speak up, but the words fade at the sound of several shouts and excited whoops.

We all look up as two teams take off into the woods like kids released from recess. They tear off like hounds on a trail. Only they look scattered and unorganized. A few of the kids run at a sprint, their expressions feral, wild. They haven’t even thoroughly investigated their packs yet. A few are even left on the ground, forgotten.

“Idiots,” Felix mutters before looking back at us. Nodding, he announces confidently, “We got this.”

“What about her?” Ty asks, nodding at me. Finally. They remember my existence.

The six of them stare at me like they don’t know quite what to do with me. In their eyes, I’m just a useless girl. My performance with Tully yesterday probably didn’t help in that regard, either.

“Leave her,” the jerk himself grumbles.

“She can come with me and Richard.” Felix’s gaze steadies on me. “Just keep up. And do what I say.”

My lips compress. I grab my pack and sling it over my shoulder. Nothing I can say will prove that I’m an asset. I’ll just have to show them. “Let’s go.”