Page 227 of Sincerely, Butterfly

Moonlight illuminates the garden, giving it an almost ethereal glow. It’s exactly how I remember, flowers and hedges all around.

I leave the deck and the noise of the party behind, heading deeper into the garden. I admire the beauty around me as I walk towards the entrance of the maze.

I scan my surroundings, looking for my guys. Stopping at the entrance, I turn around and nearly jump out of my dress when I see three tall, dark figures looming over me, blocking my path.

My head snaps backwards, eyes widening at the sight of their plague doctor masks.

They’re still in their black suits, covered from head to toe, but I know my guys anywhere.

My heart races wildly in my chest, beating roughly against my ribcage.

I don’t speak, just wait for their instructions.

Jasper, the one in the middle, cocks his head to the side. “You have three minutes to make it to the middle of the maze. Do not stop for anything, for no one. Use your time wisely, Butterfly. Get to the middle at all costs. Do what you need, do not hold back. And if you don’t make it to the middle before the timer is up, you fail.”

“Do not fail us,” Wesley says in his usual bored tone. “I’m really looking forward to what I have planned.”

They don’t want me to just run, they want me to fight back. Like in the cemetery.

Anticipation pumps a rush of adrenaline through my body as they take a step forward, making me take a step back.

Sylas lifts up his hand, looking down at his watch. “Your time begins…” He presses something on his watch. “Now.”

With one last glance at my menacing masked men, I turn on my heel and take off into the maze.

CHAPTER

THIRTY-SIX

NOLA

Almost immediately,I’m fucked. In my frazzled state of mind, I’vecompletely forgotten the right way to go.

Not to mention, I haven’t actually played in this thing in over eight years.

“Fuck!” I curse as soon as I’m met with a dead end.

Slapping a hand over my mouth, I look around with wide, frantic eyes. I need to keep quiet. I don’t want them to know where I am.

Are they giving me this time to get to the middle of the maze before they come in and find me themselves, or are they giving me a head start before they start hunting me?

I think I might be screwed because these guys know this maze like the back of their hands.

Jasper said not to stop for anything or anyone, meaning them.

Are they just in it for the fun of it? Or are they hunting me for sport or is there some kind of reward at the end? And if I win, what's my prize?

If I lose, what are they going to do to me?

Honestly, it doesn’t matter to me. Either way, I know my sick fucked up brain will love it. That I’ll get off on it as much as they will.

The best part about all of this, these little games and their hunting me for sport, is the fact that they’ve never done this with anyone else before. This is just something between us.

Because of that, I’ll let them do whatever messed-up plan they have for me without complaint.

Turning around, I head back the way I came, but this time I take a right instead of a left. I feel like I’ve been running forever, meeting dead end after dead end, when in reality it’s been no more than a minute.

I do know I’m heading deeper into the maze, so that's a plus.