The Suicide Project (Rebirth Book 1) (38 page)

When I awoke the next morning, I felt like a new woman. It was amazing what a deep, uninterrupted sleep could do for one’s disposition. Stretching my limbs in all directions, I frowned when I glanced over at Kyrie’s side of the room and noticed that she seemed to have already left for the Mess Mall.
Geez…thanks for the wake-up call.

Humming to myself, I gathered my clothes for the day and headed into the bathroom to wash away the morning cobwebs from my brain. Emerging 15 minutes later, I was met with a shock when I opened the bathroom door and saw the room was overflowing with people. Harper, Allegra, Marisol, Gideon, Sam, and Jamie were all standing there facing the bathroom doorway when I came out. They were all staring at me and it was a little freaky. Simultaneous exhalations of relief started echoing all around the room, and I felt the corners of my mouth twitching in amusement.
Ummm….hello?

In the silence of the room, it was a sudden shock to my ear drums when Kyrie launched herself at me from just outside the bathroom door. I hadn’t seen her standing there. She wrapped her arms tightly around my waist and it didn’t feel like she had plans to let go anytime soon. “You wouldn’t wake up!!” She accused me. Alarmed at the waver in her voice, I looked down at her face and saw that she was truly upset. At a loss, I gently rubbed her back as I said in a soothing voice, “I’m fine.”

Shooting a mystified look at Harper, she explained, “Kyrie came running into the Mess Hall in a panic, shouting that something was wrong with you because you wouldn’t wake up. She tried shaking you and yelling your name, but you weren’t responding to anything she did. She got scared. She thought something bad had happened yesterday since none of us saw you again after you were taken away to serve your punishment.”

Glancing around the room, I met Gideon’s eye as he added, “We were all really worried this morning, so we followed Kyrie back here to see what was going on. I’m glad you’re okay.” Staring at me in concern, he verified, “You
are
okay, right?” I just nodded over the top of Kyrie’s head as I continued rubbing her back.

I couldn’t help but notice the guilty expression on Jamie’s face as she held my gaze and took a couple of steps towards me. “Yesterday afternoon, Doc Duffy and I made the executive decision to give you some medicine to help you sleep since all of the staff know that you’ve been struggling with insomnia lately. You must’ve been really sensitive to the meds because you’ve been out for nearly 14 hours.”

Baffled, I questioned, “When did you give me sleeping pills? I don’t remember that.”

“It was in liquid form, and I had Amos slip it into your iced tea yesterday afternoon when you were eating in the Mess Hall. He gave you the standard dose…it’s just that I think you were extremely tired.”

Nodding my head in understanding, I replied, “It’s alright. Obviously I needed the rest if I was able to sleep like a rock for that long.” Smiling brightly, I added, “I feel
awesome
this morning!”

The next 15 minutes were spent explaining the events of my day yesterday and my so-called “punishment”. Sam and Gideon both laughed in disbelief when they heard I spent the whole day washing cars. In the end, there were hugs all around the room once everyone was satisfied that I hadn’t been harmed or abused in any way.

Out in the hallway, I was met with another surprise when I saw Gabe, Logan, and Cassidy leaning against the opposite wall. They jerked to attention when they saw us exiting the room. By way of explanation, Logan said, “There was no more room in there for us, but we were worried about you too. We’re glad to see you’re okay!”

Feeling the love, I smiled my thanks and reassured them that everything was copacetic. Hustling everyone into the Mess Hall for breakfast, we all had to eat hurriedly or else risk exercising on an empty stomach since we only had 10 minutes left to eat.

Once we finally made it into the Gym, there was a definite air of excitement buzzing throughout the crowd. Sergeant Ramsey started off with a small meeting and talked a little bit about the upcoming test. Today was the last full day of training before we would break off in groups for the test tomorrow. I’m sure the primary purpose of the meeting was to get us all fired up, and I’d have to say it was definitely working because we could clearly see that Sergeant Ramsey was excited for tomorrow and his enthusiasm was contagious.

None of us knew what to expect the next day so the suspense was killing us. Breaking off in our little group, Sam, Gideon, and I exerted 150% effort into that day’s training. Sergeant Ramsey made us do all the exercises I hated, including burpees. But he claimed it was for my own good because it would help us for the test the following day, so I kept my mouth shut, dug in my heels, and just did it.

I was shocked when he finally called a halt to our training. Six hours had sped by at lightning speed, but every single one of us had the sweat stains to show for our efforts. When we all broke off and separated to our own rooms to shower before eating a late lunch/early dinner, Kyrie was once again glued to my side. We walked into the Mess Hall with our arms linked, and she chatted a mile a minute as she described how her day went yesterday. After lunch, I was disappointed when Sergeant Ramsey denied us any free time. He wanted everybody to get plenty of rest for the big day ahead. His last enigmatic instruction before all of us retired early to our own rooms, was, “Don’t dress in your normal workout clothes tomorrow. I want y’all to wear blue jeans and sneakers! See you in the mornin’!”

Jeans, huh?
Well, that’s just weird!
During our Ladies Night pool party, Jamie had said that our test was for strength and endurance. It just doesn’t make sense wearing jeans if we’d all be more comfortable in workout clothes, especially if we were just going to be getting sweaty anyways. Catching Allegra’s eye, I could tell she was just as confused and we both laughed when we shrugged at each other. Oh well. Tomorrow would arrive before we all knew it. Then, the mystery would be solved.

It was far too early to attempt sleep though, so Kyrie and I changed into our pajamas, and settled on my bed to watch a movie. While the movie was playing, I decided to give myself a manicure. I was just applying the top coat over my black polish when there was a light tap on our door.

“I’ll get it!” Kyrie was halfway across the room before I could even respond. The door swung open to admit Jamie, and she gave both of us a chastising look as she saw we were obviously both still awake.

“Come on!” I argued. “It’s not even 6:00 yet! We’ll be going to sleep soon, but for now we were just trying to unwind so that we
could
fall asleep.”

“I was just checking on you girls. I know it’s still early, so I’m here to offer a natural sleep aide if you’d like it.” I shook my head to decline since I had unknowingly taken a sleep aide the night before. Kyrie declined when I did, so Jamie just grinned and ordered us to turn off the TV and get beneath the sheets. “You both need a good nights’ rest for tomorrow. Sleep well, and good luck!” We heard the soft click of the door closing, and then she was gone.

I worried that I wouldn’t be able to sleep since I had gotten a ton of it the night before. But to my surprise, due to the vigorous exercises from earlier in the day, I was able to close my eyes and drift off into a light slumber. Before we knew it, the day of the test had arrived!

I actually woke up before Kyrie this time, and started quietly rummaging in my closet for something to wear. Settling on a pair of flare leg blue jeans and a black t-shirt, I showered and dressed in record time. When I emerged, Kyrie was already up, so she took her turn in the bathroom while I blow dried my hair in front of my dresser. I decided to pull my hair up into a ponytail today, and when Kyrie left the bathroom, I saw that she had her hair up in one too.

Breakfast was filled with the excited hum of voices as everyone speculated what kind of test we were going to have. When I got up to refill my coffee cup, I saw that Amos was wearing jeans too, so I stopped right in front of him and tried to wheedle more answers out of him.

“Come on, Amos! Just a tiny little clue. Please?” The suspense was killing me already!

The sudden boom of Sergeant Ramsey’s voice startled me and caused me to jump in surprise. “Teagan! Leave Amos alone and stop tryin’ to sweet-talk answers outta him!” I laughed guiltily as I stared at Amos over the rim of my mug. “Sorry Amos.”

“Psshh. As if I’d say anything to spoil the surprise,” he retorted to my amusement.

Just then Sergeant Kami entered, followed by Sergeant Flynn. Catching Harper and Allegra’s eyes, I bobbed my eyebrows at them as I made a mental note to remind them about Operation Matchmaker. We all wanted to see those two together. When I broke eye contact with the girls, I realized to my dismay that Sergeant Flynn was staring right at me and he had a smirk on his face.
Uh oh. Does he suspect?
Quickly, I schooled my features and threw on my poker face.

Out of the corner of my eye, I felt the weight of Gideon’s stare and turned to see his curious expression. “Later” I mouthed the word to him, and he gave an almost imperceptible nod of understanding. We both gave our full attention to Sergeant Ramsey as he broke the silence. “Outside these doors, a bus awaits to take y’all to where you’ll be takin’ yer tests. So…without any further ado…” He motioned for all of us to follow him so I whistled for Mercer who was lounging by his empty food bowl.

One by one, we boarded the bus which was exciting in itself since it felt like we were going on a field trip. The only lame part, is that the bus had deeply tinted windows so we couldn’t really see anything outside.
Major bummer.
On the upside, the ride was short and before we knew it, it was time to disembark.

Exiting, I saw that we were standing outside a very large tent. It reminded me of one of those circus tents from my childhood days. Everyone was gaping at it in confusion. Looking to the side, I did a double take when I realized that Leif was standing right beside me. His face looked as pasty as ever which made his deep purple bruising beneath his eyes all the more prominent. Sensing my stare he looked in my direction, and I saw the surprise in his eyes before his expression quickly changed to a deep scowl.

As he stood there glaring at me with such hatred, something inside me snapped and I couldn’t help the snarky words that tumbled out of my mouth next. “What’s up, princess? Do you wanna go another round with me or something?” I flexed my fingers and cracked my knuckles for the full effect. He suddenly gasped and stumbled backwards a few steps, in his haste to put distance between himself and me.

“Knock it off, Teagan,” Sergeant Ramsey was quick to reprimand me, but there was undisguised humor in his glance. Looking around me, I saw that Kyrie had an alarmed look on her face. “Teagan…don’t fight anymore. I don’t want you to get punished again.”

A couple of the guys snorted, and I clearly heard Logan murmur, “She’s
so
badass!” Shaking my head, I turned to follow where Sergeant Ramsey was starting to lead the congregation into the tent. The inside of the tent was reminiscent of the circus too, as I saw that there were bleachers all along the perimeter of the round tent. We were lead up a series of stairs and into a row of bleachers where we were instructed to sit.

Looking down towards the middle of the floor from our height, I saw that the floor was filled with dirt and that the entire arena was enclosed with thick metal railings. My gaze flicked to the cowboy hat and jeans that Sergeant Ramsey was wearing, and a thrill ran through me as I started to put two and two together.
Could it be??
Across from where we were seated on the other side of the arena, Doc Duffy and Jamie entered with large red duffle bags that had white First Aid crosses on the side.

Sergeant Ramsey had an expectant grin spread across his mouth as he raised his eyebrows at us and asked, “Do ya guys know what yer goin’ to be doin’ today?!” The excitement in his voice rang loud and clear, but he was met with silence as the others looked at one another in either confusion or disbelief. When another few seconds passed and still no one answered, I looked at Sergeant Ramsey and asked in a hushed voice, “Are we riding bulls?”

Gleefully, he replied, “We are!”

Jumping to my feet in excitement, I cheered, “YEAH!! Woohoooo!” As I continued to laugh and do my little happy dance, I looked down at my comrades seated along the bleachers. Harper, Allegra, and Marisol had frozen looks of horror on their faces, while Aidan, Leif, and Zima’s expressions were purposely blank. Everyone else was either staring at me incredulously, or were sporting excited grins to match mine. It was a mixed bag.

Our attentions were brought to the middle of the arena where Sergeants Kami and Flynn reappeared. Speaking into a microphone, Sergeant Flynn announced, “There are three different levels. Kyrie represents the first tier since she is the youngest of the bunch, and will be required to stay on the bull for a maximum of five seconds. The rest of you belong in the second tier where the clock will be set at the standard eight second mark. Leif – you are exempt from taking the test for another month as punishment for your insubordination.” The only reaction Leif had, was the visual clenching of his jaw in anger.
Oh well. Serves him right!

Gesturing with his hands towards the end of the bleachers where I was seated with Sam and Gideon, Sergeant Flynn reiterated, “Except for you three. Teagan, Gideon, and Sam—you represent the final tier and will be required to stay on the bull for a maximum of fifteen seconds.”

Sergeant Kami took hold of the microphone and gestured to someone off to the side. Three guys dressed in full rodeo clown garb, emerged from that direction and approached the center of the arena. “This is Wyatt, Angelo, and Dee. All three have had their third shots and will be available here on the arena floor to assist those of you who might need help if you get in a bind. Their main purpose is to help prevent injury to you guys while you’re taking your tests.”

My eyes took in the three rodeo clowns. Due to their heavy clown makeup and the fact that they were all dressed similar, it was hard to differentiate who was who, but at least I’d be able to finally meet the mysterious third member of their unit, even if he did have clown makeup caked on.