Page 44 of Caging Liberty
My mouth goes dry as I curse myself.
“Yeah. If you really want privacy, you have to go to the beach. Every spot on manor property is too dangerous.”
“Including here?” I ask, searching the tops of the stony exterior walls.
“Yes, but there’s probably no audio here, so just walk like we’re pals taking a stroll. Quit looking for the cameras.”
I face forward and swallow.
“I’m Desiree, by the way.”
I glance at her and give her a slight introductory nod. “Liberty.”
“You mean Ivy?” She fixes me with a stern look. “Don’t get caught saying that around here, hun. You’ll have bathroom duty for life.”
“Right, I meant Ivy.” I face forward, mentally transporting back to this morning. Desiree is sugarcoating it… I’ll have a lot worse in store for me than cleaning toilets if I’m not careful. Plus, I already determined this woman is untrustworthy. “Sorry,” I mutter.
“Hey, don’t apologize to me. I don’t give a shit what you call yourself, although I have to point out, Liberty is ironic as fuck.”
I let out a laugh intended to be dry but surprise myself when there’s a trace of humor in it. This is the first time I’ve laughed since stepping foot on the island. “That thought has occurred to me as well.”
“Point is, I’m not a rat. I just think you should be careful who you say things to.”
I nod. “April’s already warned me of that.”
“And yet there you were, trying to pump Sawyer’s new pet for information.”
I look over at Desiree and dip my chin. “Anna?”
“Annie,” she corrects, emphasizing the last syllable. “Jesus, you suck at this. But yeah, her. Surprised?”
My lips stay parted as if I am, but I know I shouldn’t be.
“Fuck,” I mutter under my breath.
“Yup. Close one. You’re welcome.”
I’m silent for a few moments while I try to wrap my head around this. It’s starting to make sense why Sawyer bunked Anna and me together.
“Why are you helping me?” I ask, my voice low.
She doesn’t miss a beat, like she was waiting for me to ask. “Because a year ago, I was exactly where you’re at. Trying to think of every way I could escape, finding out all I could about the island. I’ve just been biding my time until someone like you came along.”
My steps falter, and I have the urge to stop altogether and spin her to face me, but I remember the cameras and keep walking.
“Surprised again?” she asks.
“Very.”
I completely misjudged this woman.
“Figured. Now shut up until we hit the beach.”
I press my lips together as we walk up to the gate I climbed over my first day on the island. Today, a muscular guard with a crew cut—I think his name is Austin—stands with his back against it.
“’Sup, my favorite Aussie,” Desiree calls out, flashing him her pearly whites.
He lowers his chin as a greeting then points at me. “She’s not allowed out.”