Chapter 3 - The Lost Invitations
Margo POV
"Floor Eight: The Lost Invitations. LINE UP!" The Voice screams into my whisper clip, leaving my ears ringing. Geez, this woman is meaner than Miss Hattie when we didn't sell enough cookies. We line up as she tells us to and goes over the rules for this game.
"In the tower post room, a Grimble is on the loose. It's messed up all the letters and now it's hiding in the booth. What's worse is that the royal ball is next week and some of the invitations are lost in the heap. You must find six golden invitations, stamp them and post them in order to pass. Remember. One of you is not to be trusted. The saboteur!"
She goes silent for a few seconds but buzzes back in saying
"Margo, do not react. You are the saboteur. It is your job to ensure that your team fail this challenge. If you find a golden invitation, go into the booth and destroy it without the others seeing what you are doing. I will tell you where to find the invitations. If you start to panic, just listen to my voice."
Great. I'm the first saboteur and I'm probably going to fail, because this team looks like it will have some good teamwork going on. She goes over the rules again, as if anyone had forgotten, and the game starts.
As soon as the challenge starts, The Voice starts murmuring things into my ear. I am told that there is an invitation in the corner, underneath the fan. I sift through all the letters that are strewn across the floor in that area and I finally find one. Unfortunately, Hetty is already in the booth, with Elsa and Flynn queuing up at the door. The Voice is screeching at me to find another invitation and wait until the queue has died down.
I look through 2 sacks and find an invitation at the very bottom of the second one. By then, the booth is empty and I sneak in. I make sure nobody is watching and rip up both invitations. After I have torn up both of them, I hear a groan from the Grimble and exit the booth. Sherman is standing there, giving me a death glare. Oh no. He must have heard me do it! I push him out of the way and sift through more sacks. It is my word against his so I have nothing to lose.
I have been told that they have found 3 out of 6 invitations already, and we have 60 seconds left until the end of the challenge. A new lot of letters has just tumbled down out of the funnel, but the Voice cackles wickedly as there are no invitations in there. I stay on this side of the room and continue to search through the sacks. No luck. The Voice alerts me that there are 30 seconds left, and that Fiona has found the fourth invitation.
I start to panic and The Voice tells me the whereabouts of the final two invitations. Luckily, one of them is within my reach and I grab it before Elsa does. Fiona has opened the sixth invitation and accidentally tears it. After a few curses and accusing glances from me, Elsa, Hetty and Hiro, she waves us off and keeps searching. Hiro mouths to me "Is it Fiona?" I shrug my shoulders in response.
By the time the 10 second countdown has begun, I have torn the invitation and I'm sure that everybody (bar Sherman) is bound to suspect Fiona. By the time The Voice is counting down to 5, Fiona finds another invitation, but doesn't post it in time.
"Your time is up! You have failed... miserably!" she cackles. I try not to look too pleased but I am bound to escape if everybody suspects Fiona.
"You must now vote for who you think the saboteur was. And why."
"Hetty." "I think it was Fiona because I saw her tear an invitation.
"Sherman." "I think it was Margo because when I was waiting for the booth, I could hear ripping and when she came out, she looked guilty."
I almost jump out of my skin when he says my name.
"Elsa." "I think it was Finnick because he wasn't talking much."
"Finnick." "I think it was Fiona because she ripped an invitation."
"Hiro." I think it was Fiona. Same reason as everybody else who voted for her."
"Margo." "I think it was Fiona because she tore up an invitation."
"Fiona." "Margo, because she is trying to make everybody think that I am the saboteur."
I feel slightly afraid, but I am free to the next floor anyway.
"Flynn." "I think it was Fiona because she ripped the last invitation."
"You have voted for... Fiona!" Fiona scowls at us.
"I can now reveal that the saboteur was in fact... Margo!"
I grin at everybody. I wasn't the best of saboteurs but I am still safe for now. I jump through the trapdoor first followed by everyone else.
"Floor Seven: The Frozen Princess. LINE UP!" The Voice screams in my ear.