PUNISHMENT UNLOCKED

Zoe's POV

"I can't kiss him." I replied and looked at Matteo. He avoided my gaze and looked at the ground.

"It's just a dare." Noah reminded me.

I walked towards Matteo and placed my hands on his cheeks. Before I could even do anything, he pulled me in for a kiss.

It lasted for like ten seconds and I gently pushed him away and laid on the ground.

"I should probably sleep now." I told them.

"Yeah, I'll also do the same and I'll stay near you." Matteo replied and I felt a shiver through my spine. He was no doubt in love with me.

He laid down on the floor near me and I stopped thinking and fell asleep.

Scott's POV

I slowly opened my eyes and stood up. My head hurt and I palmed my forehead. It dawned on me that James ordered for me to be locked in a small room. A harsh tingle cut through my scalp, jerking me from my unconsciousness.

"Ouch" I whispered, my eyelids feeling like two anvils.

The door flung open and two boys walked in and brought me out. Jake was leaning on the tent and I spat on the ground. "You're an asshole."

"I wouldn't release you if Zoe and her team were back." He replied.

Confused, I looked at him. "What do you mean by that?" I asked.

He dragged me to a corner of the tent and peeped to be sure no one was listening. "Zoe is not yet back." He revealed and my heart skipped a beat in fear.

"You sent her out there to die and believe me, if something happens to her. I'm going to kill you and bury right here." I threatened.

He gagged. "Man, what the fuck is wrong with you?"

I scoffed. "We should think of ways to find, send out our men to look for her."

He shook his head. "She'll be back, we don't have to look for her. We can't risk any more lives."

"Where's Tracy?" I asked with a smirk.

He looked at me, eyes narrowing. "She's back in the camp." He answered.

"Didn't she follow Zoe's team? Why is she back and not missing?" I interrogated tensively.

Jake ran his fingers through the front of his hair. Silence draped the atmosphere, tension thickening. "You're making things worse." Jake told me and I chuckled.

"If Tracy was missing, you'd probably do the same thing I'm doing right now. It was definitely wrong to vote you in as the commander." I told him and he punched me.

I shifted back and held my face in agony. I groaned and winced in pain. "What do you do that for?" I asked and spat on the ground.

An impish grin tugged at his lips. "I'm your commander and I deserve to be respected." He answered.

I sat on the floor thinking of possible places Zoe and her team might be but I couldn't seem to find any place in my head. "What if a wild animal had eaten them?" I asked, terror showing on my face.

"And that's the reason we can't send out our people to look for your friends." He answered.

"I'll go instead." I told him and he frowned.

"You know way too much, I can't let you leave this camp." He replied.

I scratched my cheeks. "You've changed, Earth has changed you."

He laughed. "I was always like this, you were too blind to see." With that, he walked away. I grabbed my gun and fired a shot in the air angrily.

I stood up and walked to the science tent, no one was there. I quietly sneaked in and started looking for anything strong to destroy. I searched frantically round the tent. I couldn't even find anything.

"You're a mercenary, are you?" A familiar voice asked and I turned back.

It was familiar, I shrugged and paused, giving her large black eyes.

I cleared my throat. "Umm no, I was looking for you." I lied.

She chuckled and let out a grin. "I should really believe that you were looking for you. It doesn't make any sense, does it?" She asked.

"Yes, it doesn't." I answered.

"You've probably heard that Zoe isn't back and this is another day, she passed the night in the forest or died."

My eyes widened. "She's not dead."

"Think of it, what would make Zoe's team stay in the forest without coming back."

"They're probably on their way right now." I told her with confidence.

"You really love Zoe, don't you? She might end up falling in love with Matteo, I know what I'm saying because I'm a girl." She said, bringing down my confidence.

She walked towards me and touched my face, I shivered in fright and looked at her. "You're Zoe's best friend, you shouldn't take advantage of this situation." I replied and walked outside.

Jake walked towards me and gave me a punch. I fell to the ground in shock and held my face. "Hang him for his punishment." He ordered the men as they raised me up and tied me to a tree.

"James, stop this madness." I pleaded, fear gripping me.

"Do you really think that I'll let you escape after destroying our only hope of going to Mars?" He asked and blew a whistler. All the Islanders came outside and looked at me. "Today, we witness the punishment of one of ours." He said and brought out a whip to flog me.