Author's Note
In celebration of Amazon Prime Video's newest series Panic, I am thrilled to be teaming up with Amazon Prime Video and Wattpad to write this exclusive chapter that puts my characters from this story into the world of Panic!
I hope this chapter intrigues and inspires you to learn more about Panic. Visit the #PanicWritingContest on Wattpad for the chance to put your creative writing chops to the test and learn more about the show!
To find out more about the contest, prizes, and how to enter, check out the #PanicWritingContest here: wattpad.com/AmazonPrimeVideo
Don't forget to watch the series premiere on May 28th, only on Amazon Prime Video, here: http://primevideo.com/
***
I stare across the inky blackness of the lake, to the shadowy cliff that rises from tall, to taller, to suicidal in height.
Sember tugs on my hand, and I look down at her. "Maybe this is a bad idea," she whispers. Her green eyes look dark in the night, but I can still see the trepidation in them.
Her thoughts mirror my own. Maybe this is a bad idea.
"Wow, Siena, look at all these people!" Nirrin, who has posted herself on my other side, gawks at the throngs of my peers who are milling about, slurping purloined beer and laughing like this is some backyard party on a normal Saturday night. "This is going to be fun!"
Fun. Sure, okay. That's one word for it.
"Hey," a random guy says in our direction. "No kids allowed." He glances at Sember and Nirrin with disdain before turning his eyes to me. "You a babysitter or something?"
I open my mouth even though I have no idea what I'm going to say, but Nirrin speaks first.
"Why, do you need one?" The twelve-year-old lifts her chin in that way I've always admired. "If no kids are allowed, then maybe you should go home."
The guy raises his palms as if placating a wild dog and backs away, shaking his head.
"Maybe we should go home," I muse aloud. "I shouldn't have brought you guys here."
"You know I would have just come here on my own." Nirrin flips her brown hair. "Besides, Bren needs us. If Foresthome shuts down, they're going to stick us all in foster homes and we'll never see each other again." She crosses her arms and glares at the ground. "With my luck I'll probably end up with a molester."
I know she's exaggerating for dramatic effect, but it works anyway. I have to remember why I'm here. Not because it's fun, not because I need to win this contest to escape the clutches of this nowhere town, but because Foresthome needs me.
Bren lost the meager funding that was keeping the doors open for the Foresthome Youth Center, which also serves as a group home for displaced children. She has two months to secure new funding, or it's lights out. As the only graduating senior in the facility this year, I'm uniquely qualified to save Foresthome. That's assuming I don't die trying.
That's where Panic comes in. Panic—ironically named because you're not supposed to panic—is an underground event organized by high school seniors. Also it's forbidden because it's dangerous. Students pay an entry fee to face challenges and earn points. The one with the most points wins the entire pot. This year, that pot is worth fifty thousand dollars.
That's right. Fifty. Thousand. Dollars.
That's a lot of food, blankets, and rent money.
"Ooh, someone's jumping!" Nirrin squeals.
YOU ARE READING
Siena (Forestfolk, Book 1)
AdventureSiena can heal wounds with a touch of her hands. A captive since birth, she is used as a tool of war by a Plainsmen tribe. A chance escape into the forest proves successful... and deadly. Rescued by the Forestfolk--a group of people she always thoug...
