Castaways by Brian Keene

fire. Soft snoring drifted from the shelter, and Troy's fellow conspirators wondered if he was faking or really asleep. Shonette, Ryan, and Roberta started down the trail while Becka, Jerry, Jeff, Raul, and Pauline headed into the jungle around the camp's perimeter.
    Stuart watched them leave, breaking his silence just long enough to remind them all to avoid the interview area. Then he began filming again. He debated internally which group to follow, and decided to stick with his instincts and stay in camp. The possibility of a confrontation between Troy and Stefan was too strong to ignore, and with the two of them alone together, things could quickly come to a head. Stefan would probably avoid taunting Troy without the others present. He needed an audience. But Troy ...
    Troy was the wild card.
    Stuart gripped the camera and waited for all hell to break loose. And eventually it did.
    Chapter Five
    Mark led the way through the jungle, followed by Jesse and then Matthew. They walked along a small service trail used primarily by the show's crew members, rather than the contestants. It wasn't as heavily traveled as the main path, nor did it appear on camera. As a result, it was choked in places with vines, logs, tree limbs and roots, and harder to navigate than the main path. They trudged along, panting for breath. Low-hanging branches smacked their skin. All three men had dark circles under their shirtsleeves. Both Mark and Jesse had turned their equipment off during the trek. The air was damp and heavy. Sweat ran down their foreheads and into their eyes. Mark's blond mullet lay flat and lifeless, plastered to his head. Mosquitoes darted around them in clouds. Both men slapped incessantly at the buzzing insects.
    "This sucks," Mark said. "I wish that storm would hurry up and hit us, if only to cool things down a bit."
    "It would get rid of the bugs, too." Jesse glanced behind him at Matthew. "How you holding up?"
    "Fine."
    Jesse turned around and focused on the trail. He reflected again on how weird Matthew was. Most of the crew had commented on it over the last few weeks. None of them was sure how Matthew had passed the application process, let alone the extensive array of psychological, physical, and personality tests the network required of all potential contestants. He certainly wasn't photogenic or interesting. Nor was he funny or charismatic. One crew member had compared him to wallpaper; he was just there. But while Matthew's behavior wasn't overly eccentric or confrontational, the guy gave off odd vibes. Maybe that was why the producers had picked him.
    Jesse glanced backward again. Matthew stared at him, unblinking. Jesse smiled, trying to appear polite and nonpartial.
    "Sure is hot, isn't it?"
    Matthew winked. "I've been in worse."
    Matthew did not seem to be bothered by the oppressive, cloying heat or the annoying bugs. He didn't complain or sweat or breathe hard. He simply walked along behind them in silence, using his bamboo spear as a staff.
    Jesse turned around again, as Mark pushed a low tree branch out of the way and hummed Molly Hatchet's "Flirting with Disaster" under his breath. The thin branch snapped backward and smacked Jesse in the face. Crying out, he touched his cheek. It felt hot. He looked at his fingers and was relieved to see there was no blood.
    "What happened?" Mark asked.
    "You nearly put my eye out with that branch, man! Watch where you're going." "Jesus, I'm sorry." "It frigging hurts."
    "You've got a welt. I'm really sorry about..." Mark trailed off, noticing that Matthew was smirking.
    "What's up?" he asked the contestant. "You think this is funny?"
    Matthew shrugged, but didn't reply. His smile vanished again, and his expression became stone.
    "Come on," Jesse said. "I'll be okay. Let's just get this over with so we can be done with it and move on to more important things."
    He heard the contempt in his own voice, but was no longer concerned whether Matthew picked up on it. It was too hot to