"What?" Miranda asked, lifting her head up and staring at Luke. "Every one of them, what?"

"Shhh, nothing," Alison said, stroking her hair. She'd had enough of an upset – there was no point adding to it.

Alison looked back, but Luke had walked away. Everyone else seemed preoccupied. Clarice and Jolene were looking at the view toward the sea. Billy Ray looked like he had nodded off, lying on the grass, his mouth slack, his chest rising and falling evenly. Daryl was busy rolling up the ropes and stowing them in the backpack. Travis, however, was watching her with a considering look, and she wondered if he had seen and heard the exchange between herself and Luke.

The carabiners had seemed secure when she tested them, but she had only checked to make sure the springs allowed the gates to flip inward, and then snapped back in position. She hadn't thought to put pressure on them from the inside and see if they held. The danger generally was that a gate either wouldn't open at all, or would fail to snap back once the rope was inserted. She had never heard of one popping outward under pressure.

She wondered how long Brogan had had the equipment. Had he simply wound up with a bad lot, or was something else going on? And could she believe Luke when he said they'd all been defective? If there really was a problem with the spring lock mechanism, why had he casually tossed them away while he climbed, rather than bringing them all up here to show the rest of the group?

Did Luke have his own reasons for making her feel insecure?

It wouldn't make sense for anyone to sabotage the carabiners. Only the lead climber would be affected, she realized. Since the group would logically pick the person with the most climbing experience to serve as lead, that would by definition be the person least likely to fall and put the carabiners to a test. So if anyone were trying to sabotage the filming, this was a very indirect method unlikely to yield a result.

She felt a sudden chill. Luke had free climbed the rock face with skill and ease, removing each chock without any visible effort. His movements spoke of years of familiarity on climbs far more difficult than this one. Was there another reason – beyond his apparent aloofness – why he had not stepped forward to lead the climb when they first arrived?

Maybe she was reading too much into the whole incident, fueled by her own worry about whatever had happened on the Island when Gwen was here, if Gwen was ever here. The second carabiner had held, she reminded herself, so what she really had was one aluminum ring that didn't work the way it was supposed to. She ran her fingers over it in her pocket. She'd take a better look at it later, when everyone else wasn't just a few feet away from her, and when Travis wasn't watching her with that disconcerting gaze of his, as if she were a puzzle he was trying to solve.

She was jerked out of her reverie when she heard Jolene shout.

"I found it!"

They all ran over, even Miranda getting shakily to her feet. Billy Ray shook himself awake and looked around, reached in his pockets, and seemed satisfied that no one had disturbed him while he was sleeping.

"What is it?" Clarice demanded, and Jolene held it up triumphantly.

"It's the key! The first key, you know, the reason we were supposed to climb up here? I found it!"

A small, weathered box had been sitting there, she explained. And the key wasn't all that was in it. It also contained a hand-drawn map that showed them the trail back to the cabins.

"So we don't have to climb back down!" Jolene said, her enthusiasm uncontainable. "No offense to you outdoors types, but I was not looking forward to that."

Miranda brightened visibly, the color returning to her face. Travis stepped over and took a look at the map Jolene was holding.

"Looks like we head this way," he said, gesturing to a small gap in the trees about 50 yards away, "then go almost as far as what looks like a river here, circle around and we'll come out north of the cabins." He looked at Jolene. "You mind if I keep this?"

She nodded, and handed it over to him. "Fine by me. I get lost following directions in the middle of a city."

Everyone seemed in good spirits, having successfully traversed the first challenge. But all Alison could think of was that almost a full day had gone by and she hadn't seen a single member of the production crew. Not even a cameraman. How was she supposed to find someone who remembered Gwen and even begin to try to get information out of them, when for all intents and purposes it was like they'd been dumped on this island and abandoned?

As the group started toward the trail, Daryl walked over to Miranda.

"Maybe you better stay close by me. Just in case the trail gets a little steep up ahead." He grinned at her, and she smiled back, laughing, and took his hand.

Clarice rolled her eyes, and said under her breath, "Here we go."

"What you mean?" Alison asked. She and Clarice were walking side by side, with Jolene just ahead of them. Travis and Billy Ray were at the front, followed by Daryl and Miranda, walking hand in hand, their heads together in quiet conversation. Luke was . . . Alison wasn't sure where Luke was. He seemed to have an uncanny ability to just fade into the background and disappear.

Clarice sighed. "You know. The drama. The two of them are going to get tangled up together and everything will be just wonderful for a few days, then something will happen and she'll be crying and never going to speak to him again and he'll be picking fights with the other guys, and then they'll make up and it'll start all over again."

Jolene looked back at her. "Well, honey, that's what these shows are all about. Why do you think people watch 'em?" She looked up ahead in the general direction of Travis's butt, and said "Mmm—hmm," then turned back again to Alison and Clarice and grinned.

"Come on. Don't either of you have your eye on one those guys for a little fun?"

"No," Clarice said, and Alison almost laughed at the show of distaste on her face. "I didn't come here to start up with some man in front of a few million reality TV show viewers."

"What did you come here for?" Jolene asked.

"I'm here to win."

"Well, sure, we all are. But nothing wrong with having a little fun. Besides, you make yourself too boring, you might not be around for the finish. Just sayin'." Jolene shrugged. "Now me? That Daryl's a hottie, but a little young for my taste. Luke kind of creeps me out. There's such a thing as too quiet. But Travis?"

She ran the tip of her tongue across her upper lip. "I wouldn't mind having myself a piece of that man."

When neither Alison nor Clarice had anything else to add, Jolene turned back and sashayed down the trail.

Good, Alison thought. The more drama the better. Because the more her co-contestants did to focus attention on themselves, the more she could take a step back and observe. And search the Island for any proof that there had been an earlier taping, and that her sister had been a part of it.

Which is exactly what she did when they returned to the cabins. Since it was still daylight, she was able to view the cabin she shared with Miranda much more closely than she had the night before. And with Miranda still walking around talking to Daryl, she could conduct a more through search without having to explain herself.

She considered briefly whether there was a hidden camera set up in their cabin, but decided it was unlikely given the compressed space and poor lighting. She was probably also safe from surveillance in the outhouse-style bathroom and the rudimentary shower the women shared, and she paused to wonder for a moment how Clarice was coping with those amenities.

At any rate, Alison figured that if she was being filmed – and Brogan confronted her about what she was searching for – she would just say she was checking for cameras since she was undressing in there.

She searched the space methodically for any signs that anyone else had ever stayed there. She wasn't sure what she was expecting to find - a note scribbled on the wall, a piece of paper shoved between the floorboards, a forgotten piece of jewelry? Nothing. To all appearances, Brogan was telling the truth. They were the first contestants to ever stay on Reality Island.

Only Alison knew that it wasn't true. Somewhere on the Island there had to be some trace of the earlier contestants. And whatever it was, Alison would find it. And then Brogan would have some explaining to do.

* * *

Brogan made an unexpected appearance the next morning, gave a curt order for "the ladies" to grab their swim gear and meet him at the dock in 10 minutes, and disappeared. Alison rummaged through her duffle bag while Miranda debated which of three increasingly more revealing bikinis to wear. When Alison pulled her tank suit out of her bag, Miranda gave her a look and tossed her one of the bikinis.

Alison held it up. "No way."

"No," Miranda said, "you mean no way are you wearing a one-piece tank suit on a reality TV show. Are you trying to get tossed off before the season even gets under way?"

Alison considered.

"Look," Miranda said. "Why do you think Brogan wants us in bathing suits? So he can see if we can swim? Or because boobs in wet bikinis make great ratings."

"I see your point."

Alison put on the bikini and Miranda nodded in approval. "You look like that suit was made for you."

"What did you do, go on a shopping spree as soon as you heard you were picked for the show?"

"Well, duh."

"I'm definitely out of my league," Alison said as the two of them walked out the door and hurried to meet the other contestants.

"Ok, ladies, time for a little fun in the sun." Brogan was standing on the dock, his bronzed skin set off by his pale blue polo shirt and khaki shorts. His well-worn Docksides and designer sunglasses completed the picture of the affluent and slightly bored director.

The four men were nowhere in sight, presumably sent off on their own mission. Two cameramen were standing on the dock behind Brogan. As one of them looked her over Alison felt a shiver of distaste, and unconsciously folded her arms over her chest. She couldn't question him in front of Brogan but she wasn't sure how she felt about the idea of catching up with him when they were both alone.

"I can't wait to see what this involves," Clarice muttered. Brogan turned a level gaze toward her.

"Did you have a complaint, Clarice?"

"No."

"Because if you do, you can stay right here on dry land. In fact, we can drop you off on the other side of the Island with the men, with the instruction that you don't return until you find and kill something for dinner tonight."

So that was what the adventure was for the men in their group today, Alison thought. Given a choice between posing for some wet bikini photos and snaring, killing and then skinning a rabbit or some other animal for dinner, she could happily pretend she was just sunning herself at an all-inclusive Caribbean Resort.

"So I'm going to ask you again, Clarice, do you have a problem?"

"I don't have a problem, Brogan."

"Then take off your shirt. You're on television for crissake."

Clarice stared back at him, then slowly took off what looked like a silk wrap, revealing a modest tankini. Jolene cracked her gum and winked at Brogan, before pulling her oversize t-shirt off over her head. Her breasts were barely contained in a strapless bathing suit top that Alison figured would never survive the vibrations of any kind of watercraft, much less a vigorous swim.

"That's more like it." He looked at her appraisingly. "You get to ride the banana tube."

"Oh, cool," said Miranda. "We're going tubing?"

Brogan gestured toward the end of the dock where two waverunners were pulled up on a partially submerged deck. "Any of you ever drive one of these before?" They all looked at each other until, finally, Clarice took a step forward.

"I know how."

"Fine." Brogan nodded. "You can show the others." He stepped into the speedboat with the one of the cameramen – the one who'd leered at Alison -- the other remaining on the dock. "Now give me some footage I can use, ladies."

Writer's Note

I'd love to hear what you think of this episode, and the story so far.