Free The Park (Evenstad Media Presents Book 1) by Voss Foster

happen at all, least of all Mom getting
upset about it. But how would I really feel if I found out she wasn't upset?
    It's stupid. I know she has to be. Who wouldn't, with their
son kidnapped? No notice, no nothing? They don't know that this is all fake.
I'm still running with that. It's the only thing that actually makes sense. But
Rita also says they wouldn't let the audience know it was fake. Makes sense,
too. Everything she says makes sense.
    I'm glad Rita found me and told me what was going on. I
wouldn't have figured it out. I'm just not that bright. Yeah, I can admit it.
Rita pretty much saved my ass. I don't know exactly what would have happened if
someone had figured out that this was all fake.
    But Mom and Dad don't know. They could have figured it out.
They say it's always easier when you're sitting on the couch than when you're
actually there. Maybe they solved the puzzle. Maybe they're not worried and
they know that it’s some weird special effects trick when people die. Fuck, maybe
they got told that it's all fake. I don't know. I don't know anything other
than what I'm supposed to do. Survive. Or 'survive,' I guess. Don't become a
victim of whatever high tech hallucination hologram bullshit they're using.
    I still think about that guy I killed, though. It was so
graphic. I just can't manage to forget any of it. Not a single drop of blood.
     
    ENTRY END

Mr. And Mrs. Ross,
     
    Your son, Blake Ross, has recently volunteered to
participate in Evenstad Media's newest program, 'The Park.' The grand prize for
the winner is twenty million dollars US.
    Unfortunately, this competition brings with it a certain
level of risk. Due compensation will be provided in the event of serious injury
or death. In his contract, you were named as the recipients of any such money.
    Unfortunately, we cannot provide you with any further
information without sacrificing the integrity of the program, but you are of
course free to tune in. The show premieres on January 8th and will air every
Monday afterward at 8 p.m. EST.
    We appreciate your son's participation and your family's
sacrifice. We understand that being without a family member for however short a
time can be can be very trying. We can in no way make up for this hardship, but
please accept a free lifetime subscription to Evenstad Media's Premium Package
as a small token of our sympathy.
     
    Evenstad Media

JOURNAL 04JUSTICE
    ENTRY 006
    DATE: 3/8/2074
     
    Desiree's asleep, so I managed to steal away some time and
test the fucking medallion I found. It's been long enough. I should have found
out what it does before now, but I haven't been able to leave Desiree
unsupervised for more than a few seconds without her trying to get herself
fucking killed. I feel bad about it, but I blocked up the door to keep her from
getting out. I'm a fucking asshole, I know, but I had to do it. Having this
thing lying around, not knowing what it does, and Desiree falling out of her
fucking skull, it just doesn't sit right on me.
    So I took it outside. It was hard as fuck to see what was
going on in that dark, but I didn't want to test it out too close to the house.
Might have blown the whole fucker to bits, Desiree included. Best I could see
in the dim lights, it was some kind of spray. It smelled foul. Like diesel
mixed with baby puke. I thought that was the whole point of it. Seemed pretty
fucking stupid. If someone's really determined to kill you, a nasty stink ain't
going to stop them.
    But then I saw the grass. Wherever that shit fell, it left
everything brown and yellow and just fucking dead. Some kind of weed killer.
Don't know if it does anything to people or not. I would guess so, as fast as
it took out the grass, but what the fuck do I know? It could be that it just
kills plants. It could be that it's just making me fucking hallucinate and the
grass ain't even dead. I don't know.
    But I do know one thing. It catches fire. I tried it out.
Thought about spray paint and a lighter, the kind