He’s shaking, and I hold tighter when I realize it’s not from my presence. Anna was right. Whatever they’ve been doing to him has completely ruined him.
“Am I evil if I secretly hoped you would?” he whispers.
I kiss him then. I have to. It’s wrong and right and entirely ludicrous, but I know the value of the present, that no second is guaranteed. I know a hundred words can’t say what my lips can with one gesture, and he understands my speech completely.
He pulls away and cups my face. “I sensed you as we moved down the hall. I thought I’d lost my mind.”
“I was afraid you’d be angry. I know what you’re doing to keep me safe.”
His gaze flickers away, sending a stab of pain through me. After a moment, he seems to swallow any emotion. “They don’t know your memories returned.”
“No. Clausen still thinks I’ve lost the last few months. You should have seen Ben and Laura reintroduce themselves. They tried to make my life miserable again, but when you don’t remember anything, it’s kind of hard. I just feel bad for Connor. He didn’t deserve to be uprooted and stuck with them.”
“He’s a good guy. How did he take your memory loss?”
I shrug and help him toward the wall so he can rest. “It’s better this way. It has to be easier to blame a freak accident than open rejection.” I feel his gaze. “How long do we have?”
“How long do you want?”
I catch his brief smile.
“Anna didn’t tell you?”
“Tell me what?”
His smile spreads into a grin. “There’s no way you’re getting out of here undetected until they come for me again. They’ll shove meals in at some point, and that’s your bathroom.” He points to a toilet and sink in the far corner of the room.
“So I guess I’ll be here for a while.”
“Hope you and Anna thoroughly covered your alibi.”
I take his hand. “I can think of worse scenarios than being stuck in a confined space with you.”
“We’ll see how you feel at this time tomorrow.”
My smile fades as I grip his fingers and concentrate on the vision. “What were they doing today?” I open my eyes and turn his arm. The fresh marks run from his wrist to his elbow. “What was that machine?”
He shuts down, and the inevitable frustration returns as we revert back to the infuriating pattern of questions and silence.
“I don’t want to talk about any of that. I know you’ll look, but don’t make me talk about it.”
I force away my protests. “They won’t be able to detect me here, will they?”
“Not unless they see you. They’ve gone through great lengths to secure this room so no one on the outside will know I’m here. It works to our advantage on the inside.”
“I’m getting you out of here.”
“I know.”
He smiles at my reaction.
“Wait, you have faith in my plan?”
“Not necessarily, but I have faith in you. If your plan doesn’t work, you’ll try something else.”
“Good. You’re finally learning.”
“I’m a slow study sometimes.”
