Basil doesn’t understand, Amy thought, but if he keeps talking they are going to hear him, and they are going to come, and they are going to fix his sickness, too. That thought made Amy smile.

“Don’t worry,” she said. “He’ll make you whole again.”

“Who will?”

“Warden Worth,” Amy said.

“Do you mean Carl? The homeless guy? Is he Warden Worth?”

She tried to shake her head, but even this simple gesture triggered another excruciating flash of pain. “The warden is inside Carl. He wears Carl like a glove. The warden wants to help us.”

“Amy, I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Basil said. “But something’s really wrong with you. Do you know where we are? What day it is?”

“We’re in the Beehive,” Amy said.

“There is no beehive. You’re not thinking straight.”

“It’s where we get what we deserve.”

“We’re in Orsk,” Basil said.

“No,” she said. “We’ve always been in the Beehive. There is nowhere else.”

“Right,” Basil said. Again he tried lifting her, and again Amy went limp in his arms. When he paused to adjust his grip, she spilled back onto the floor. Basil walked away again, and this time she hoped he was gone for good. Amy let the blackness wash over her and carry her away. True, she no longer had the security of the tranquilizing chair, but as long as she didn’t move or fight, as long as she surrendered, she could feel like she still was part of the Beehive.

There was a low rumble in the distance and Amy knew Warden Worth was coming back for her. He would return her to the chair, or perhaps he would administer a stronger cure. The rumble grew louder and Amy relaxed her body to welcome him. She was tired of feeling sick and broken. She wanted to be whole. She searched the darkness, waiting for her master.

Instead Basil’s face emerged from the gloom, faintly illuminated by his cell phone. He was pushing a rolling Hügga office chair. As soon as he stopped moving, the rumbling stopped. He knelt beside her and said, “We’re getting out of here.”

“You can’t comprehend his plans for us.”

“You’re right, Amy,” he said. “I don’t know what’s going on. But I am still responsible for your safety.”