Now Marco was permanently shaken, but I wouldn’t have blamed her if she’d broken his mind in half.

He’d been planning to test how electrical stimuli affected her powers.

Shock treatments.

The idea twisted like claws to my stomach, first because it was barbaric, and second because she’d already been subjected to them. Marco had wanted to do a follow-up study now that she was an adult.

And then there was Darren.

I wasn’t allowed access to his work. I assumed I had to pass some test before being let past the final level of security.

That left my mind turning in circles, wondering what Darren could possibly be working on. If physical torture was up for grabs, I dreaded what his projects involved.

I hadn’t seen Doctor Nagi since my first night and all requests to him had to go through Darren. He was the gatekeeper, and for reasons unknown, Doctor Nagi valued his opinions.

I planned to find out why.

In the meantime, all I could do was fall in line.

That meant waiting patiently for Darren’s permission to see Quanta. I used my breaks to scout the areas I had access to while introducing myself to as many of the staff as I could. I doubted I’d find any weaknesses in the security, but people could be bought and I was more than willing to use my family’s resources. I’d need them when the time came to escape.

It took five days—or at least five days until Darren alerted me—before Doctor Nagi approved my request to bring in Cassie’s tech. As soon as the helmets cleared security, I booked a gaming room.

I stepped lighter on my way to pick up Quanta, eager to finally have this conversation. Her help—and hopefully her visions—were going to be vital to getting out of here.

As I neared her room, I found Darren waiting.

He leaned against her door, arms folded over his lab coat. “I’ll be watching, Orpheus. And I’ll step in the second you go off book.”

It hardly made a difference. Someone was always watching here. Always recording. “I’ll stick to the plan.”

I let out a breath as Darren strode for the viewing suite next door. He’d drilled me on the protocol for escorting her. The floor had been cleared of unauthorized staff and four guards stood behind me, complete with body armor and stun lances.

As ready as I’d ever be, I pressed my finger to the scanner. The door slid open.

She stood six inches away.

I jerked back, sucking in a breath. Then I laughed at myself.