I place my hand in his and rise to my feet. “Thank you,” I say. “I don’t think I would have been able to do that without you.”

“You would have. You know you’re strong, but I don’t think you know how strong. You’re going all the way, Piper.”

“All the way to what?”

The door clicks unlocked but Evan doesn’t move.

“The end of this.”

“We don’t know what the end is going to be.”

“No,” he says, brushing hair from my face, “but I know you’ll be there.” Dropping his arm, he takes a breath. “Let’s get back.”

We make the short walk back to our room, grabbing a bag of new clothes in the clothes room as we go. The heat from the light has made me a sweaty mess. I need aspirin, a shower, and to lie down.

Hazel, Priya, and Theo are sitting on the sofa when we get back. Where is Lucie? Sleeping, maybe.

“Are you two okay?” Hazel asks.

I nod and pain slices through my forehead. Damn, that hurts so much. “I need…”

“Sit down. I’ll take care of it,” Evan says.

“Hey, no, you sit, too.” Priya leaps to her feet. “You need a glass of water, right?”

“Thanks,” Evan replies and follows me to the sofa.

When my headache has ebbed a little, I’ll go for my shower.

“Was the camera on?” I ask.

Hazel nods. “You two were amazing, though. So strong.”

“What camera?” Evan asks.

“When Lucie and Piper went into room five, they showed the live feed in here and made us watch,” Hazel says quietly. With the constant threat of room zero looming over us, it’s understandable that we do what we’re told.

Evan shakes his head. “They really do that?”

“Yep,” I say, taking the glass of water from Priya with gratitude. “I love you,” I tell her.

Evan downs his pills, too, and lies back against the sofa, gripping his glass of water as if it’s his lifeline.

I know the feeling.

“Do you guys want anything to eat or are you going to bed early?” Theo asks. He avoids eye contact with me, preferring to look between me and Evan.

“I can’t eat a thing,” I say. “I’m going to shower and sleep.”

Evan nods. “Same. My head is killing me.”

“All right,” Theo mutters.

Things with Theo have gone from bad to worse. It started when I didn’t let him run, and Evan’s presence has only widened the distance between us.

I miss having him as a friend, but I’m not going to turn my back on anyone in here in order to do that. There can’t be any cliques in here. Everyone is equal; everyone gets the same treatment.