Planting my palms on the floor, I push to my feet. The world seems to tilt to the side, and I stumble. I slam into the door and grab hold of the metal to stop myself falling. I reach for the door handle, but the door doesn’t open.

What? I heard the lock. Even with the ringing in my ears, I heard that clearly. It’s not a noise I could miss.

Gripping the handle, I shove it down harder.

“Come on!”

Please open. Please!

The door clangs again, and I fly out of the room. I fall on my knees with a painful thud.

I look back at the door. That was the second time I heard it unlock.

But that’s not quite right.

The first one was the door locking.

At some point during the torture, when I couldn’t hear anything other than the boom or high-pitched screech, they unlocked the door. I could have gotten out earlier.

I stumble back to our room to four pairs of eyes on me as soon as I step through the door.

“Piper!” Hazel says, leaping up and grabbing me into a tight hug. I wince at how damn loud she is. “I was so worried.”

“Shh. I’m okay,” I reply in a monotone whisper.

She steps back and, lowering her voice, replies, “Sit down and rest.”

I take a seat on the sofa and fiddle with my bracelet.

Theo clears his throat and, without looking anywhere near me, asks, “You okay?”

He’s still angry. And after that room, I almost can’t blame him.

“I’m fine. I need to take a nap.” Turning away, I lie down on the sofa.

With my eyes closed I can pretend, for a short time at least, that I’m not here.

19

I manage to nap for an hour, but my rumbling stomach wakes me up. Priya has laid out a plate of sandwiches and chips. My head is killing me, pain radiating down to my shoulders.

“How long was I in that room?” I ask.

Everything is so loud, it hammers my head.

“I think around an hour,” Priya replies softly.

I haven’t told them where I’ve been, but they know. From the second I shushed Hazel when I got in here, they knew where I’d been…because they’ve been in there, too. Except for Hazel, but someone probably filled her in since she’s not asking me a thousand questions.

We finish eating the rest of lunch in silence, and Theo avoids all interaction with me. Lucie, Priya, and Hazel know something isn’t right. I don’t miss the many exchanged looks they keep giving each other.

I clear away the plates, my eyes meeting the tiny window above us. It’s bright, so I think it’s somewhere around midday.

Kevin has been gone a long time.

That doesn’t mean anything. A lot of the rooms take longer.