“Yes,” Lennon said. Making a video pretending that he was happy and everything was going great was the most normal thing he’d done in days. Felt like returning to real life.

“Aaaand go,” Hadley said.

“Hey, guys, I’m Lennon Pierce, and I’m here with Maisie Rojas inside the quarantine zone. We just wanted to give you a quick update on how I’m doing, since I know that everyone out there is curious.” He tilted his head toward Maisie. “Maisie here came and got me as soon as I was dropped into the quarantine zone, and she helped make sure I was safe and fed.”

“You left out the part where you fainted,” Maisie said.

He gave her an amused look. “In my defense, my kidnappers didn’t feed me.”

“I’m just saying. You glossed over that part.” A smile twitched at her lips.

“Anyway,” Lennon said, turning back to the camera. “Maisie and Dr. Lopez made sure to immediately get me a temporary vaccine that Dr. Lopez developed recently. You probably read about it. The antibodies in the vaccine will protect me, temporarily. The CDC isn’t sure for exactly how long, so they’ve given me seventy-two hours to leave the zone. Actually, we’re down to less than forty-eight hours now. But Maisie here has kindly offered to help me get to the designated area where I can exit.”

“Anything I can do to help,” she said, with a hint of sarcasm that would probably go undetected by anyone who didn’t know her.

“The CDC has told me that I’ll need to be quarantined in one of their facilities for a month after I leave, to make sure I didn’t pick up the virus in here. Trust me, they will not let me out if there’s even the slightest chance that I might infect anyone.”

“They’re very good about that,” Maisie said.

“I’ve seen video of you guys out there supporting me, and I just wanted to take a minute to let you know how much I appreciate it, and to assure you that I am in very good hands. I’m excited to tell you about all the wonderful people I met in here. But in the meantime, keep an eye on your clocks, because I will be getting out in less than forty-eight hours. I can’t wait to see all of you when I step out from behind the wall.”

He nodded at Hadley. “Okay, that’s it.” He smiled at Maisie. “Thanks for bringing up the fainting.”

“Anytime.”

“No, seriously, it makes me more relatable. People will love it.”

She squinted like she wasn’t sure if he was being sarcastic. He smiled, which only seemed to confuse her more. She gave him a deeply suspicious look. “Do you need to do something before we send it?”

“Give me five minutes to edit the beginning and end, and we’re good.”

—

Lennon took the satellite phone from Hadley. “I have to call.”

“Why?”

They were in the room across from Hadley’s studio, where Elise worked. They’d just sent the video to a news station, and Lennon was trying to convince them to let him call out.