They were being dragged back to reality.
Gemma was slow to open her sleep chamber when they had returned to Zion. Her headache was gone, and her body was no longer weak from the exhaustion of hallucinogens and torture. But her heart remained twisted, her soul as dark as soot.
She would never forget what it felt like to be electrocuted, or what it sounded like when a scream was ripped from a person’s being.
Unlike their previous trial, where joyous laughter emanated from Imara and Colton, the simulation room was deathly silent. Gemma slipped her arms back into the sleeves of her jumpsuit and zipped it up before climbing out of her sleep chamber.
Hawk was already stomping toward the door, his brown eyes pierced in anger.
“The code, please, Mister Gallowood,” their android instructor said, holding out an electropad. “To open the door and pass the test, each of you must correctly enter the code.”
“Why, so you can torture us again?” Hawk deadpanned, his hands balled in fists at his sides.
“To check your memory capabilities post traumatic experience.”
Hawk chuckled, an edge to his laughter, but snatched the electropad out of the android’s hand. He punched the six digits into the screen sohard that Gemma feared he’d break his finger. Then a loud ding sounded, and he shoved the electropad back at the AI as the doors to the hall opened.
“There, you fucking psychopath.” Hawk stormed from the room without a glance back.
Imara was next, flipping off the android as she too provided the code. Colton entered it casually, following Imara on her heels.
Gemma turned to find Christian leaning against the wall, a fist pressed against his sternum. He stared straight ahead, his gaze locked on nothing, and the pain Gemma found in his eyes weakened her knees.
“You okay?” she asked.
Christian jumped. “Yeah. Fine.” He pushed off the wall as if moments ago he hadn’t needed it to stay upright. “Let’s get out of here.”
Gemma quickly entered the codeA-1-B-7-F-6into the datapad before handing it to Christian, who narrowed his gaze but provided his answer.
The bright-blue orbs of the android’s eyes transformed into half-circles, like a grin on an overly happy face. “Congratulations! Your team has successfully completed your second trial. Enjoy the rest of your day at your leisure.”
“Gee, thanks,” Gemma mumbled, slipping her hand into Christian’s. Together, they ambled in the direction of the dormitory.
Christian was quiet, his eyes vacant as he stared at the floor in front of them. His mind seemed stuck in the simulation. Gemma knew that, when he’d hallucinated, the images had to have been nightmarish. Her own had been hard enough to remember, and she hadn’t lived through the same, gruesome horrors he had.
She ached to say something that would ease the pain he was feeling, but would he want her to?
Gemma pressed her lips together. “We could go to the alcove, if you want. Get away from everyone to decompress.”
He squeezed her hand. “I will. But I’m walking you back first. I need to be alone for a bit, if that’s okay.”
Her heart sank. He’d comforted her twice now in twenty-four hours, and she wanted to return the favor. But she understood. She’d grown used to being alone in the past three years, and she too had learned to find solitude in the quiet, especially after hard, stressful days.
“Of course it’s okay,” she replied.
Christian lifted her hand and kissed her knuckles.
They walked in silence until they reached the entrance to the dormitory where he left Gemma before going off on his own, taking a sliver of her heart with him.
Several hours had passed since Gemma lay down for a nap, and it was the most restful sleep she’d gotten since coming to Zion. She’d been so fatigued that sleep had come instantly, and though she was awoken by the shouts of men fighting in their locker room, she wasn’t annoyed. She actually felt somewhat revitalized.
Gemma clambered down from her bunk, her eyes darting instinctively to Christian’s bed, only to find it still empty. Her stomach twisted.Should I go looking for him?
Hopefully she’d given him enough alone time. She needed to make sure he was okay.
Imara was half-naked when Gemma entered the ladies’ locker room. Gemma jumped, mentally scrubbing the image of Imara’s very round breasts from her mind.
Imara chuckled. “Seriously, Gemma? Boobs are boobs. You have them too.”
