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that’s why they’re trying to figure out what’s going on with me. I had tests all afternoon.”
    She nods, looking concerned.
    “Do you know Kane?” I’m almost afraid to ask, but the look on her face sets me at ease once again.
    “ Yeah. He’s one of the instructors for new recruits. You have to be careful around him.”
    I nod. I know that firsthand.
    “If you act too tough, he’ll put you in your place. But if you act too weak, that’ll just piss him off, and he’ll use you to prove a point.”
    So maybe neither strategy would have worked with him today. And it’s not like I could have escaped his notice, being one-on-one with him this afternoon. “Yeah, I figured that out.”
    She turn s serious for a moment. “Don’t be mad at Kane though; where do you think he gets his orders?”
    I shrug .
    “Will and O’Donovan.”
    “So you’re going to become a guard?” I ask, changing the subject.
    “Yeah. They take those who are strong and train us to become compound patrol guards. Essentially making us do the dirty jobs for the military. After training, we live here, but we work in different posts all around the city, mostly fence patrol.”
    I nod. I think of the uniformed guards marching along the fence. It always made me feel safe, knowing that they were keeping the Radicals out. Now I’m starting to wonder if their sole purpose was keeping us in. “Is it as bad as it seems? I mean, what’s it like in here?”
    She looks around, confirming we’re alone before she answers. “It’s not as bad as you might think. We train here for one year. It’s hard during the day, but our nights are free. Once they say we’re finished– we’re assigned a position in the compound.”
    I finish the sandwich while she watches. She brings me a cup of water. I sense that she’s stalling before calling Will, and I’m grateful once again.
    “ How are you holding up in Ward A?”
    I take a sip of water, which soothes my throat, and then down the rest in one gulp. Sam takes it to the sink to refill. “Not great.” I don’t meet her eyes. I’m suddenly filled with emotion at having such a normal conversation with a girl my age, who seems to understand what I’m going through.
    “You should try to get transferred over here and become one of us,” she says, though she won’t meet my eyes. I can tell she believes it would be a long shot – my slight physical build, my height, none of it makes me a suitable guard.
    “Yeah,” I agree weakly.
    Once it’s clear I’m through, we stare at each other a few minutes longer, and she shifts uneasily. I can tell she won’t risk keeping me here, not wanting to get in trouble with Will. And I don’t blame her.
    We go back to the bunker, and Sam calls Will over the intercom while I sink down into the sofa to wait. She goes back to join the game of cards she left. A few minutes later, Will enters the door to the bunker again. Being off my feet for the first time in hours has made me realize how tired I am. I blink slowly, taking in the sight of him. He’s looking straight at me, watching me like I’m a real person and not a criminal. He walks closer.
    “I have to take you back now.”
    I nod and stand up – the height difference between us is exaggerated with him this close. My head doesn’t even clear his chin. He steps back, as if realizing for the first time how close we’re standing. He nods once toward Sam, thanking her silently. He turns for the door, confident that I’ll follow him back to the hospital wing. Which, of course I do.
     

Chapter 5
     
     
    When I wake in the morning, my jaw is sore. I remember the violent hit from Kane and shudder. I‘d never been struck before, and I was more shocked than anything at the time. But now my body is feeling its effects. When I got back to the hospital last night, the nurse on duty gave me a quick dose of medicine, and I was asleep before my head hit the pillow.
    The sun is high in the sky, so I know it’s late