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I take his arm and lean against him. “You probably read my mind so you know what they want from our meeting.”

“Details on how I did it.”

I close my eyes. I’ll never be okay with this topic. “Can’t they just test you to find out?”

“They did. What they don’t know is how I got it, and that’s our next move.

” He has my attention. “Tell them exactly what I say. Nothing more, nothing less. If they question you, just claim that’s all you saw.

” He searches my eyes to make sure I understand.

“Tell them you saw me take a handful of green pills.”

“Green pills?”

“A handful.”

“How many is a handful?”

“Doesn’t matter. You couldn’t tell. Just that. A handful of green pills.”

I do nothing to hide my confusion, but as usual, he doesn’t budge. I sigh when it becomes clear that’s all I’ll get. “Okay. A handful of green pills. Got it.”

“I can’t tell you more right now. We can’t risk you revealing anything by accident.” Our gazes lock again, and the sparks return in full fury. “I trust you. Please trust me, too.”

“You know I do.”

He smiles. “No, I know you don’t. You want to, but you don’t fully.” My face falls, and he squeezes my arm. “It’s good you don’t trust easily in this place.”

“They moved Connor into your room,” I blurt out, and his smile fades.

“That didn’t take long.”

I grip his hand and trace the elaborate designs on his arm. “He’s not going to distract me like they hope.” I feel his reaction before I see it.

“He seemed to be distracting you pretty well a couple weeks ago.”

“You erased my memories. Isn’t that what you wanted?”

He stares at the floor. “Yes. It didn’t make it any easier. What are you seeing now?” he asks after another pause.

I frown and lean against him again. “I’m watching yesterday. You’re scared.”

He doesn’t respond.

“How can I guarantee they let me see you again?”

“I’m trying to figure that out. I’m hoping the green pills will pique their interest enough for more.”

“And if it doesn’t?”

“I’ll find a way.”

I glance at him and fear his hard expression. “I don’t like when you find ways to do things. It usually ends up with you getting hurt.”

“That’s the way things get done in here.”

I can’t think about that. “Is English your second language?” Another random question to erase harder ones.

He laughs. “Where did that come from?”

“I want to know you better. You know everything about me; it’s only fair I know something in return.”

He still seems amused as he settles against the wall. “Okay. Then yes, English is my second language.”

“But your fluency is phenomenal.”

He grins and looks over at me. “That bothers you? You’d prefer more broken phrases and emphatic gesturing?”

I swat his arm, and his smile grows. “Emphatic gesturing? Really?”

He laughs again before releasing a long sigh. “Think about what I do all day. What I’ve done for the last eleven years. I work out, get locked in the basement, and read. That’s it. I also speak Spanish and French, although not as well as English.”

“Seriously?”

“Why are you so shocked?”

“I guess I’m not. Well, maybe a little.”

“Strung-out junkies with lots of tattoos aren’t known for their language skills?”

“I know you’re not a strung-out junkie. What about your abilities? Do they help you learn about subjects like they do people?”

“Probably. I remember almost everything I read. I compartmentalize it the same way I do when I gather information about people.”

“So you’re basically the smartest person on this planet, and they have you locked up in a basement to get into some senator’s bank account?”

“I can’t tell if you’re joking or not.”

“I am. And I’m not. We need to get you out of here so you can save the world or something.”

He cringes. “That’s the last thing I want.

I’ve spent half my life being exploited.

If I ever get out of here, I’m going to find a small cabin in the middle of nowhere and eat fish and berries for the rest of my life.

” He smiles at my silence. “Don’t worry, you’re coming with me. I’ll need someone to bake the pies.”

“Sorry, but if your future rests on my baking skills, you’re in more trouble than you thought.”

He grins, and the rare levity triggers a surge of emotion in me. I want that life for him. He deserves peace, but we both know it’s a fantasy. “How long do you think we have? They’ll be back soon, won’t they?”

The brief light dims with his nod. “Probably. This was a calculated meeting. They weren’t trying to be nice.”

“I don’t want to leave you here. When you were free, there was always the possibility that you’d show up. Now there’s nothing.”

“At least you don’t have to worry about bloody furniture anymore. And you can keep my apron.”

I roll my eyes. “I’m being serious. What are we going to do?”

“I’m not sure yet, but I’m getting out of here. I can’t go on like this much longer.”

“What are they waiting for? They can’t think locking you up is going to help them achieve anything.”

“I don’t know.”

We freeze at the approaching footsteps. I sense his desperation when our eyes meet and kiss him before putting distance between us. The door clicks open to reveal Clausen on the other side.

The Director studies us in silence before making a comment in German.

Daniel’s eyes narrow, and he spits something back.

I watch helplessly as they argue. Daniel is upset, and at one point he pushes himself to his feet.

The heated debate rages on until finally Daniel pounds the wall and sinks back to the floor in frustration.

“What’s going on?” I ask.

They exchange glances with each other, and Clausen takes my arm. “Nothing you need to worry about. Daniel and I just had a few things to discuss.”

I twist around to get an answer from Daniel, but he meets my question with a discreet headshake. The interview is over.

“How long are you going to keep him like that?” I ask, once we’re seated in Clausen’s office.

“I know it seems harsh, but it’s the only way to guarantee his safety.”

“Maybe, but can’t he have books or something? It seems dangerous to his mental state to be confined like that. How is complete isolation for a person suffering from depression going to help?”

“Fair enough. I’ll see what I can do. Did you learn anything in your time together?”

I nod and consider my response. “I think I saw something that might help, but I’m not sure.”

“It’s best if you just tell me, and I’ll make the evaluation.”

“Okay, well, I tried to get as close as I could to the actual attempt, but he figured out what I was doing. I didn’t get as much as I hoped.”

“What is it that you saw?”

“He swallowed a handful of green pills.”

I see his shock before he hides it with a deep nod. “A handful? You’re certain?”

“Very.”

“How many? Three? Seven?”

I shrug. “It was a brief flash. I saw him swallow a handful.”

“And you’re certain this was the most recent time?”

I flinch at the reminder. “Yes, I’m certain.”

“This is interesting. I’m sorry to do this to you, but we need to know exactly how many and where he got them. Can you go back and find out?”

Clausen is moving his rook, and the chessboard snaps into place in my head. I need to resist the temptation to take the rook and set up for the queen instead. “I want to help. But like I said, he was onto me. He knew why you sent me.”

The Director thinks for a moment. “Of course he would. How is your relationship with him?”

“What do you mean?”

“Do you think there’s a possibility you’ll be able to get close to him again? At least enough to gather the information we need to help him?”

“I don’t know. I guess it’s possible, but it might take time. Unfortunately, I doubt he’s worrying about re-establishing broken friendships when he’s locked up in a cell.”

Clausen shifts in his chair. Check.

“You make an interesting point. Maybe there’s a better way to approach this situation.” He pauses. “Thank you for your input. I’d like to discuss the circumstances with our senior staff, and we’ll get back to you about the next step.”

It kills me to delay another meeting with Daniel, especially when Clausen practically begged me to run back to him, but I’ve planted a seed that will reap much greater rewards.

“Does that mean I’m free to go for now?”

He nods with a tight smile. “Of course. Get some sleep. I’m sure we’ll have a better idea of how to help him shortly.”