Page 6 of The Restoration Program

The answering voice was closer here. “You’re in a recovery room in Fairbourne Restoration Facility B.”

Nicole squinted. “Where the hell is that? Is that a hospital?”

Either she hadn’t been heard, or the woman chose not to answer. Finding no speaker hidden in the mattress, she stepped back and peered around at all corners of the room. There weren’t any visible cameras either, but she had the uncanny feeling of being watched.

“My boyfriend,” she tried again. “Ryan Northe. I need to see him. He needs to know I’m okay!”

“Mr. Northe is aware of your condition. He’s not far. You will be reunited as soon as you have been cleared by a doctor, pending your adjustment.”

Her heart leaped. Ryan was here! But her elation was sullied by the other news clanging around in her head.

“My condition? Adjustment?”

“You have been selected for the Restoration Program. Your procedure was a resounding success, Miss Zhou. What was lost has been restored.”

The voice sounded pleasant, even proud to share this news. A pit of unease in her stomach began to curdle into a powerful fear.

She staggered back toward a wall, toward anything to hold onto. “What… what does that mean?”

“Please stay calm. Your condition may be agitated by stress.”

“I don’t care about anycondition,” Nicole said, forcing strength into her thready voice. “I need to see Ryan now! Let me out!”

“I’m sorry. I can’t clear you for release until your adjustment has been confirmed.”

Nicole couldn’t bear to listen anymore. She may not be alone, but she was just as trapped as before. These people were keeping her in the dark, keeping her from Ryan. With a yell, she shoved the bed and sent it skidding across the slick floor.

“NOW!” she barked, glaring at every corner of the room, wherever they were watching from.

No answer.

“Hello?” Still nothing.

Panting, she did another quick turnaround. Desperate to keep the voice’s attention, she glanced between the bed and the mirror. Stalking over, she gave the bed another experimental shove. There seemed to be enough weight to build up momentum. It probably wouldn’t be enough to break the door, but…

Fixing her glare on the mirror, she pulled the bed to the opposite side of the room and angled the corner of the headboard for the glass. Then she pushed the bed forward and sprinted with it.

The first impact made the bed bounce back, knocking her down to a hard seat.

“Miss Zhou!”

She ignored the voice and stood. She took hold of the bed, pulled back, and charged again. This collision was just as fruitless, but she reset herself to try once more.

“You’re so worried about mycondition—whatever the hell it is,” she said. “Someone better get in here and stop me before I make it worse! Wouldn’t want me in here with a pile of broken glass, would you?” She looked all around daringly.

A rustling noise came over the speaker, as though the microphone was sloppily changing hands. “Just let her out,” a man’s voice hissed. She caught others frantically murmuring in the background.

How many are out there?

The sound of something heavy moving on the other side of the wall caught her attention. Whatever the case, it seemed someone was finally coming. Nicole abandoned the bed and stood before the door, bravely waiting for whatever was on the other side.

She simply wasn’t ready for the entire ceiling to lift away and vanish.

Yelping, she skittered away until her back was against the door. Bewildered curses lodged her throat, manifesting into incoherent whimpers. She stared straight up at the missing ceiling, expecting to find blue sky overhead. But no. Way, way up, there were even more fluorescent lights glaring down at her. The panels were freakishly massive, as though her hospital room was contained within a warehouse.

The sounds outside were more prominent now. Shifting weight and creaking wood. What the hell were they moving out there? Maybe she was on some kind of movie set. She craned her neck to look at the top of the wall above the door, but it was too high for her to see anything other than the faraway ceiling.

“Miss Zhou,” the female voice said. Nicole flinched. The voice was louder than before, but it didn’t have the distorted quality of a speaker. It didn’t sound like the woman was shouting, but the sound filled an unsettling amount of space. “Take a moment to calm yourself. Deep breaths. You have nothing to fear. We assure you, you’re perfectly safe.”