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I set the tray on the floor, take the stun baton in one hand and unlock the door with the other. I push it open and wait until I see both of Oliver’s hands before picking up his breakfast.

He’s sitting in the reading chair with both hands resting on the arms where I can see them. He’s far enough from the door that I have plenty of time if he decides to get stupid. He doesn’t move when I enter.

Nothing is broken. Nothing is even out of place. The bed is unmade, but the curtains are hanging properly, and the dresser and wardrobe are closed. Every book I can see is still on the shelf. If Oliver spent the morning angry about his situation, he didn’t take it out on anything that belongs to me.

He’s still wearing the green sleep pants I put on him last night. I look at the piercing. I already know what it feels like beneath my fingers.

Oliver’s eyes drop briefly to his chest before returning to mine, but he doesn’t cover himself.

I like that.

I step inside and pull the door shut behind me.

Oliver watches it close, then looks at me again. He knows it isn’t locked. He also knows he’d have to get through me to open it.

“Good morning, Oliver.”

“Good morning, Heather.”

Last night, he used what little energy he had left to tell me his name was Nathaniel. He said it more than once, as though repetition might make it true. Apparently he’s willing to pretend he’s accepted reality. It changes nothing.

I carry the tray to the table beside his bed. The glass of water I left last night is empty. Good. He isn’t stupid enough to make himself thirsty just to spite me. I move it aside to make room for his breakfast.

I set down his breakfast and turn back to find him looking at the shocker.

“Do you think that’s necessary?”

His gaze lifts to mine, and there’s something familiar in the way he waits. I’ve watched him do this to rooms full of people for almost a year. He asks a question and lets the silence sit until somebody else gets uncomfortable enough to fill it.

Cute.

I liked watching him do it at the university. It’s one of the reasons he’s here. I think I’m going to like it even more now that he can’t leave. I let the silence sit between us until Oliver finally looks away.

His attention goes to the breakfast tray. “What is it you expect me to do?”

I look at him for a moment. “What I tell you.”

His expression doesn’t change. “That’s fairly broad.”

I laugh. “It’s precise.”

He glances at the shocker again. “I’d rather not find that out by getting shocked for doing something I didn’t know I wasn’t allowed to do.”

“You’ll always know why I’m hurting you.” I set the baton within reach. “Whether you agree with the reason won’t matter.”

He takes that in without responding.

“You don’t try to leave,” I continue. “You don’t damage my things. You don’t hurt yourself, me, or another doll. When I tell you to do something, you do it.”

Oliver looks toward the door again. “There’s another man here?”

“Eat your breakfast.”

He looks at the tray.

“Oliver.”

His eyes come back to mine. “You drugged me last night.”