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We’d already angered him enough, there was no need to poke the bear more. I hurried out from under the covers and slipped on my clothes, yanking the sweatpants up over my ass and shoving my feet into the sneakers as quickly as I could. A few moments later, the door to my room swung open, and a sigh of relief shuddered out of my chest.
In the hallway, the others emerged along with me. They had varying degrees of fear and worry on their faces. Payton looked the worst out of all of us, still dazed and terrified. Elise, Bri, and Liam had pensive tight expressions on their faces. They looked like they were preparing for something unpleasant.
Drake caught my eye, and relief spread across his face. It was as if he’d been worried something had happened to me. Upon reflection, his worry was probably warranted. I’d basically been the ringleader for the escape attempt the day before. If anyone had to be punished first, it was most likely going to be me. It was something I hadn’t considered until that very second.
I waited for Drake before moving on toward the dining room. "How did you sleep?" I asked like we were walking to a bus stop, and not the end of our lives.
He frowned, looking a little confused. "Better than I should have."
"Same."
"Shut up," Bri hissed. "You’ll get us in trouble."
I rolled my eyes. "Bri, I don’t think we can get into worse trouble than we already are."
She spun and jabbed a finger at me. "This is your fault. We shouldn’t have listened to you. We’re all going to die now."
"I didn’t hear you yelling at us to stop when we broke down the wall yesterday," Payton said. "We’re all culpable. This isn’t on Dahlia, it’s on all of us."
Before I could thank Payton for sticking up for me, Sam interrupted us.
Bong. "Breakfast is getting cold. You should hurry."
"Oh fuck," Liam muttered and sped up.
Breakfast was not the typical fare. The food here had always been basic, yet delicious and filling. It would never win any Michelen stars, but compared to what I’d had out in the real world it was almost decadent. Today, all we had was a giant bowl of plain oatmeal and a bunch of bananas. Nothing else. The last time we’d had oatmeal for breakfast there’d been a half dozen different toppings like nuts and dried fruit, plus brown sugar and cinnamon. This was literally a big metal pot full of gray sludge, and some brown spotted bananas beside it.
Bong. "Eat."
Elise and Bri almost ran to the table to sit and did exactly as Sam instructed. The rest of us took our seats hesitantly. The wall we’d broken down was still there, cracked apart, splintered wood, and torn wallpaper. The huge statue Drake had thrown against it still lay on the floor, the nose on the face snapped off, the face staring dumbly at the ceiling.
The oatmeal was not only plain and unseasoned, but had already cooled to room temperature. The bananas were brown, but at least they weren’t sickly sweet and overripe. I followed Liam’s lead and shoved mine into the oatmeal and mashed it up to give it some flavor.
Bong. "Are we enjoying our meal?"
My spoon froze halfway to my lips. The others stopped moving as well.
"You all showed fortitude yesterday. Quite unexpected. Do you feel like you accomplished something?"
Did he want us to answer these questions or were they rhetorical? Beside me, Drake lowered his spoon and clenched his hand into a shaking fist.
"I wonder," Sam went on, "what punishment disobedient children should receive? Do I not give you all you need? Are you not fed and clothed and housed? You are given the opportunities to avenge yourselves against past oppressors, and punish others who deserve it. I think the punishment must be, well, interesting."
We sat in stunned silence, waiting for him to go on, but there was no more. The silence that hung over us was palpable and thick. Sam had many, many punishments. Each one worse than the last. What was he going to come up with for us?
When my bracelet buzzed, I dropped my spoon and almost screamed. Rather, I made a choked, closed-mouthed yelp. There was no pain as I initially thought was coming. Instead, I had a message:
Proceed to the viewing room after breakfast.
Liam’s bracelet went off next. He actually did utter a small strained scream. He glanced down and then looked up at the rest of us. "I have to go to the viewing room."
With numb lips I managed to speak. "Me too."
Slowly the others all received instructions. Bri and Elise were to go work out. Payton and Drake were to go to the kitchen to start lunch. It sounded like a normal day. What the fuck was going on? Was this literally him screwing with our heads?
Unable to stomach any more of the glue-like food, I stood, my chair legs scraping on the floor. Before I could rush for the door, Drake’s hand snapped out, grabbing my own. I looked at him, an unspoken question in my eyes.
"Be careful," he murmured. Immediately, he jerked his hand away, hissing in pain. He clutched his device laden wrist to his chest.
