BUNKER 17 — PROJECT BUNKER

11:57:46 HOURS REMAINING

I KNOW THIS PLACE.

It's the backdrop of every nightmare. The destination of Alexander's raid. The place I met the boy with the kind grey eyes. I scramble for one of the garden boxes, clearing a space in the soil to draw in seven letters. The seven letters that I saw carved into a tree trunk a moment ago. C-O-V-A-R-T-I.

Before I can begin unscrambling my thoughts, a hand brushes across my back. I turn to meet Ezra face-to-face, already anticipating what he's going to say. That I broke my promise of consulting before jumping headfirst into danger again. "I know, I'm sorry. I had to before the sim ended," I explain, motioning toward the cryptic message in the garden soil. "Alexander left a clue for me to find."

His jaw tenses at first, shoulders visibly relaxing as I place my hands in his. I can tell there's something on his mind, silently asking him to share with me. To let me in. He rips his gaze away for a moment, staring past me as he finds his words.

"I don't mean to be so paranoid," he starts. "It's just all my life, I've watched the people I care about the most be taken away from me. Before Grant and Gracie, it was my parents. I lost them both so suddenly, and I guess I'm just afraid of history repeating itself."

I shake my head, hating that he thinks I needed to hear an explanation. "Ezra, I'm so sorry about your parents." Part of me feels responsible, but I push that thought out of my head. More lies that Alexander planted to get me to fail. To get me to die at his hand—to die for his twisted cause. "And you don't need to explain yourself to me. You're not paranoid. Your concern for me shows me you care. And I can't remember the last time I mattered so much to someone."

He's surprised by this, gently lifting my chin so our eyes meet. "You deserve it, Ivy Carlisle. And I don't want you to think for a second that you don't." In this moment, I decide to believe him. To trust the words he says. To allow myself the chance for something beautiful.

⏳

I MAKE A SPEECH FOR THE SECOND TIME.

As the key to Alexander's experiment, I figure it's my responsibility to keep everyone safe. My responsibility to use what I know against him if it means saving a hundred innocent lives. Giving them all a second chance on the Surface.

"I know you're all scared, and I am too. After that first test, I know what I'm supposed to look for. I assure you I'll do everything I can to solve the clues Alexander left for me. But, I need help to keep everyone safe, and that starts with the Changed. That first test was just the beginning of what's planned. If we can continue to pull together in each test, we can help everyone through them and find the clues I need to end this."

Grant is the first of the Changed to stand, declaring his dedication to protecting those of us who can't adapt to the harsh test environments. One after another, the handful of Changed that shared their warmth in the first test join him. Others stand moments after, dedicating themselves to remaining positions of need.

First aid. Monitoring. Childcare. Clues.

The display of unity brings tears to my eyes. "We don't know what kinds of traps are set here, so be on guard. No one walks alone. Watch out for each other." Ezra's call for safety ties everything together, and I feel a glimmer of hope.

Hope that we might actually be able to make it out of here. To bring this experiment crashing down.

⏳

DESPITE OUR PLANS, THE TRAP DOORS DON'T STOP.

Even with the change of scenery, Alexander True remains predictable. The first door that turns into a trap opens to a small bedroom just doors away from Ezra's. Luckily enough, as we run toward the commotion and into view of the glass, we realize no one's in harm's way.

But our relief is short-lived. Another siren sounds seconds later...and Gracie's nowhere to be found. Grant sprints ahead of us all, Ezra not too far behind him. With each footstep, my head pounds, my heart preparing for the worst. Preparing to support Ezra in any way that I need to.

The scene's already unfolding before my eyes, the world around us slowing to a halt. Ezra bends down as the glass door begins its descent, Grant pushing his sister into Ezra's grasp. She tumbles into him at the exact moment the glass settles, locking Grant on the other side.

And simultaneously breaking Ezra and Gracie's hearts.