My lips are dry and cracked. My mouth hurts, and my tongue is rough and swollen. Desperate for water, I stretch my hand out to find the cup always waiting for me on the bedside table. I don't find it. Instead, my skin brushes against soft material, lots of soft material.

Either the bed is bigger or I've gotten smaller.

Through my closed eyelids I can tell the light is different, it's not fake and bright, this is natural and real. Squinting, I peer around the room which is bathed in a soft glow from the morning sunlight streaming through a wall of glass on one side of the room.

Drawn to the prospect of seeing the outside world, I swing my legs over the edge of the bed and place them on the floor. The stiff bandage around my ankle has gone and it doesn't hurt when I stand.

That's weird, my ankle has healed already.

Ignoring the black spots flickering across my vision, I stagger forwards. My legs buckle, but I manage to reach the window before slumping against the cool smooth glass and sinking to the floor.

I'm higher than I've ever been before, I'm almost in the sky, and the entire world is laid out in front of me. I press my hands against the only barrier separating me from my freedom and memorise the scene in front of me.

On the left is the road connecting the school to the two settlements. On either side of the road lays the woods I visited, first with Suki and then with Zach. The mass of trees blocks my view of most of the Naturalist cabins, but I can see the fields; shades of greens, browns and beiges fill square patches. I spot the lake tucked against the wall then follow the line of the wall encircling our two settlements until I see the opening where Zach set the alarm off.

It's huge.

I'd never fully understood the expanse of land the fields covered, let alone the size of the woods and lake. Beyond the wall in the distance are the sharp jagged structures me and Zach visited, their dark shapes cut across the pale sky.

Why did Ben chose this view? Is this his new way of tormenting me?

The view is beautiful and breathtaking which only deepens the stab of sadness. Every part of the landscape laid out in front of me is a reminder of what I've lost and may never get back.

Unable to look away, the longing pushes against my chest causing me to gasp for air. Resting my forehead on the glass, I sob loudly as I soak in the image, imprinting it into my memory because I don't know how long I've got till they take it away again.

'Kit, what's wrong?' Ben's voice jolts me awake.

I open my puffy eyes to see him rushing towards me. Kneeling down in front of me, his hands reach out and I recoil backwards. He halts, lowering his arms, he rocks back on his heels, and I notice his jaw is clenched.

'Why did you choose this room?' I croak, wiping my stinging eyes and nose.

'It's the best view. If you really don't like it I can find another.' Ben shrugs, and I almost want to laugh. There was me thinking he somehow knew how it represented every significant occurrence in my life, but he simply appreciates the beautiful scenery.

'I like it.' I stare out at the fields and wonder if the small dots moving slowing around can see me.

Could I send my family a signal, to let them know I'm alive and I've been captured? But what could they do?

I was exiled. I'm not one of them anymore. Even if they knew of my whereabouts, would they do anything? My parents would. Mattan would. However, I don't want them to be exiled too.

'It's tinted glass. No one can see you but you can see everything,' Ben says.

Is he a mind reader? Or has he got some Techie device which tells him what I'm thinking?

'Why have you brought me here?' I gesture at the room.

'This room will be more comfortable, and a change in scenery may help with your recuperation.'

'I'd be more comfortable if you stopped injecting me with those substances, or an even better solution would be to let me go,' I mutter, rubbing my temples. My head hurts.

Actually, it feels like my entire skull is compressing inwards and crushing my brain.

'You need water and food.' He stands, offering his hand.

I ignore it.

Slowly dragging myself to standing, I have to lean against the glass for support as my legs wobble underneath me.

'I've been tested and confirmed disease-free. You don't need to be scared of contamination. It's safe to touch me,' Ben says.

Good for you! 'I'm not scared of contamination, I just don't want to touch you,' I say flatly.

'If there was another way we could do this, we would.' He sighs, looking past me and out the window. 'Your participation in our research will help save future generations from the risk of another pandemic reoccurring.'

'How long are you planning on forcing me to be a part of your research?'

'I can't specify an exact time frame.'

'You previously said it depended on the outcome of the next step.'

'The outcome was successful, and now we must investigate potential possibilities to utilise and expand on this success.'

'Which means what- in terms of how long I'll be here?'

'Like I said, I couldn't specify...'

'I don't need an exact time frame,' I snap. 'Give me an estimate. Is it going to be days? Months? Years?'

'We want this trial to come to an end as quickly as you do.' Ben's face is passive and unchanging.

You liar! 'Sure you do, because you're being held against your will, being experimented on and pumped full of substances which makes you feel like you're dying,' I say sarcastically.

'The research we are doing is going to significantly reduce the number of deaths from disease, possibly eradicate death by disease completely.'

'That excuse might help you sleep at night but it doesn't give me any comfort.' I slide back down the glass wall onto the floor. I need to rest. I'm wasting energy standing.

Ben walks forward to help me up, but I wave him away. I like it here next to the window; the sunlight, the open space on the other side. It's easy to imagine a cooling breeze against my skin, to hear the rustle of leaves and smell the damp rotten matter of fallen trees.

I just wish it wasn't all in my head.

Ben sighs and steps away from me. 'If you can think of anything I can do which will help make all of this easier for you, let me know.'

'You can let me go,' I whisper.

'I'm not sure what Naturalists tend to do in their free time, but I could get you access to books or playing cards?' Ben continues, ignoring my plea.

I exhale slowly. 'I'd like to listen to music.'

A smile spreads across Ben's face. 'Great, I'll organise it immediately. Anything else?'

'I want to go outside. Get some fresh air and exercise, to help boost my immune system. It's an effective method at aiding recovery.' I try to smile innocently. I'm not fooling anyone.

'Nice try. You're not allowed to leave this room, but I'll sort out the next best thing.' Ben chuckles.

I hate his chuckle even more than his smile.

Ben walks over to the door and picks up a bag from the floor. 'These are your meals for today. I'll put them in the fridge.'

He places small containers into a white shiny looking box, which I assume is the fridge. He points to a square machine, with a small window, sitting on top of a counter. 'Heat them in the microwave for two minutes before you eat them.'

I turn my back on him and rest my forehead on the glass, focussing pass the glass and onto the fields. I search the black dots for distinguishable features. There are none. We're all too similar; baggy plain clothes with no unique characteristics to make us visible from a distance.

Daa won't be out there anyway. My parents are under house quarantine for twelve weeks. How are they coping? How long do they have left? How long have I been trapped here?

Ben leaves the room and my gaze wanders past the wall searching for signs of life. There must be others, more settlements. If Ben was telling the truth and I'm resistant to some diseases, my chances of survival are better than I thought.

I need to figure a way out now.