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would not beat Rapava the way I was going. Standing by my ethics would only leave me locked in a closet till I was no longer useful. He was smart, so I couldn’t do it half-assed. This was as dangerous as a cop going undercover to spy on the mafia. My life depended on him believing I changed. The old Zoey had to come back.
    I couldn’t slip up. The line I would have to walk was thin, but if I took it slow, let them believe I had reformed, eventually they might begin to trust me and let me out of this room.
    It was all or nothing.
    Game on.
     

     
    I had to be subtle and proceed much slower than I would have liked. But if Rapava came in one day, and I was suddenly “cured” he would never buy it. The depths I had to dig inside myself to keep patient and determined bit at me like a mosquito—constant and relentless.
    It took eleven excruciating days.
    I focused on the small things: acknowledging the people who came in the room, taking more bites of food and thanking them for it, answering questions when they asked. I could see it in their faces that my deception was working. Their interactions with me were energized, and they spoke to me like a timid child they were trying to encourage, instead of a lab rat.
    Adapting to the pace of a sloth was painful. The straightjacket seemed to grow tighter around my chest with every moment. A couple of times I almost broke, but I dug deeper, knowing the strength was somewhere in there.
    By the fifth day things started to change. With every visit after, my treatment improved slightly. They took off my jacket when Rapava deemed me “no longer a threat to myself or others.” I was given more substantial meals and even a blanket and pillow.
    As my advancement progressed, Rapava’s visits increased. Those were the hardest to get through. But Kate’s words kept coming back to me.
    Play the game .
    And I did. Each day feeling like years.

CHAPTER FOUR
     

     
    “I am proud of your progress, Zoey.” Rapava had come in after lunch on the twelfth day. Right away I felt something was different in his demeanor with me. “I think you have made such incredible strides this week, I want to reward your headway.”
    I straightened against the wall, standing almost like at command. “Sir?”
    “We are going to get you cleaned up, fresh clothes, even a new room. How would you like that, Zoey?”
    His condescending tone drove my nails into my palms.
    “I would like it very much, sir.”
    “Good.” He nodded. “After you get cleaned up, I’d like to reveal all the positive things we are doing here. I’ll have Nurse Delaney take you to the showers and get you situated in your room. Then I will show you around.” He stalked to the door. “I hope this trust we are building between us will continue, and you will return to your old self again.”
    He wanted me back to the time before I knew the truth and thought he was a gift to the medical world. When I believed he truly wanted to help people like my sister. He’d like me even more if he could brainwash me—have another minion to control.
    “Yes, sir.” I nodded. Throwing in a lot of “sirs” seemed to make him happy.
    He tilted his head in a goodbye and left.
    Even after he left I did not move or let any true feeling show on my face. Kate’s statement, They are always watching and listening, was a constant warning in my head
    A woman about my height entered the room soon after. She was one of the main researchers who had come in to give me shots and food, but she never did the tests. She had dark blonde hair tied back in a ponytail and brown eyes. She wore no makeup except a little mascara and was dressed in baggy, green scrubs, hiding her body, but she appeared to be thin. Her pink-and-black sneakers were the only thing she wore that showed her personality.
    “Hi, Zoey. I’m Delaney.” She had an open, compassionate aura about her. Someone who immediately calmed me, like a nurse in a pediatrician’s office.
    I was never a