I remain floating in the darkness without a single memory manifesting. The emptiness makes me question if I’m dead. Perhaps the Kiss of Death was my kryptonite, the one thing that could kill me permanently. Maybe the Watchers knew that.

The idea that I could very well be dead unleashes an array of emotions inside of me. On the one hand, for selfish reasons, I don’t want my life to be over. One being that I’m not ready to say good-bye to Ryder, Reece, and Blaise. After spending so many years alone in my cell with nothing but torture and madness, it felt good to be around kind, caring people; to have a human connection. Yet, I can’t help feeling a drop of relief that I may no longer exist, knowing the world and everyone in it may be better off without me.

Will they really, though? a familiar voice whispers through the darkness.

Who’s there? I wonder. When no one answers, I try again. Who are you?

I’m you.

What?

Just relax. Everything is going to be okay.

How do you know that?

Because I’m your future.

Before I can ask questions, the heavy darkness fades into a soft, pale light.

“I think she’s coming back,” Reece’s voice floats through the light and kisses my ears. “We need to get her hooked up to the Oblivion before she fades again.”

“Are you sure it’ll work?” Blaise questions over the hammering of footsteps.

“It won’t cure her,” Reece explains over the rustling of fabric. “While someone is hooked up to the Oblivion, their lifespan is frozen. They don’t age. They don’t change. They can’t die. Not until they’re unhooked.”

“How long will she have to stay hooked up?” Ryder asks. Even though I can’t see him, I’m fairly certain he’s carrying me.

“Until I can come up with a cure,” Reece replies over loud banging.

“So, she’ll just be stuck in her own thoughts and memories until you find a way to save her?” Ryder’s chest crashes against my cheek as he exhales a stressed breath. “All by herself? Living on borrowed time?”

“I know it’s not ideal,” Reece says. “For now, though, it’s the only way I can think of to keep her from dying.”

“I just hate the idea of her being all by herself.” Ryder lightly traces his fingers across my lower back. “She just got out of the cells, and I feel like we’re putting her back in.”

“I can go in with her.” A drop of uncertainty wavers in Blaise’s voice. “Not into the Oblivion, but I can go into her mind.”

Ryder stops moving. “When did you learn how to do that?”

“When we were stuck in the Forsaken camp and she was stuck in dreamland,” Blaise tells him. “It happened by accident when I was trying to push thoughts into her mind, but I’m positive I can do it again.”

“She could be in there for a while,” Reece says, the swishing of water rising in the background.

Water? Flowing water? Where are we?

“What’s your point?” Blaise snaps.

“I just want you to know how big of a commitment this is.” Reece pauses, as if giving Blaise time to back out. “Okay, if you’re sure, then take her from Ryder and get into the water. I’ll bring over the plugs and let you hook them up to her.”

“Just hang on until Reece finds a cure, okay?” Ryder whispers to me before he shifts me forward in his arms. “You got her?”

Lean, muscular arms slip underneath my lower back and legs. “Yeah, I got her.”

“Good.” Ryder releases me. “Make sure it stays that way. Don’t let her go.”

“Are you giving me orders?” Blaise asks, adjusting me around until my cheek presses against warm flesh.

“I might be,” Ryder say with a hint of amusement.

Blaise’s arms twitch underneath me. “Considering the circumstances, I’ll let you off the hook this time. But don’t ever do it again.”

“Just keep her safe and alive, okay?” Ryder pleads, his humor deflating.

Blaise doesn’t answer, but I assume he nods because Ryder doesn’t say anything else.

My cheek remains against Blaise’s chest as he moves us upward. Then, sucking in a sturdy breath, he lowers us downward again. Moments later, warm water cascades over my body, drenching my clothes and rising to my chin. I start to gasp for air when gentle prickles prod against my skin and the oxygen is ripped from my lungs.

“It’s okay,” Blaise reassures me, holding me steady in his arms. “The machine is just hooking up to you.”

Panic zaps through my veins, and my eyelids fly open. Bright light pierces my vision as my surroundings gradually come into focus.

A metal beamed ceiling arches above me, fluorescent lights glaring from the corners, and large pipes pump crystal blue water into the glass pool that Blaise and I are standing in. That’s not the craziest part.

Long, thin metal tubes stretch from the steel walls and attach to my arms, legs, and neck. Never have I seen anything like it, not even when I was at the channels. And while I don’t think Reece, Ryder, or Blaise will do anything to hurt me, I instinctively open my mouth to scream. Again, not even a whisper fumbles from my lips.

Blaise smooths my hair out of my face before closing his eyes. “All right, Reece, I’m ready. You can turn it on.”

Seconds drag by, and then the water starts to bubble like boiling hot lava. My panic increases as the lights above flash on and off. Water spews from the pipes, showering across my face and neck. I gasp, my anxiety reaching a terrifying level. However, Blaise seems unbothered as he gently presses his fingertips to my temples, water beading his face and hair.

“Everything will be okay,” he whispers. “I promise.”

I manage to take one final breath before my entire body is submersed in water. I squeeze my eyes shut. My chest stops moving as my heart flatlines. I try to writhe as water fills up my nose. Still, the water continues to bury me.

All I can do is trust that Blaise will carry out his promise.