Counterfeit ✓

Chapter 44

THIS TIME, MILA didn't wake up somewhere in a forest. Stephen was, however, the only steadfast in the story. From the moment they entered the cave, he stood in front of her, blocking the exit, and his eyes were bloodshot. Mila pushed her back against the cliff face. Her breathing sped up.

"Stephen."

"Glad you found me."

"You killed Thomas."

"That's not the point. We need each other to escape."

Mila raised her eyebrow. "Why do you even think so? Where's Elody? Amy?"

"Amy is walking around somewhere. Elody is looking for you."

"We can talk about it together." Mila crossed her arms over her chest. "I know it's difficult-"

"First, I'll talk to you."

With a nod, Mila let her arms slide to her sides. She sat down on the logs around the campfire-she assumed Stephen had made it-and wobbled her foot. Stephen plopped down on the tree trunk in front of her. He ran his hands through his messy hair. For the first time, he didn't look murderous. He looked tired. Frustrated.

"It's a strange experience I'm about to tell you," said Stephen, "but I feel like I can trust you. You shot me and I woke up in a lab."

"They connected us with wires. A grey-eyed man entered the room."

Stephen's gaze met Mila's. He made a surprised face, reaffirmed her words with a nod, and stood up. For a few minutes, he paced through the cave. Mila tapped her foot on the ground. She knew she had not imagined the lab. The grey-eyed man existed. It only drove her crazy that Stephen had experienced the same thing as her. After a minute, Mila also stood up. She placed her hand on his shoulders and squeezed it gently. Stephen couldn't pace around forever.

"For a long time, I thought it was a strange dream. It's crazy, though, that we're dreaming the same thing. It means something."

Mila nodded. "Of course, it means something. We can't ignore it."

"Does that man exist? Or is it some crazy joke?"

With a sigh, Mila stared at the exit. "Oliver and I discovered the end of this world. We visited the place, walked on, and came back to the same point."

Mila didn't understand why she trusted Stephen, and yet she told the story of the dome and the pebble. A voice inside her said they could only find a way out together-no one else. After a long pause in the conversation, she looked up.

"You said Thomas would not wake up. Why?"

Stephen sighed. "I didn't want to kill him. I-"

"I didn't ask that."

As of now, Mila refused to speak about Thomas. Especially not with the person who had brutally pulled him away from life. Stephen stared at his hands, inhaled and exhaled, and bit his lip. Back in the day, he seemed sure of his mind. Now he was a bird that was afraid to fly. Opening his wings seemed almost impossible for him.

"The guy told me. They didn't know I was awake and said Thomas was next in line. They already dragged him to the side where everyone who didn't come back was standing."

"How did you find us?"

Mila wanted to make sure he was telling the truth. She had never talked about her other experiences with the grey-eyed man before and could test whether Stephen was telling the truth. Her stomach turned. She did not know what action she was going to take once he proved his story wasn't a lie.

"A map. Your heads hovered over the camp. I woke up and kept seeing the map. Every time I close my eyes, I see the lab. The wires."

"What?" Mila's mouth fell open. "How is that even possible?"