In the pale morning light, I study Crystal's face. She is sprawled across the sofa, her eyes are wide and childlike as she searches my face. I take a step forward. Her eyes tear up, and I close the rest of the distance between us and pull her into my arms.

"You're alive," I whisper, squeezing her tight. "I don't understand. They told me you were dead. Have you been in here this whole time?"

Crystal nods. I shake my head, because it makes no sense that they'd take her out of the enclosure just to lock her away in here–none of this makes sense.

"How are you out of the enclosure?" she asks, her voice sounding hoarse. "Did they bring you here, too?"

I shake my head, still unable to believe she's alive. "It's a long story, but I'm getting you out of here."

Crystal's eyes darken. "I'm so sorry, Aura. I didn't want to do it." Her voice breaks and she turns away. Confused, I push back a tendril of hair from her face, allowing my fingers to linger. "They told me if I didn't, they'd kill you."

"What are you talking about?" I ask.

A lone tear escapes from her eye, creating a trail down the curve of her cheek. Using my thumb, I carefully wipe away the remnants.

"Alison," she whispers. "They made me kill Alison."

Crystal's words suspend mid-air. "Why?"

"I don't know," she whispers. "I haven't been able to sleep since. I–"

"It's okay," I soothe, pulling her into my arms, but nothing about this is okay.

It doesn't take long for her body to sink into mine. Her breathing becomes lighter, warm and fluttery against the skin on my neck. The feel of her skin, of her heartbeat, seems to open up an ache within my chest. I've missed this. I hadn't let myself acknowledge just how much I've missed this. I have been resenting Crystal on some level, judging her for letting the darkness consume her to the point she'd killed someone, and now I find out I've been wrong all along, that she did what she did to save me.

I run my fingers through Crystal's hair, recalling how Reece had said being prosecuted was nothing compared to what Marine World would do to him. Maybe Alison was starting to become a problem for them. Maybe they'd found out she was giving us books, or telling us too much about the real world: maybe our close relationship with her was the reason they wanted her dead.

For a moment, I begin to wonder if Reece could have known the truth about Alison, if he'd lied about Crystal killing herself to protect me in some way. There are so many layers of deceit, so many things I don't know or understand, that it is hard to know what–or who–I can trust anymore.

"Do you know why they've been keeping you here?" I ask.

She looks away, her expression lined with distress. "No," she says, "but I heard one of the guards say, 'Not long until the auction.'"

I swallow hard. "Auction?" I repeat. "What are they auctioning?"

And then something occurs to me, something that hits me in my stomach and chips away at my insides. The tests, the missing girls–the only thing Marine World could possibly be auctioning is us.

The first thing I do is call Reece, but by the fifth ring, it's clear he's not in a position to answer. I tuck the phone into my back pocket, knowing that whatever is going on in that surveillance room, Reece will be able to handle it.

"Come on," I say, pulling the guest clothes out of my bag. "Hurry up and put these on. I think Asia's in the Testing facility. We need to find her."

Crystal remains silent, her eyes glassy and somewhat vacant as she takes in the t-shirt and shorts. "I think there could be somebody in the room next door," she says, nodding to the wall on the right. "There's always two trays on the breakfast trolley."

I don't want to feel relieved prematurely, but it starts to build up in my stomach, preparing my body for the possible light at the end of the tunnel. "We'll check there first, then. Come on, get dressed."

"I can't," Crystal says softly, avoiding my gaze. "My legs are–" she stops to take a deep breath, "–I can't walk."

My pocket begins to buzz before I can react. I take out my phone, relieved to see Reece's name across the screen.

"Why haven't you been answering?" I ask. "I thought something happened to you."

"Something did," Reece says in a breathless voice. "Kenny tried to set off an emergency button. I managed to knock him out, but it won't be long before he wakes up. Are you all right? Did you find Asia?"

"No." I swallow, taking in Crystal's fearful eyes. "But I found Crystal."

There is silence on the other end. "Crystal?" The tone of his voice is enough to convince me he knew nothing of her being alive.

"They've kept her locked in the palace for some kind auction," I say, acutely aware of each second ticking by. "I think–" I take a deep breath, "I think they might be auctioning us off."

The line goes silent. "I can't believe it," Reece says, his voice cracking slightly. "Are you telling me they're trafficking genetically engineered girls out of the park?"

"I think so," I say. I'm reminded of Muriel Two, who'd looked so sweet, so innocent, but whose eyes had been rimmed with a darkness no girl her age should possess. There are worse fates than the enclosure, she had said when she'd fought me during my escape. No, I'm trying to save us.

Could Muriel have been one of the girls waiting for the auction? Is it possible she knew what Marine World was doing to us and was grateful to have been put in the enclosure?

"I'm coming to get you," Reece says, his words muffled by static. "You're in even more danger than I thought."

"No," I say, more forcefully than I intend, because as grateful as I am that Reece cares for me so much, I need him to care about everyone else, too. "You need to stay in the surveillance room in case they put Asia back. Besides, what if Kenny wakes up?"

Reece exhales heavily. I can tell he wants to argue, but he knows we have no other choice. "Fine, but you need to get out of there, Aura. The park is opening soon."

I glance at the clock and then over at Crystal's legs. Telling Reece about my current predicament will only make him worry more. "We're coming," I say, "but don't bother waiting for us at the lake, okay? We'll meet you back at the car after the park opens. Just get everyone else out safely." I hang up before he can argue, slipping the phone back into my pocket.

"Aura?"

I look up to meet Crystal's gaze. "Yeah?"

"Do you think–" she stops to take a small breath, her thin body trembling. "Do you think that's what happened to Muriel? That she was auctioned off?"

The realization feels like a weight on my chest. For some reason, it hadn't occurred to me that Muriel could have been one of the girls auctioned off. I'd always assumed her gone, dead, but if she was auctioned instead of murdered, she could still be alive somewhere.

I can still save her.