“And Bubba Boom told you about the meeting, right?”

“Yes, but don’t try to twist it back to him. You were with Sloan and Trava.”

“For a good reason. We—”

“Jacy, I’m not going to believe anything you say. So there’s no sense trying to convince me.” As soon as the words left my mouth I realized my mistake. I had messed up any chance to pretend to believe him in order to get out of here. I could blame my lack of sleep or the side effects of being stunned, but sheer stupidity was the culprit.

“All right, Trella. We’ll do this the hard way. You’re usually pretty smart so I’m going to give you time alone to think about everything that has happened.” Jacy conferred with his goons before leaving.

Right Goon crouched in front of me and rested his hands on my legs as if balancing himself. A sudden surge of fear flooded my body as I met his gaze. A hideous thought surfaced. Would Jacy’s men resort to… Unable to even consider it, I shied away from that terrible scenario.

“I suggest you tell him what he wants to know,” he said.

“Why?” I was proud my voice didn’t shake.

“Because he’s going to get our world back.” He stood and left with the other man.

I remembered to breathe when they didn’t immediately return. But the muscles in my legs still trembled from the goon’s touch.

In order to pass the time and distract myself from my dry throat and empty stomach, I considered Jacy’s argument. The meeting with the Captain and with the bomber had been pretty damning. What other evidence did I have?

Sloan. He pulled me from the duct and we started the riot. Why? To empty the waste handling plant of workers so one of his buddies could plant that bomb.

But Bubba Boom disarmed the bomb…well…sort of. It didn’t matter how it had been stopped, just that it did stop. And Sloan knew right where to find me in the air shaft. Or did he? My tool belt had clanged.

Jacy wanted to plant those mics above the Control Room and Anne-Jade’s office. Which made sense if he was worried about what the Committee was up to. Except he was on the Committee so why would he need to bug those areas unless he was more concerned about the Controllers?

And the whole situation with the Transmission hadn’t added up either. Everything I learned about Jacy had come from Bubba Boom. Then again, Jacy had cuffed me to a chair in a locked room. And time remained critical. What if the Outsiders came in?

Logic remained on Jacy’s side if he told the truth, but I just couldn’t trust him. As the time passed and I grew hungrier, thirstier and stiffer, my inclination to believe Jacy diminished with each minute.

When the door finally opened, I wished I could strangle him. He slipped in with Sloan and another goon. A visit with Sloan—now my week was complete.

He approached me warily, which, considering the circum stances would have made me laugh, but I glared at him.

“Did you think it through?” he asked.

“Yep.”

“And?”

“I’ve decided I’d wrap my hands around your neck and crush your windpipe first.”

“Not helping, Trella.”

“That’s the point.”

He sighed. “I’d hoped my involvement with the Force of Sheep rebellion would have earned me some of your trust.”

My gaze flicked to Sloan. “Why did he pull me from the shaft?”

“At first, I was just playing around,” Sloan said. “I heard you up in the duct. I planned to let you go, but when I found out about those mics…I lost it. It was like the Pop Cops all over again.”

“Captain Trava?” I asked Jacy.

“We need to get the Transmission fixed. He knew the right people and he knows the Controllers are not… They’re…”

“Outsiders,” I said.

“I should have known you’d already have that figured out. Who told you—Bubba Boom?”

I kept my mouth shut.

“James Trava is helping us. He knows what Inside can do. How fast we can travel, how to maneuver our world. It’s probably too late, but something had to be done!” He pulled in a few breaths as if to calm down. “That’s why I need to know what you’ve been up to. You could be compromising our efforts.”

He had explained the two inconsistencies, but still. “I’m not.”

“What about Logan?”

“You should know better than me. He’s in protective custody by order of the Committee.”

Jacy stepped toward me, balling his hands into tight fists. I feared he would strike me.

Instead, he uncurled his hands and tapped his fingers against his thighs. He looked at Sloan. “Last try?”

“Don’t bother. She doesn’t believe you, boss. We don’t need her. She can stay in the Pit until we have the situation under control,” Sloan said.

The Pit? That didn’t sound good.

“I would, except we do need her. Go.” Jacy cleared a spot off the work table and sat down.

“Is he bringing food and water?” I asked, trying to keep my voice steady.

“No. But if this doesn’t work, I’ll make sure you’re fed.”

“Nice of you,” I said with a flat tone. “Since we’re having this lovely chat, did someone rescue Doctor Lamont?”

“Yes. And Bubba Boom, Hank and a bunch of the maintenance workers have been searching for you ever since, causing us trouble. That’s why it took so long to get back here.”