CAUTIOUSLY, NICK POKED HER HEAD IN THE TRAILER.

She was able to open it easily with the spare key she found in the glove box. The beep the trailer emitted always made her cringe, but Exflibberaguil should already be fast asleep. Exflibberaguil’s dreams were always deep, unlike Nick’s which were now all nightmares.

Nick paused before opening the door, pressing her nose against the window, trying to see if Exflibberaguil was still moving around. She did not want to bump into him.

The lights were all turned off. Nick could only see dark shadows of chairs and tables, but as none of them were moving, she assumed Exflibberaguil was asleep. Taking a deep breath as if it were her last, she grasped the handle and pushed.

Nick had stopped sleeping overnight in the trailer for the last two days. But, to her great dismay, she was forced to return every night for money. Exflibberaguil, having Box, didn’t need to print money in advance. Box could just do it on spot. But Nick had to return every night and order Box to print as money as possible in fifteen minutes. She couldn’t risk spending any time longer than that. Even the smallest possibility of being caught frightened her.

She, of course, had thought about taking Box with her during the day, but she soon realized that this will only reveal her location. But Nick didn’t need an infinite supply of money. She had been saving up the extra. Soon, she wouldn’t need to come daily. She’d have enough to come every other night.

With trembling steps, Nick stepped into the dark trailer, listening to Exflibberaguil’s quiet snores. She had memorized which floorboards creaked the most, but even so, her footsteps still sounded dangerously loud. She felt like a prisoner sneaking past a guard.

Nick tiptoed towards a large shape she knew to be a sofa. These ten feet proved to be more difficult than a mile. Nick nearly tripped over the edge of a carpet within two steps of entering. Catching her breath, she disturbed an office chair which, thankfully, rolled off without making a sound. Finally, Nick neared the sofa, looking to the right where Box’s charging port was.

Box wasn’t there.

Immediately, Nick’s heart went into overdrive, as if it were pumping blood for an elephant. She kneeled down to peer under the sofa, but there was no robot there either. Nick pivoted on her heel, looking to see if perhaps Box was somewhere close in the vicinity. But there was nothing. Evidently, for whatever reason, Exflibberaguil had moved Box somewhere else.

What can I do now?

She glanced back at the door. It was still open. Nick always left the door open when she came in the trailer. That way, she’d always have an escape route if anything went wrong. I should leave now. I still can escape.

But she needed the money to survive! She hadn’t yet saved enough to survive for long. And there was no guarantee that Nick would be able to find Box tomorrow. It only meant that she would have to come during the day.

Conflicted, Nick stood rooted in place, sweat dripped down her face. On one hand, she should run when she still had the chance. She didn’t need the money. She could still survive. But then, wouldn’t that mean she’ll have to come during the day? Sooner or later she would have to find out where Box would be.

It turned out that she didn’t need to decide after all.

The door behind her shut with a click. What little moonlight that came in was blocked. Nick wheeled around, making the floor under her creak. What was that?

It’s nothing, she reassured herself. Wind. Only wind.

Still, the closed door was inconvenient for escape. Nick didn’t breathe, listened for Exflibberaguil’s snores. It seemed like he was still asleep.

I can’t take this risk. I have to leave. Nick, with shallow breaths, twisted her body and began moving toward the door, painfully conscious of her heavy footsteps.

Her heart was beating so fast, if felt like it was humming. She couldn’t think rationally. Her head was buzzing as fast as her heart.

Due to her night excursions, Nick was still able to see. Her night vision had improved a little. However, the lack of color and her panic made it near impossible to do anything with this ability. All she could hear was silence.

Where did the snoring go?

Exflibberaguil was awake.

Nick’s first instinct was to run. She couldn’t hear her footsteps over her heart anyway. Running to the other side of the trailer, she collided with the door. Her night vision wasn’t good enough to determine distance. Nick groped the smooth wood for a handle. With every second, she could feel someone approaching.

Finally, her hand clasped around the handle. Her sweaty, quivering palm could barely grip the wood. She bit her tongue to keep from screaming, tasting the iron of blood. Nick was afraid her scream would determine her fate. She fumbled and tried to push open the door.

But Nick spotted a faintly glowing metal around the handle. She knew immediately what it was. These handcuffs were, once again, restraining her.

Nick turned to the other door and, sure enough, there was the same green glow, the only light in the trailer. Nick hear footsteps, but couldn’t determine where they came from. Every dark shadow looked like clones of the alien, approaching her.

What is happening? Could he have remembered? I remember he said that it’s easier to trigger memories that were recently remembered.

Nick shuffled backwards, pressing herself against the wall. She tried to be quiet. Her location could not be revealed. But she could feel her eyes water, tears flowing out of her eyes. Her nose was clogging.

No! I can’t cry now! Then I won’t be able to breathe! You idiot!

Nick tried desperately to control her loud sobs, but this only made it worse. She gasped for air in between the cries. The footsteps were getting quicker. Since when was this trailer so small?

Nick ran to a window, but tripped on the leg of a chair before reaching it. She tried to scramble up, but only succeeded in bumping her head on the table. She scurried backwards, eyes burning.

Someone grabbed her wrist from behind.