"So, where do you think your dad is now?" I ask.

Reece hasn't mentioned him since we left him at the parking lot, but I know it must be weighing on his mind.

"I don't know," Reece says after a moment of silence. "Just before we left him, I told him he should run."

"Do you think he did?" I ask.

Reece looks at his napkin and smiles, but it is a joyless smile, the kind that is tainted with grief. "No, I don't. My dad used to be a soldier. The word 'running' isn't exactly in his vocabulary."

"He's on their side," I say in attempt to reassure him. "I doubt they'll do anything to hurt him."

It must have been the wrong thing to say, because something heavy clouds Reece's features. "Maybe." He looks up now, his blue eyes missing their usual spark. "I know it won't seem like it to you, but he's not a bad guy, Aura."

I'm reminded of the fear I'd seen in Adrian's eyes, of the way he'd been so desperate to protect his son from the very people he's loyal to. Maybe I'm not quite human enough to know what drives us, or why we behave the way we do, but I know from what I've seen so far that nothing is straightforward.

"Maybe there are no bad guys," I say. "Just bad choices."

Reece tilts his head to the side, studying me in that same way I've caught him doing so many times before. It makes me feel anxious yet confident, like as long as Reece is looking at me, I can achieve anything–everything–I want.

"So," I say, leaning forward. "This is what humans do when they aren't exploiting animals. They dine."

There is a smile on my lips as I say it, but deep down, I feel an overwhelming sense of envy.

"We also dance," Reece says, offering me his hand.

I glance towards the center of the room, where other couples are swaying in time to the music. For all the tricks and twirls I've learned over the years, I have never learned to dance.

"I don't know how to," I say, but I take his hand anyway, allowing him to lead me to the dance floor.

With a quick flick of his wrist, he grabs me by the waist and draws me into his chest, causing my breath to hitch in my throat. "You're a quick study."

A wild tingling spreads across my body. I lean my head against his chest, letting myself breathe in the clean smell of his shirt and the aftershave on his neck.

"Asia would love this," I say. "She's always hated reading, but she loves music. She'd beg Alison to play some during practice."

Reece tenses slightly under my grip. "Why do you think Crystal did what she did?" His voice is so quiet, his words are almost carried away by the music.

"The darkness," I say simply, knowing there can be no other explanation. Crystal is–was–the sweetest person I have ever encountered. There is no way she would have taken a life if she were of sound mind.

"The darkness?" Reece repeats.

My hands tighten around his neck. "I don't really know how to explain it. It's this feeling the girls and I were always trying to suppress. A feeling of madness and depression."

Reece is silent as he holds me close, his fingertips warm against my lower back. "I'm sorry," he says, and the warmth of his breath causes my body to tremble. "I should have done something to help you sooner."

I meet his gaze now, searching those pale blue eyes for an answer. "Why didn't you?"

"I didn't know the truth at first," he admits, his fingers gently brushing my shoulder. "When they first started using mermaids in the shows, I was told the same thing as the guests. That you were genetically-engineered employees who went home every night. A part of me always thought it was weird how secretive everybody at the park acted, but I was the type to follow orders and not ask questions. It's why they liked me so much."

"When did you learn the truth about us?" I ask.

"When Crystal killed Alison," Reece says, his body stiffening. "My dad pulled me aside and told me how you'd been raised in the park to perform for the guests. He said you'd turned dangerous, and it was our job to make sure you didn't hurt anybody else. He'd somehow convinced our superiors that I could be trusted with this knowledge, and deep down, I was desperate to show him I could be."

I take a moment to process his words, remembering the way Reece had been desperate to gain his father's approval during my interrogation. I can't blame him for not questioning the things Marine World made him do, because I never questioned them, either.

"I know you feel guilty," I say, forcing him to look at me, "but don't."

"It's kind of hard not to. I blindly followed orders despite knowing it was wrong. What does that say about me?"

"It says you were just as manipulated as we were," I reply. "We both fell for the same lies, Reece. We were both so desperate to believe in Marine World that we ignored the things that never made sense. If you're going to blame yourself for my circumstances, then blame me, too."

" I had free will," Reece reminds me. "You didn't. I should have stood up to them when I found out the truth."

I clutch him tighter, feeling as though he might suddenly slip away. "I probably wouldn't have gone with you even if you had helped me sooner," I say. "Up until Alison's death, I was too afraid to find out what was beyond the enclosure." I tilt my head slightly, causing a curtain of hair to fall across my cheekbone. "It seems weird now, but I never thought to ask why the world is such a dangerous place. I never thought to question anything they told me."

Tenderly, Reece lifts a hand and pushes it back behind my ear, allowing his fingertips to linger. "Neither did I."

I stare at him for a long time, realizing we have both been controlled and molded by Marine World, to some extent. Reece, Alison, Adrian, Valerie–they were fed as many lies as we were and were just as eager to devour each one.

"The more I think about taking you back to that place, the more I feel like an idiot," Reece says, his other hand still entwined with mine. "You need to be somewhere out of the way. I can–"

"Reece."

He clenches his jaw before looking down at me, the corners of his mouth contorted.

"I have to go," I say. "What if you turn up and the girls are afraid to go with you? They need to see me there. They need to know they can trust you." I meet his gaze now, a strange warmth pooling in my stomach. "Like I can."

He doesn't answer but he pulls me in closer, and we dance for a little while, swaying to the sound of the music. I don't know what awaits me tomorrow, whether or not this is the last chance at freedom I'll ever have, but if it is, I intend on savoring every moment.