Aiko awoke in an icy cell that was white. The bedding, sheets, and doors were as white as snow.

Am I dreaming?

In an attempt to shake the feeling of her capture, she tried putting it out of her mind but the feeling surged forth as inevitable as the rising tide. Malcolm kidnapped her from the detention center and took her to an undisclosed location, and she had no idea how he did it. Aiko winced as pain shot through her arm. She pulled back the long-sleeved uniform that was also white, and nasty rope burns ran the length of her arm.

It wasn’t a dream. Why is everything white?

The door opened, and Ginger entered. The older girl strode over to Aiko’s bunk and sat next to her. Aiko felt a rush of Déjà vu.

“Are you ready to cooperate, Aiko?”

“What are you talking about?”

“This place can be... let’s say it can be quite hostile to people like you,” Ginger said.

“What are you talking about?”

“You know, do good self-righteous types that think they’re better than anyone else?”

“I saw it right on you the moment I laid eyes on you, girl.”

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“Wait, back up a minute. Where are we?”

“The same place I met you, the Westchester correctional facility. But you’re in luck. The warden has seen fit to upgrade your accommodations.”

At that moment, she realized Ginger was also wearing a white uniform—a far cry from the orange everyone else wore when she first arrived.

“Why are we wearing white?”

“We are the warden’s chosen. As long as we do what he wants when he wants, we can roam free in our special ward.”

Aiko gave Ginger a scowl. She would not help that bastard unlock whatever her mother was working on. Aiko knew her mother was an influential scientist. She remembered all the late nights at the lab and the weekend work her mother had taken home. She didn’t know what her mother was working on but knew it could save people. Her father said that her mother’s work could heal the brains of sick people. She could even make people smarter. It made her ill to think that Paige, her mother’s best friend, would have anything to do with her mother’s murder, but something didn’t add up. Why did she have her mother’s work locked up? She was determined to have answers, and she would get a none living in a severe prison cell.

“I will help the warden,” Aiko said.

Ginger’s face lit up like a little girl at Christmas time.

“That’s good; the warden will be happy that I could convince you. You’ll enjoy being on the warden’s good side. You’ll see.”

She followed Ginger to the cell door. The girl unlocked the door and stepped out. When Aiko tried following Ginger, she put a hand up. “Not yet,” Ginger said, putting a hand up, when Aiko tried following her.

“I told you I’ll help.”

“Yes, and I heard you the first time. But before you can reap the rewards of being in the warden’s service, you must prove yourself. But don’t worry, he will be here soon enough,” Ginger said, closing the door behind her.

Aiko flushed with anger. She wanted to tear Ginger apart. But she maintained her composure and practiced her breathing exercises until her heart rate slowed. Aiko splashed some water on her face. The icy coolness felt good. Her breath caught in her throat when she looked at her hair. It was white.