CLARA

I couldn't bring myself to respond. I was exhausted. Far too exhausted.

Tyler didn't unbind me. He didn't offer a towel to wipe away the mess. Instead, he walked back to the desk in the centre of the room and picked up the fourth device.

This one was different. It looked like a web of silver-threaded mesh attached to a small control box.

"Lesson four," Tyler said, his voice a deep, raspy sound that seemed to vibrate through the floorboards. "Connection."

He stepped toward me, his eyes dark and fixed. He began to wrap the silver mesh around my torso. The fabric was cold, almost biting, as it clung...