Margot's POV The whistle hadn't even stopped ringing in my ears before we were herded into the hallway like cattle . Everything moved quickly , too quickly for my legs to keep up . Girls whispered nervously around me , clutching one another , brushing shoulders as we all fell into line . Cara found my arm and looped hers through it , grounding me just enough to stop me from getting swept away in the current of movement and becoming separated from her . We were arranged in pairs , shoulder to shoulder , and marched out under the sharp watch of three armed guards . The weight of their guns slung over their chests was no longer something I could pretend not to notice . This was no school field trip . This was a prison transfer and we now looked like a bunch of colourful prisoners . Outside , the early evening air was warm and sticky , thick with the scent of salt and soil . We followed the dock down to a row of hulking grey transport trucks with mesh windows and steel siding . The kind you'd see in the background of a war movie ... The guards suddenly barked at us to move faster - " Let's go ladies , let's go ! " - and the girls obeyed without hesitation , clambering into the open backs of the trucks , shoulders hitting , legs knocking , breaths quickening . Cara and I fought to stick together , squeezing onto a bench in the back of the third truck . I had just enough space to press my knees together and grip the metal seat beneath me . The doors slammed shut behind us before only a moment later , the truck shuddered itself to life . The low drum of the engine rattled up in to my chest , and the sudden lurch forward nearly threw me into Cara's lap . The girls around us gasped , some laughing nervously , others staying completely silent , staring ahead with wide , unblinking eyes . I reached for Cara's hand , finding it without even having to look . Her palm was damp . Mine was ice cold . Looking outside of the small slits in the reinforced glass , I caught glimpses of the island - dense trees stretching up high into the sky , the thick canopy casting heavy shadows across the uneven dirt path . Everything was surrounded by fences high , military - grade fences laced with coils of barbed wire, as if the trees themselves were prisoners too . Armed men jogged alongside the trucks as we moved at a steady pace , shouting commands at each other through radios clipped on to their vests . The entire place thrummed with intensity , like we'd been dropped 1/5 Chapter 18 - Block F right into the middle of a military operation . But I suppose in some ways , we had ? I leaned closer to the window just in time to see the tops of tall security towers ahead in the distance , each one manned by a silhouette holding what was clearly a rifle with the tip poking out . I swallowed hard , knowing that each of them had the power to end us with a single movement of their finger , if they ever wanted to ... This place wasn't just shaping itself up to be a prison . It was a fucking fortress ! " Holy shit , " I whispered under my breath . Cara squeezed my hand tighter . " Don't look out there too much . You'll psych yourself out before we even get in there . " Too late . I was already psyching myself out . I wanted to run for the damn hills ... Not that it would even get me anywhere , considering we were both now on an island in the middle of nowhere ! Luckily , the ride lasted for only around ten minutes all in , as I had worried that time would begin to warp itself if we were to be stuck in the moving steel box for any longer . But with that , it still felt like ten hours crammed in to ten seconds all at once , simply due to my anxiety and racing thoughts on how to escape this ... But it was too late . When we finally rounded a bend in the road and came to a halt , the sudden stillness made my stomach churn . The truck doors were yanked open . " Move out ! " a voice barked . " We are already behind schedule girls . Let's go ! Now ! " He yelled , increasing my heart rate as we plodded our way towards the exit . My feet eventually hit the solid ground , and I looked up - instantly freezing in place . 2/5 3:13 pm P Chapter 18 Block F Ahead of us was a huge building that looked like it had been cut from a slab of concrete and dropped down into the dirt . No windows from what I could see at the front . No personality . Just grey walls , steel doors , and a large sign bolted above the main entrance in bold , black letters : ' PROJECT COMPOUND ' . Cara leaned in and whispered , " This must be a separate building from the main prison ... it has to be . That's gotta be a good thing , right ? Means fewer prisoners . Just the ones in the program . " I nodded quickly - but the words didn't soothe me . The name itself sounded clinical . Cold . Like we were walking into a science experiment more than anything else . Because we were . We were the variables . The guards led us across the gravel and into a clearing in front of the compound's entrance . A few other trucks were pulling up behind us , and girls were funneling out , all of us gathering into messy lines once again as the guards reestablished control with their raised voices and commanding glares . We stood in rows - ten acrosS - as a man with a thick folder began calling out names . My stomach instantly turned to stone . He had a bullhorn this time , and each name was louder than the last . " RACHEL LIN . WILLOW FRENCH . HARPER DEVINE . DELILAH ABBOTT . ELOISE MARTIN . MOVE OVER THERE . YOU'RE IN BLOCK A. " The selected girls peeled off and were guided toward one of the side doors by a new cluster of guards . ' LEILA ANDERSON . JENNA STARK . ERIN DUPONT . HEATHER BOWLS , NORA JENNINGS , OVER HERE . BLOCK B. " He continued , Another group gone ... One by one , the girls around us began disappearing into doorways like cattle through a sorting gate . My heart pounded , waiting for our names , waiting for them to be called together , but the longer the list stretched on without us , the more I began to realise something awful was about to happen . They weren't pairing us with our friends . 3/5 3:13 pm POD . Chapter 18 - Block F They were pairing us with our inmates . The knot in my chest twisted hard . " Cara ... " I breathed , turning toward her , but she was already looking at me , her eyes wide , scared , the same realisation passing over her face like a shadow . " They're splitting us up now , " she said , voice quiet . " No ... no , maybe not . Maybe it's just- " " CARA OWENS , " the voice boomed . " BLOCK E. " " No - wait- " I grabbed her wrist , like holding her would somehow stop the inevitable . But a guard was already stepping up behind her , gesturing for her to move over with him . Cara's face turned toward me , eyes locking . " It's all okay , I'll see you again soon ! " she whispered , though she clearly didn't believe it . " We'll see each other on Saturday if we don't get to see each other before then , remember ? " She stepped backward , hands still gripping mine until the last second . Then she was gone - led off down the path , her head held high but her shoulders tense . I stood frozen , the world suddenly louder around me . Girls chattering . Guards shouting . Names being flung through the air like grenades . And then - " MARGOT BELLE . BLOCK F. " That was me . My turn . My fate . A guard motioned . I forced myself forward , legs barely working , heart a rabbit in my chest . My thoughts were too loud , Block F. That was where he would be . Coban Santorelli .