Annabeth has been in solitary confinement for 627 days now and has not heard a word from anyone in those 627 days. Every day is the same: wake up, eat this godawful food, mark the wall with yet another tally, and then go to sleep. She is now used to the numbness she feels every time she goes to bed or wakes up. Annabeth sees the guard every time he walks by. It is the same man, Joshua, every time. He looks familiar, but she never gives it any thought. He delivers the food and any letters people receive every single day. The rooms aren't near one another, but she notices that he stops every six steps to deliver the mail but always takes twelve steps when he is passing her room, because there is never anything to give. Today, he stops after six steps, and she hears him shuffling with his keys right outside her door. Then a letter gracefully drops to the floor, and it reads, “Annabeth Prescott.” She can’t believe her own eyes. Many thoughts are running through her mind at this point: confusion, happiness, curiosity—all these feelings resurface after almost two years of numbness. Before she knows it, she notices a drop of water has fallen on the envelope. …show more content…
After all that staring and thinking about who it could be from, she finally opens it. She reads, “'23,5 1,18,5 7,5,20,20,9,7 15,21,20.” She just stands there, stunned. When it is already time to go to sleep, all that is on her mind is the letter. What does it mean? Who could it be from? Why to me? Why now? All these questions are running through her head. All night, she was is thinking about what the numbers could mean. She imagines all the possibilities. Is it from someone I know or from someone inside the