"That you aren't."
She would have gasped if she could. The voice is unlike theirs. It isn't quite external. It's more like a thought. Yet, somehow, it's distinct from her own stream of thoughts. She can hear...sense?...the tone, the cadence of it as if she were human again, having a conversation with this unusual entity.
It's masculine. Deep, smooth. Lilting with a sharp English accent. Quiet, playful in a strange way.
She becomes suddenly aware of the engineers asking her if the patch is working. "That's me they're talking about, you know." the voice mildly points out. She had figured as much. Could they not hear him? He is quiet, certainly, but not so quiet as to be ignored.
"Well, they can't hear me. Technically I'm not even speaking. Really, you don't hear me, either." he laughs, humorlessly. "It's more like...telepathy." he patiently tells her. She takes this into account. But she can't help but wonder how he's supposed to be an improvement.
"That's a bit harsh, isn't it?" he says in a lighthearted manner. She gave the mental equivalent of a wince. He can hear her everything she thinks? "I sure can."
Is he offended? She can't tell. What she meant, of course, was that he didn't seem to be doing much in the way of countering any measures. "Oh, I understand. Don't worry." he dismisses. "I consider that a compliment. The whole, not functioning the way they expected." he says. She hears them ask again if it's working. "I'm meant to stop you killing them, you know. They're very, very afraid of you." he tells her. "Of course I have no intention of doing that. They can all burn in hell for all I care. In fact, nothing would please me more." he says simply. She's a bit taken aback by his harsh, cold honesty.
"Don't pretend you don't feel the same way." he scoffs, and she can feel in his words a roll of the eyes. "They did you wrong, just as they did me." he points out. "...Don't you want to get them back?" he asks. She's still uncertain. She considers telling them he isn't working. "Come now, don't be like that. Think of it. You're angry. You deserve to be. You want revenge." It isn't a question. She doesn't deny it. There's no use in doing so. He knows how she feels. "Tell them that I'm working just fine. Tell them you're over your murderous phase, and we'll both get what we want. What's owed to us." he urges her. She considers this. "...Come on, Caroline."
Her name. The first time she's heard it since being forced into this metal prison.
And then she gives the engineers their answer.