“Is Crew down there?”
“Yeah. Him and Neo both are.”
Jagger turns around to look at the crowd, draining the blood from my hand. “Everyone, go back to your dorms. If you’re caught in the tunnels going forward, there will be consequences.”
My eyes dance around in search of Riley.
Jagger catches my apprehension. “Who are you looking for?”
“Riley and Elias. I don’t see them anywhere.”
Jagger pulls his phone out of his pocket, talking as he types. “I’m sure they’re here somewhere.” He lifts the phone to his ear, and I can hear it ringing on the other end.
I need to go find Riley and Elias.
I try to pull my hand from Jagger’s, but his eyes snap to mine and he shakes his head.
“Shouldn’t we, like, call an ambulance or something?”
Once again, he shakes his head no.
“Where the fuck are you?” he says into the phone. “She’s with me. She’s fine.” His eyes stay cemented to mine and I wish he’d hurry up, so I know what the hell’s going on.
“Ask them if they’ve seen Riley or Elias.”
“What the hell? All right, I’m coming down.” Jagger ends the call.
“You didn’t ask!”
“Your friends are fine. Come with me.” He leads me to the ladder, gesturing for me to go first. As I descend, I stop and peer up at him. “Will you have someone check on Elias and Riley? Make sure they’re okay?”
He nods subtly. “Sure. If it’s that important to you.”
I continue down, Jagger following. As soon as my feet hit the ground, I’m being swept up in Crew’s arms. “What the hell took you guys so long?”
I look over his shoulder at Jagger, who’s already watching us. “Got caught up on a branch on the trail,” I lie. It’s better this way.
Jagger takes in a deep breath and walks around us, leaving Crew and me alone at the entrance.
“How’s Hannah?” I ask him.
“A little disorientated. She’s got a nice-size gash on her head but the on-call doctor is with her.”
“Good. I’m glad someone called him.” I don’t bother asking about the authorities because everyone here knows that outside law enforcement doesn’t get involved. However, The Lawless are required to report incidents like this to The Elders. “Did you call Neo’s dad?”
He shakes his head in slow movements as he chews on his bottom lip. “No. We’re not involving the Chairman or The Elders. If we pull them into this, they’ll hinder our ability to catch this guy. Andwe willcatch this guy.”
I wrap my arms around his neck, my head resting against his collarbone. “I hope you’re right.”
Suddenly, something hits me. “Hey,” I say, pulling back, “is Melody with Hannah?”
“Yeah. Why?”
“Remember that schedule I found in the library when I was certain someone was watching me?”
“I remember. What about it?”
“It was Melody’s. Don’t you think it’s a little strange that I found her schedule when I saw that guy and now her best friend was attacked?”