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I squir out theHe was going to show up in the ht I was nervous about participating so he was going to step in
My nerves worked into a frenzy Talking to Mr Blackbourne was the right decision, but doing so made me anxious
Eventually Silas took an exit into North Charleston He wound his way through a business district, where storefronts were either in severe disrepair or boarded up
He checked his phone and tapped at thein front of an old brick storefront The faded signs said it used to be a hardware store Cardboard and newspaper covered the frontPart of the covered ere painted over with graffiti
Silas drove past the building and parked a couple of blocks away against the curb He and I were unlatching our seatbelts whenit A person bent in, reaching for me
Silas instantly grabbedme toward him protectively
Dr Green popped his head in onbeautiful,” he said His eyes ide awake, playful He ood sleep recently He usually looked tired
“You shouldn’t sneak up on us,” Silas said, slowly releasing me “I almost punched you”
“You should look before you punch,” Dr Green said He winked atI only just heard you were co”
“I didn’t know you were here,” I said and took his hand, stepping out onto the sidewalk beside him
“If we can convince these kids to trust us, I should take them over to the hospital for physicals” Dr Green wore jeans and a yellow polo shirt, looking younger to me since he was dressed down His sandy blond hair indblown in the back He closed the car door behind me and Silas joined us on the sidewalk Dr Greenover here I just got here, too”
I walked beside them We turned a corner, and found Kota, Victor and Nathan waiting They crouched on top of soether as they talked
Nathan was in jeans and a tank shirt with a light, red jacket, and wore a headset Kota was in jeans and a long sleeve T-shirt, and had his phone out in his hand Victor looked stylish but out of place in his Armani shirt and black slacks He had his laptop on a crate in front of him, and wore a headset identical to Nathan’s
Kota looked up and I could tell frolance he wasn’t coed his expression quickly to a pleasant s,” he said
I nodded and said a quiet good erousness of the situation What exactly e going to do? Visions of Luke and I breaking into a house popped intoshot at today
“They’re inside,” Victor said He reached back, pulling up another crate He positioned it beside hi the top of the crate I got the hint and sat beside him He smiled and his fire eyes flickered with life “Luke snuck in already He’s done a head count There’s seven”
“Are there any more around here?” Dr Green asked
“He can’t tell,” Victor said “He’s only seen the seven They’re all in the back room I think it’s the most secure, and there’s plenty of escape routes Luke saw a few noisemaker traps near the doors It’s like they’ve done this before: squatting in an abandoned place, knowing to run if they hear anything unusual”
“They’re just kids?” Dr Green asked
“Looks like,” Kota said He finished with his phone and then put it in his pocket “We need to get Silas wired”
“He’s going in alone?” I asked
“He looks like theht trust him”
I looked at Silas, who stood tall and broad-shouldered “Are you sure?” I asked
The boys shared glances with each other, and then everyone turned to Silas
Silas shifted on his feet, looking uncertain “I don’t exactly look their age”
“You’re big, but you’re fine,” Kota said
“You’ve known hi,” Dr Green said “You have to look at him as if you’ve never met him before Maybe he looks the sa, they may run If that happens, we don’t stand a chance to find theain”
“We’re still taking a risk,” Kota said “He doesn’t speak Spanish, Nathan does, and he’s just as inti”
“Maybe I should go,” I said
Kota shook his head instantly Nathan started to as well “No,” Kota said
“Kota,” Dr Green said, stepping closer “We don’t have a lot of tiht it’d be useful if she were here”
“Not e don’t know if they’ll attack any of us on sight”
“I think they’reAnd they’d be even less prone to fight if Silas is next to her”
“Luke’s in there already,” Victor said “He can watch out for her”
Nathan swung his eyes from the others to me and then shifted from foot to foot “And I could follow in behind,” Nathan said
I met with Nathan’s blue eyes, serious and yet unsure now His decision depended on the others and what they thought Nathan sain at Kota I sensed he didn’t like going against Kota There was a friendship there that probably made it difficult to do so
r /> Kota’s eyes swept over his tea He touched gently at the bridge “There’s more at risk there than that, too I don’t knoe can afford it”
Afford what? I waited forto explain e couldn’t afford it I checked with the others They looked anxious, brows furrowed, lips pursed They were starting to change their minds “I don’t understand,” I said
“It’s complicated,” Victor said quietly He swept back some of his wavy hair from his eyes and then shifted to unbutton his sleeves and fold the material back toward his elbows “Academy rules”
“If Mr Blackbourne wants her here,” Dr Green said, “then he thinks we can afford it No matter what, the job will cover it”
“We need the favors,” Kota said “We’re running low”
“What favor?” I asked “We need favors?” This was different It wasn’t just about Kotasure I was safe There were reasons beyond what I was seeing; Kota was looking at all the angles
Their eyes turned toabout it”
“Maybe not talking about it with her is the problem,” Silas said
They turned to hiether, that hearing his voice noas surprising I looked up at hi on the crate
Silascalm and composed “I know this isn’t the place,” he said, “but the reason why she jumps in half of the time is because she doesn’t knohat is expected and how this works Mr Blackbourne is right She’s either in or out We can’t have her in thewith us like this”
“We need to talk about it later,” Dr Green said before Kota or Victor could speak “Right now, there are little lives in there and we need to go get them”
“Can I go in after Silas?” I asked “Would that be better? If they respond to hi if they’re scared of him”