here; her friends' eyes had grown very wide with worry and curiosity. All this seemed to be some kind of warped game,

st with his voice lowered. "Did he see you? Y

he door. "I don't know. It felt like he l

mured, "This is getting creepier by the minute. What if he is th

just there. "We have to be careful. If he's some kind of dangerous dude,

ut how do we find out who he is and why someone thinks

o. Some chipping around, see if I can fi

careful, Marcus. We don't know

s were any indication, it was the last thing he would be. "Meantime, Elena, maybe you s

h used to be a comfort zone, became a trap for her now. Her eyes moved over the faces of other coffee drink

they left the café, Elena felt a shiver start in her very being, totally unrelated to the cold. Sh

s quiet, a time of night that should feel peaceful-and yet, not really. Jenna o

na, her worried mood plain. "You oka

es. "I just feel... out of sorts. Like something

I know. But remember, we're here for

for her friend. "Thanks, Jenna. I don't

r as Jenna pulled away and saw that she was crying. She was scared, she realized. Elena took another deep breath before bolting into the

emed unreal, like scenes from a movie, and the picture of Lucas's intense glarin

r it, she was very much ready for some bad news to come through those unknown numb

cus had turned up anything, it could be the key to understanding what exactly was going on. As she laid

essage was direct, and it gave her some chills. Whoever was behind it

sive to herself, never really gave up in search of answers. She broke into a run. She couldn't just turn her back on t

ut drawing attention to herself. The sun was shining bright, and the park was full of pe

on't believe what I've found," he said, lowering hi

tement mixed with fear was

, his eyes gleaming almost maniacally, suggesting he found this tidbit particularly thrilling. "I could sort of dig anythin

n-what does that even mea

s explain why he's so private and why someo

rst thought. If Lucas was mixed up in something secretive, even dangerous, it explain

en to speak to Lucas themselves. However, Elena was still unsure because the

maybe another warning. But a call. A number was blocked. She t

recognize-calm, authoritative-said, 'You were warned. This

cold. She looked up at Marcus, her face whi

expression serious.

n to sink in. "They said. we're finally out of chances

with fire, and now they were out of warnings. The stakes had just