“What?” Jake gave her a puzzled look. Apparently, he was oblivious to the state of his car.
“Just pull into that gas station, okay?” Sally pointed toward the approaching business, the only one she’d seen for miles.
Jake gave a slight frown but complied.
She was out of the car before he’d even set the brake. After collecting the few things she could find in the small store, she approached the register. “Can I have a trash bag?”
The clerk gave her an odd look.
“You don’t have any on the shelf and I really need a trash bag… Please?” He regarded her a moment, then handed her one from behind the counter. “Thank you.”
It took thirty minutes with the boys’ help, but she managed to make the car livable. After forcing them away for a few minutes, she emptied half a bottle of odor absorbent inside, holding her nose the entire time.
“Is that really necessary?” Jake asked.
She answered with a raised eyebrow.
“Dude, don’t you ever clean your car?” Yasif crossed his arms, leaning against the building as they waited for the vehicle to air out.
Jake sighed. “I don’t get out much.” He walked around and stood on the other side in the sun.
Sally watched him. He looked better. The guy was still pale, but after a couple meals, his face was fuller, healthier. With a little self-care, he could actually be attractive. He was a bit slim, but had some definition. Too bad he was into boys. When Sally looked away, she found Yasif staring at her, his brows low. Immediately, the guilt of what had happened at the hotel returned.
Once Sally was satisfied that the car was once again habitable, they got back in and resumed their journey and Sally filled Jake in on what they’d seen so far.
“So let me get this straight. You saw a cat turn into a guy?”
Sally nodded.
“And you saw another creature you couldn’t identify?” He cast a quick glance back to Yasif.
“Uh-huh.”
“And four people disappeared from the school, without a trace?”
“Yep,” they responded together.
“And now there are government men nosing around?” He paused. “What the hell?”
One side of Sally’s mouth turned upward into a slight smile. “Now you see our predicament.”
“I just don’t get it,” he replied. “I mean, why come after you?”
“The Hi-Li,” Yasif offered, appearing as though he would rather not be having this conversation.
Jake glanced at him through the rearview mirror. “But you guys aren’t famous or anything. I mean the Hi-Li is just a school paper, right? Why would they be coming after you? As strange as this all is, it still doesn’t make logical sense.”
“Strange things rarely do,” Sally said absently.
Jake scoffed. “Yeah, but come on! What would the government even want with all this weird stuff? This isn’t something they’d usually be into, is it?”
“It’s a story. Four people disappeared.”
“People disappear all the time.” Jake cleared his throat and wiped his nose with the back of his hand. “Even in our small town we’ve had cases of people who’ve gone missing. What makes this so special?”
“They vanished before my eyes,” Sally stated.
“Well, yeah… I know that. But do they?”
Yasif rolled his eyes. “Clearly they do or they wouldn’t have come.”
Jake reached into his shirt pocket, pulled out a pack of cigarettes, and removed one with his lips. Sally cleared her throat and eyed it. “Sorry.” He slipped it back into the pack.
Sally snatched them from him and stuffed them into her pocket. “I just got the car clean, and you want to go and stink it up!”
Jake didn’t argue. “This is just all so outta my league, ya know?”
“You didn’t have to come,” Yasif pointed out.
Jake glanced at him. “No, I need to do this.”
“For Daniel?” Sally asked.
Jake looked at her, a strange fear in his expression. “I just…I just need to is all, okay?”
She said nothing, but gave a reassuring nod.
Silence passed between them for a time until Jake spoke up again. “You know we’re going to need to move the server, right?”
Yasif shifted in the back seat. “Move the server?”
Jake nodded. “If these guys have as much tech as you say they do and they’re interested in anything your paper is doing, they’re gonna get into the server and access everything you’ve got.”
“Our files are on there,” Sally responded hesitantly.
“Files?” Jake asked.
“Our encrypted files.” She pushed her hair behind her ear. “All of the stuff we save to the server so we can access it when we need it. We have a lot of sensitive info on there.”
“I still don’t get why these guys would want your server,” Jake stated.
Sally glanced to Yasif. He raised an eyebrow, but then nodded.
She explained, “The Hi-Li isn’t just a simple school newspaper. It has an artificial intelligence on it that can sift through the data. The site nearly runs itself. The AI handles all the traffic and makes connections between articles and information from different sources and displays the relevant information along with the original posts. It’s not perfect, but it works better than we’d hoped… Daniel programmed it.”
“It was my idea!” Yasif said.
“And a good idea it was,” Sally acknowledged. “But if it weren’t for Daniel, we’d never have been able to make it happen.”
Yasif conceded, adding, “Not many people know the true power of the Hi-Li server. The AI sifts through multitudes of incoming data, sorts it, and outputs what’s relevant to the news feeds.”
Jake was clearly impressed. “Wow! And Daniel did all this?”
“I helped,” Yasif corrected.
“You guys really programmed an AI?” Jake asked.
Yasif nodded.
Jake whistled. “That’s amazing. What kind of machine do you have that can handle that kind of processing power?”
Sally shrugged. “I just know how to use it. I have no clue how it all works.”
Yasif added, “It’s impressive enough. Daniel and I built it ourselves.”
Jake again was impressed. “I’ve got some connections that may help you out. Are your firewalls secure?”
“Yes,” Yasif said.
Jake gave him a warning look. “You better hope they’re strong enough to last against this government group. From the looks of it, they’ll have no trouble hacking your box.”
“Don’t you worry about that; they won’t hack into it easily. We customized the OS to support the AI so the thing isn’t running OEM software that could be easily compromised.” Yasif crossed his arms again. Sally almost laughed; he looked so impressed with himself as though it were all his doing.
“I know a place we can take the server where no one will ever find it. I’ve got a network of routers that will have anyone who tries to hack it running in circles before they ever realize what’s happening. It’ll be safe.” Jake stared ahead at the road.
Yasif sounded skeptical. “And where is this super secure location?”
“It’s probably better that I show you.” Jake’s eyes were in the mirror again.
“How do you have access to all this stuff?” Sally asked as politely as she could.
“My dad,” Jake reminded them. “He owns a company that handles installs for all the major telecoms out this way. I was forced to work with him for years, even when I was a kid. I learned a thing or two. Got pissed off at him after…” He trailed off. “Well, anyway, I got pissed and started tweaking the switches and modems we’ve been installing. I’ve got some backdoor access to some pretty nifty places.” Jake smiled.
With a disapproving look, Sally responded, “What does that mean?”
“It means that I can get to information that some hackers have wet dreams
about and no one would even know I was in their system.”
“Stealing?” Yasif asked.
Jake stiffened. “I may have made small tweaks to my bank account from time to time, but never large enough for anyone to notice.”
“I can’t believe we brought this guy into this!” Yasif threw his hands into the air.
Sally was already way ahead of him, imagining the possibilities. “Think about it. I’m not talking about stealing anything—or using it to hurt anyone, just that we’d have access to information that could help shed some light on things.”
Yasif crossed his arms again and pursed his lips.
“Yaz, I know what you’re thinking, but I’m not talking about anything major here. I mean, what if Jake could get us into the news center’s computer or something like that? We could get our hands on exclusive information; stuff that wouldn’t hit the news cycle for days. Think about how quickly we could find out anything we needed to know.”
“It’s still stealing,” he said.
“If we wanted to know something about a story, what would we do to get it?” she argued. “How many times have we broken into the school’s system to get information on students?”
“That’s different.”
“How?”
“I don’t know, it just is.” Yasif glared at the back of the seat in front of him.
“I know you don’t approve of this, but I think it’s a resource we’d be silly not to use. And I promise, we won’t use it for anything that will harm or jeopardize anyone.”
He regarded her for a moment, then stared out at the passing trees and houses.
Sally sighed and settled back into her seat, an uneasy feeling building inside. For the rest of the trip, her mind was occupied with the investigation.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
WHEN YASIF RETURNED to his dorm room, he slammed the door, not caring how many guys were in the hall. They’d just have to get over his little tantrum. He was too angry to care. He entered, threw his backpack across the room, and punched the wooden bedpost.
He, of course, immediately regretted this. Pain rang through his hand and shot up his arm, but he ignored it. He ran his hands through his hair, tears welling up in his eyes. He’d held them back for the entire trip back from Athens.
How could he have been so stupid! If he’d just left well-enough alone, things wouldn’t be so weird. He give anything to be able to wipe the event from existence. Throwing himself onto his bed, he buried his face in a pillow, muffling the sound of his sobs.
Sally had rejected him, just as he had feared she would. He was stupid to think she’d share his feelings. What was worse, she couldn’t even bring herself to at least give him a reason. Instead, she’d said nothing, like none of it mattered.
Perhaps it was time for him to move on, to give up on his stupid fantasy. His father had been urging him to return home and prepare for college. Maybe he could find a nice Jordanian girl. He’d wanted to stay in America and go to school, but mostly to be near Sally. But she didn’t want him, so why stay?
He made his way to the desk and opened his laptop. Within moments, he had composed an email to his father, asking him about plans to return home. As soon as he finished, he watched as the email whisked itself away into cyberspace before he began composing another email, this one to Sally.
Dear Sal,
I’m sorry for offending you the way that I did. I hope you can forgive me for my rudeness. I did not mean to imply that you should share any feelings I may have had for you. I hope that you can understand why I’m leaving the country to go home. I have been…
He paused, trying to think of what to write next. What could he say that would make her understand his feelings? He wanted her to know he wasn’t a coward, that he wasn’t just running away. She’d get by without him. It wasn’t as if she even needed him anymore with Jake around. He might not be Daniel, but it was clear Sally thought him an adequate replacement.
Yasif stared at the screen, but the words wouldn’t come. His mind locked, the thoughts grinding over one another like broken gears in a machine until the door swung open and his roommate came in. Yasif slapped the computer shut, not wanting Ben to see he’d written. But the football player wasn’t paying him any attention. He was staring at something off in the corner, his face darkening to an angry red.
“What the hell, man?” Ben moved so fast, Yasif hardly had time to register. He found Ben’s hand gripping the front of his shirt so tightly it seemed to squeeze the breath out of him.
“Ben! What is it? What did I do?” Yasif pleaded. He couldn’t imagine what he could have done to make his roommate so upset. Yasif glanced to where Ben had been looking and his heart sank into the depths of his stomach. “Dude, I’m so sorry!”
“What the hell did you do that for? That’s our State Championship Trophy! Do you know how hard we worked for that?”
The trophy was cracked from where Yasif had thrown his backpack.
“I’m so sorry, dude! I didn’t mean to! I swear!” Why Ben had brought it to their room in the first place, Yasif wasn’t sure—probably to brag about it, but it didn’t matter. The damage was done. And if it wasn’t already sufficiently clear he’d pissed off the jock, the fist heading for his face erased any lingering doubts.
CHAPTER NINETEEN
SALLY ENTERED HER DORM, her mind a million miles away still, trying to work out everything she’d seen, and on top of that, she couldn’t get the whole incident with Yasif out of her head either. She’d hardly said a word to Jake the entire journey from the car. It took her a moment to realize her roommate was speaking.
“Where have you been?”
Sally watched Stephanie’s lips move, but the words failed to penetrate the cloud in her mind.
“Are you going to answer me?” The cheerleader had her hands on her hips. “And who’s this?”
When Sally didn’t answer, Stephanie started waving her hand in front of Sally’s face. “Hellloooo! Earth to Sally!”
“What? Oh…” Sally gestured toward Jake. “This is Jake. He’s a friend.”
“A friend? Or a friend?” The emphasis was as clear as the implication.
“Just a friend,” Sally replied. As if she would bring a guy to their room even if she was interested in him.
“Well, I don’t know where you’ve been, but you sure missed some serious stuff.” Stephanie was wagging her finger at her as though scolding a small child.
Sally feigned ignorance. “What happened? Did you lose your favorite lip gloss?”
“For your information, missy, the government was here asking about you.” That got Sally’s attention. “I don’t know what you’ve gotten yourself into, but they’re lookin’ for you.” Stephanie went over to her desk and picked up a brush, running it through her hair, though it was clear she’d already brushed it.
At least now Sally knew how the Division 51 agents had found them. “What did they want?”
Stephanie turned on one heel and scoffed. “Do I look like I have time to take your messages?”
“Stephanie, please. This could be important.”
She scoffed again and rolled her eyes, holding the brush loosely as she spoke. “Well, they were asking all kinds of questions about that newspaper thing you do. You know? The TVs and stuff. I told them you had Daniel and Yasif in here all hours of the night building some computer and then you used it to start your newspaper. They seemed quite impressed.” She turned and wagged a finger at her again. “You should be proud of yourself.” She returned to her reflection. “Anyway, they asked where the thing was, and I told them I didn’t care about such nerdy stuff and that’s when they left.” Stephanie smiled as though she had just accomplished some major task.
Sally tried to keep the anger out of her voice. “You told them all that?”
“Duh…they asked… Oh, there was one other thing. They wanted to know who your father was.” She looked at Sally and laughed, then she gestured toward herself. “Like I would know your
father. What kind of a girl do they think I am?”
Gripped with fear, Sally had to force herself to ask the next question. “What exactly did they want to know about him?”
Stephanie continued. “They just asked if I knew who he was. It was kinda random.”
“Are you sure that was all?”
“Uh… Yup!” She smiled, then stopped. “I think?” She put the brush against her head as though it would somehow spark a memory. “Yeah, I’m pretty sure that was it!”
Sally grabbed Jake. She didn’t have time to worry about her father; there was a more pressing concern at the moment. “Come on! We’ve gotta go check the server.”
“Wait!” Stephanie yelled. “Don’t leave me here by myself!”
“Seriously?” Sally asked impatiently. “Are you twelve?”
“With all this crazy stuff going on?” Stephanie pouted. “I just don’t want to be alone.”
Sally rolled her eyes, but didn’t have time to argue as the blonde followed them from the room.
CHAPTER TWENTY
IF THERE WAS ONE THING Lani Tanaka knew, it was that the best attribute a reporter could have was patience. There were so many times when the only thing she could do was sit and wait for something to happen. This was one of those times.
She’d interviewed enough of the students to know the next person she needed to talk to was Sally Singletary, but the girl was as slippery as a snake! Lani had been all over the school, and Sally was nowhere to be found. After some thought, she decided to check the office to see if Sally had logged out. Sure enough, she had. Athens? What could the girl want there?
It was then she caught sight of a Middle-Eastern boy moving quickly through the commons. She recognized him; he was the one who ran the news site with Sally. At that moment, she couldn’t remember his name. Yanik? Yarid? She cursed under her breath for not paying closer attention.
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