The night outside was oppressively dark. Thick clouds had rolled in and filled the sky, cooling the air quickly. Beads of rain dappled the glass panes.

  The view out the window was all Lauren had to watch as she sat in her hospital bed. The part of the school’s medical wing she rested in was one large room with windows on the far wall that overlooked part of the school’s forest. Curtains sectioned off her bed area from others, including the ones that held everyone she went to the market with that day. Lauren’s section was one near the window.

  Lauren had returned to school in the best shape. The BASTION troopers who had rapelled down quickly secured the area, including arresting the robbers who were stuck on site. They contained whatever mechanism was dispensing the gas, and the area was cordoned off soon after.

  Lauren identified herself to the troopers and helped locate her other classmates. Grace collapsed after assaulting the robbers inside the truck. Thalia was slumped against a car, having been grazed by a bullet in the arm. Lucy was stumbling around on top of the roof she had scaled. The height hadn’t been enough to get away from the gas. She had nearly fallen off. Benedict had been the hardest to locate, but apparently, they eventually found him in an alley a block away.

  Lauren was forced to go to the hospital wing with everyone else, despite feeling fine. She felt fine ever since she overcame the gas. But she didn’t protest too much. She knew what a colossal fuckup today was. Someone could’ve been killed. They shouldn’t’ve gotten involved.

  The curtain at the front of her quarters opened. Dr. Yeoh entered, holding a clipboard. He was a short man, with a stocky body and a flat face. His dark hair was thin at the top of his scalp.

  Lauren had just met the middle-aged school doctor today, as she was carted in with the rest of them. He saw them first, which made sense, as Lauren was the only one not slipping in and out of consciousness or babbling nonsense. But eventually he made his way over to her. He had technicians give her a brain scan, then ran her through a series of physical evaluations. Lauren hated every second of it. But again, she forced her feelings down. She had to remind herself that some medical tests really were to help her.

  Dr. Yeoh looked up at her and smiled.

  “How are we feeling Lauren?”

  “Fine. Still fine,” she said. As fine as when she had first got here. She had been patient, but now she wanted to leave. This place gave her goosebumps.

  “Good.” He flipped through some pages on his clipboard. “Well, as much as my instinct wants me to keep you here, I can’t find any reason for you to stay. Your brain activity looks normal. No lung issues, no internal damage, normal reflexes and reactions. You seem coherent. I think you can leave at any time you’re ready. But I do want you to come back if anything feels off, even a mild fatigue or dizziness. I’d like you to stay around people who can bring you back here in case anything goes wrong. I’m not saying you must sleep in the same room as someone else, but just in case you need assistance. Say, for the next twenty-four hours?”

  “Yeah. Sure. How are the others doing?”

  She hadn't heard about their conditions since they had come in. They also had to go through diagnosis.

  “They’ll all be fine,” Dr. Yeoh assured her. “The hallucinogenic compound won’t do any lasting harm. They just need more intensive rest than you. And Miss Wild needs her gunshot wound to heal, but it’s superficial. Hardly a scratch.”

  Lauren pivoted to exit the bed. Fresh clothes were resting on a table nearby, including her jacket.

  Dr. Yeoh turned to leave and give her privacy to change.

  “Can I see the others before I leave?” Lauren asked before he disappeared.

  “A quick visit should be fine, if they’re awake. We just don’t want to overstimulate them with outside visitors right now. I think Agent Dodds is waiting to speak with you.”

  “Thanks.”

  Alone, she took off the hospital gown and put on the sweatpants and shirt they left for her, then her jacket. She slipped on simple shoes.

  She pulled back the curtain, entering the wider area. Two rows of partitioned bed spaces lined the room. Lights hung from the ceiling, reflecting off the waxed floors. The whole place smelled like disinfectants. Several carts with medical equipment sat off to the side, and there were a few stations with computers.

  All but five of the bed spaces had opened curtains, showing they were empty. Lauren walked to the nearest one with the curtain drawn closed. She quietly opened it and peeked inside.

  Grace was sleeping in bed, her chest rising and falling gently.

  Lauren grimaced. She could’ve pounced on her and punched the beauty queen bitch awake. How stupid could she be to fly into an unknown gas cloud, and get the rest of them dragged into it? Grace clearly didn’t have consideration for anyone else. And now here she was, sleeping blissfully no worse for wear while Thalia was recovering from a gunshot. The two of them were going to have words later.

  Lauren left her for now. She checked the next closed curtain and found Lucy.

  She was sitting up, staring off into the distance. Her hands were folded in her lap. She looked exhausted. Her hair was tangled and messy around her face. She looked over and saw Lauren.

  “Lauren! Are you okay?” Her voice was completely fried. She leaned forward, then doubled over and coughed into her hand.

  Lauren entered and closed the curtain.

  “Hey. Don’t hurt yourself. I’m fine. I’ve been fine for a while.”

  Lauren walked close enough for Lucy to wrap her outstretched hands around her.

  “My plan was stupid. The gas got me up there. I shouldn’t have split up with you. I’m sorry.”

  Lauren put her hand on the back of Lucy’s head.

  “It wasn’t your fault. It was those dumb bimbos dragging us into it.”

  “No, I should’ve listened to you. You’re right. I’m not taking this seriously enough. I’m sorry Lauren.”

  Lauren stood back, Lucy looking up at her. She looked so sad and tired. Like all the cheer in her eyes had gone out. They hadn’t even made it to their second week yet. Lauren couldn’t leave her here feeling responsible for Lucy’s spark dying. Not this soon. Not even if she had absolutely valid concerns.

  Lauren leaned down to be on her level.

  “Look, Lucy, you shouldn’t listen to me. I’m an idiot. I’ve never had to look out for people I don’t know before. I think…”

  Lucy looked up at her curiously. What did people say in this situation?

  “…your heart is in the right place. Today wasn’t… great, but we’re alive. And… we’ll get better. Okay?”

  Lucy thought about it, and nodded.

  “Okay. You're not an idiot. But thank you.”

  Lauren patted her shoulder.

  “Get some rest.”

  Lucy scooted back into her bed and laid her head on her pillow.

  “That’s a good idea. I’ll…” She yawned. “See you soon.”

  “Yeah.”

  “Lauren?”

  The voice coming from beyond the curtain was Thalia’s. She must’ve been in the next room over.

  Lauren left Lucy to rest and found Thalia in the next bed, sitting up. A bandage was wrapped around her bicep. She smiled ruefully.

  “I guess you got the worst of it,” Lauren said as she entered.

  Thalia looked at her arm.

  “This old thing? It’s nothing.”

  Lauren sat on the end of her bed.

  “How’s your head?”

  “Pretty clear, now.” Thalia shook her head slowly. “I was so stupid rushing in. After all my talk, you probably think I’m a dumbass.”

  Lauren shrugged. Pretty much. But she didn’t say so. She still respected Thalia a lot more than Grace.

  Thalia sighed. “I know this sounds like such an excuse, but the wildstone… it’s a little addicting. It makes me feel powerful. Makes all my senses better. Makes me feel, I don’t know, more free. I guess I was just looking for an excuse to use it.” She shrugged. “Having that mindset, mixed with that gas, it made me a little feral. I don’t remember much of what happened. I know it could’ve gone a lot worse for me.”

  “Yeah, well, we all got lucky today,” Lauren said by way of comfort.

  “You’ve got a good head on your shoulders, Lauren. I think we can all learn a little something from you.”

  Lauren didn’t know about that. She just took her scrapes at a young age, before coming here. Back when her world was small. She and Rachel had learned practicality out of necessity.

  She rose to her feet.

  “Lauren?” Thalia said. “I know Adam is gonna be worried sick, and the doctor isn’t letting visitors in right now. Will you tell him I’m okay? I mean, all of us of course, but—“

  “Yeah,” Lauren said, curtain halfway open. “I know. I’ll tell him.”

  “Thank you.”

  Lauren left the rest of them to rest and walked to the double doors at the front of the room. Agent Dodds was sitting in one of three waiting chairs next to them. She looked up as Lauren approached.

  “Lauren. Can I have a moment? Why don’t you pull around one of these chairs.”

  Lauren let out a small grunt. Here came the chewing out. She was more than ready to explain how Grace and her flunkies got them all into this mess. Lauren would accept no part of the blame, and wouldn’t let Lucy or even Thalia either. They were all just trying to help.

  She pulled around one of the chairs to face Agent Dodds.

  The agent looked much like she did the first day Lauren had seen her: pale, with rosy makeup and wavy auburn hair pinned back. Up close, her facial features were tight, lips settled into a pursed pinch. Her nose was small and eyebrows thin and sharp. She wore reading glasses that accentuated her dour look. A notebook rested on her lap, one curvy leg resting atop the other.

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  After she plopped down in the chair, Dodds fixed Lauren with a head tilt and a smile that was probably meant to look sympathetic.

  “I was meaning to meet you face to face very soon. Agent Hogan told me he thought you were such a promising candidate for this school. It’s a shame our first meeting had to be accelerated by troubles such as this.”

  A moment of quiet stretched between them. If Agent Dodds wanted Lauren to squirm and start pleading her innocence, Lauren wasn’t going to bite. These BASTION spooks were nothing if not thorough. Dodds certainly had the full picture of the situation by now.

  Lauren looked around. Dodds straightened, not betraying any thoughts with her face. She was patient. Lauren was going to have to say something if she wanted to leave.

  “Whose robbery did we fuck up today?”

  Dodds’ smile tightened, looking both amused and unamused. She was quiet for another second.

  “They’re a gang called the Dust Devils. They use the hallucinogenic gas you experienced today to clear an area or disable anyone inside it so they can pillage a target uninterrupted. I’m sure they weren’t expecting your sudden intervention.”

  Dodds’ tone was still impressively neutral, but she was clearly disapproving, maybe even mocking the pathetic blundering of the Rosewell students. Lauren didn’t like her nearly as much as Hogan.

  “One got away,” Dodds continued. “Three were apprehended. Your friends weren’t very gentle with them. But they’re alive, and they’ll be questioned.”

  Lauren crossed her arms. “We’re still in trouble, aren’t we?”

  Dodds avoided the question for now. She flipped to a new page in her notebook and produced a pen.

  “Tell me about your classmates’ performance today.”

  Now it was Lauren’s turn to tilt her head.

  “Excuse me?”

  Dodds clicked her pen and prepared to write.

  “I believe in letting no opportunity go to waste. So, let’s say this was your first outing as a team. How do you think your classmates performed as individuals, and together? Analyze, if you would.”

  Okay. She wasn’t expecting that. But Lauren cautiously liked this route more than talking about punishment. So she put some thought into it for a moment.

  “There was no team. We all charged in at different times, with no coordination. Grace went first. She’s a glory-hound. She thinks she’s invincible. She’s reckless. She didn’t care if the rest of us followed or not. I’m guessing she didn’t give a single thought to rescuing anyone, just beating up bad guys.”

  Dodds nodded, writing quickly.

  “What else?”

  “Cleo and Benedict followed her without much trouble. I think they folded pretty quickly. Cleo’s powers made things more dangerous if anything. Thalia went in her own way. She wanted an excuse to use the wildstone. It’s addictive, apparently. I guess you know how that turned out. Lucy had a strategy, at least. She’s eager to help. Too eager. But she thought to get high ground and prioritize fishing people out. She seems genuine about wanting to be a hero.”

  Something that Lauren had tried to squash.

  Dodds continued writing.

  “And yourself?”

  Lauren started.

  “What?”

  Dodds looked up and made eye contact. “Include yourself in your analysis, if you would.”

  “Uh, okay. I wasn’t going to go in at all. I was going to stay put. I don’t want any trouble. But then everyone started going in, and I didn’t want them to get killed.”

  “So you were prioritizing rescuing your classmates?”

  “That’s right. They weren’t ready for any of this.”

  Dodds’ writing paused. “And are you? Ready for this?”

  That question seemed loaded. Lauren shifted in her seat.

  “No. Obviously not.”

  The agent seemed to find something curious in that, but she kept it to her notes.

  After a brief pause, she asked, “Do you find it strange that you’re the only one on your feet right now? Seemingly perfectly fit?”

  She didn’t find it strange it all. For all Dr. Smythe had done to her, she gave her a truly wicked immune system.

  “I think it’s because of what was done to me, when I was an experiment. I don’t get sick anymore.”

  Dodds jotted. “That sounds useful.”

  Was that a joke? She was so deadpan, it was hard to tell.

  Dodds ceased writing and closed her notebook as quickly as she began. She looked to Lauren again.

  “Thank you, Lauren. Very insightful. I daresay we might salvage something useful from your excursion today.”

  Lauren gripped the armrests, ready to stand.

  “So… I’m free to go?”

  Dodds nodded. “Certainly. You’re free to roam anywhere on campus grounds for the next two weeks.”

  Lauren froze at the wording. Campus grounds? Two weeks?

  “You’re— you’re grounding me?”

  Grace was getting strangled to death the moment she came back to the dorm.

  The eyebrows on Agent Dodds’ face rose, seemingly daring Lauren to make a scene.

  “Your roaming privileges are being suspended, as we warned you they would be.”

  Lauren stood, rising over the agent, her hands balled into fists.

  “I told you, I didn’t start this. I tried to be responsible. Grace and her gang rushed in, and I tried to save their dumb asses. And you’re punishing me for it?”

  “We are applying rules evenly,” Dodds said. Her neutral tone made Lauren want to shake her. “Had you acted on the sound judgement you claim to have considered, you could have been a positive example to your peers. Unfortunately, the lot of you charged in rashly, and now you must all be held accountable.”

  Lauren could’ve picked up the chair she was sitting in and slammed it into the wall hard enough to shatter it into pieces. Two weeks. One day of freedom not spent looking for her sister was bad enough, but two weeks? Rachel might be dead or gone by then. What right did they have to tell her where she could go?

  “I want to speak to Hogan.”

  “You are not in the custody of Agent Hogan—”

  “Hogan told me this place isn’t a prison!”

  “It isn’t. And you aren’t a prisoner, Lauren.” Dodds watched her passively as Lauren paced like a caged animal. “But you are a minor and a ward of BASTION. Which means you belong where we place you. I’m not sure if this was ever explained to you, Lauren, but this school is a privilege to attend. If it proves to be a bad fit for you, we have other accommodations with less opportunity for unsupervised exploration and socialization.”

  Lauren paused, turning to stare at the agent. Was she seriously threatening her? If Dodds thought Lauren was being shipped anywhere else, she could get ready for the fight of her life. Lauren would make her escape from the lab look downright amicable.

  Dodds leaned forward, holding Lauren’s stare.

  “You may go, Lauren. Your school ID will reactivate for excursions in two weeks. I expect you to occupy yourself with your studies in the meantime.”

  Fuck you and fuck your studies.

  Lauren left Dodds behind, slamming the medical wing doors open. She found herself in hallway that sloped slightly downward. She was ready to punch a hole into the drywall as soon as she cleared the doors. But before she could make a fist and slam it into the nearest surface, that surface turned out to be Adam’s scared, surprised face.

  Lauren’s anger was temporarily forgotten as she was confronted by Adam, who had been slumped against the wall, waiting just outside the doors.

  “Lauren!”

  He gripped her shoulders and pulled her into a sudden hug.

  “Are you alright? How is everyone? I heard what happened as soon as I got back. Thalia wasn’t answering, and then no one was answering, then—”

  Lauren gently pushed him away. She still wasn’t used to sudden personal contact.

  “I’m fine. Everyone’s fine.”

  Her anger interrupted, Lauren was suddenly exhausted. She wanted to go curl up and sleep for a day. She wanted to cry. She felt so powerless.

  “Everyone’s okay?” Adam checked. “They won’t let me in to visit. It was a gas attack?”

  “Everyone’s just resting. Thalia got shot, but she’ll be okay.”

  “SHOT?!” Adam hovered around Lauren as she shuffled down the hall.

  “It was just a graze. She’s fine. Everyone will be fine.”

  Adam covered his face with his hands as he walked beside her.

  “Oh God. I shouldn’t have left you all alone. My family could’ve waited. I… oh…”

  Lauren stopped and turned to Adam. She wanted to tell him to shut up. She was having a monumentally shitty day, and she wanted to be alone. But Adam clearly needed calming, and no one else was gonna do it. She looked him in the eye, one hazel, and one freakishly bright blue.

  “Adam. Calm down. Everyone is just laying in bed in there. The doctor will probably let you visit tomorrow. I wouldn’t have left if anyone wasn’t doing well. So be calm. Okay?”

  He was a pale mess, but he nodded and took a deep breath. “Sorry. I… it’s just sinking in how real this is. I got some huge news today. I was gonna tell Thalia.”

  Abigail was nearby, having stepped back to give the two of them some space. Lauren not-so-subtly steered Adam toward her. “Tell her tomorrow. I need to process things.”

  Adam nodded as he joined the company of Abigail. He turned back to Lauren.

  “Of course. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to make things about me. I’m glad you’re okay, Lauren. Thanks for being there with them. I know you did your best.”

  Lauren gave a weary thumbs up and let Abigail steer Adam to the building’s exit.

  Pausing to let them get a head start, Lauren noticed Reagan posted up in the corner by the door. Her nondescript clothes made her blend in with the dim surroundings. The dark-haired girl watched Adam and Abigail leave, before her gaze slid over to Lauren. She detached from the wall and stood in front of the doors, blocking Lauren’s exit.

  Just seeing her judgmental, angry face reignited Lauren all over again. What right did she have to block her way, after all the crap she had just went through. She held Reagan’s gaze as she walked up to her.

  They stood two feet apart. Reagan’s hands were in the pockets of her black denim jacket. Her eyes were steely underneath her bangs and baseball cap.

  “You look like you’ve got some shit to say,” Lauren growled in a low tone.

  Reagan raised her chin.

  “Yeah. I do. Are you trying to fuck this up for all of us, or just yourself?”

  She could’ve done it. Oh, she could’ve done it. She could’ve grabbed Reagan by the hair and slammed her head into the floor until Doctor Yeoh needed to come out and receive a new patient. She was one twitch away from doing it. One impulse. The thing that stopped her from pouncing on this powerless little shit was Agent Dodds’ looming threat. And Lauren’s new friends. They didn't need more trouble.

  “…What?” she asked in a low, deadly voice.

  If Reagan knew how close she was to being disemboweled, she didn’t show it. She just shook her head at Lauren, doing her best to look down on her though the girls were similar heights.

  “This school, this program, doesn’t work when you rush out and put yourself and others in danger. That’s not what we’re here for. We need to set an example. So when you go out and blunder around, looking and acting like a complete fool, it drags the rest of us down. It makes us look pathetic. You might not have been part of this for long, but even you should know that by now.”

  A double lecture. Lauren was beyond done catching shit for Grace’s stunt. Who the fuck did this powerless nobody think she was to lecture Lauren? She was a berserker in class, trying to knock Lauren’s head off, and now she was trying to take the moral high ground? Anyone else in gym would’ve humiliated her. At least Lauren gave her a fair fight. This girl was full of entitlement without anything to back it up. Lauren would’ve been happy to teach her some humility. But she couldn’t give her a rematch. Not here. Not now.

  She leaned in close, getting right into Reagan’s face, who didn’t flinch away.

  “I’ll tell you what. The next time you think you can lecture me, we’ll meet in a private place. You can bring your little vibrating sticks, if they make you feel like you belong here. And when I’m done beating you from one side of the room to the other, I’ll shove them both up your ass. You’re probably used to carrying them like that.”

  Reagan sneered. Her eyes promised there’d be a reckoning in the future. She held the proximity for a moment, before stepping around Lauren.

  Lauren shoved past her and kicked open the door to outside. She stomped down concrete steps. The evening air was cool. Rain dotted her face as she trudged across the lawn back to the dorms.

  A group of students were hanging out nearby, probably to keep an eye on the medical wing without looking like they were. Reuben was among them. He was the one to try and catch up with Lauren.

  “Hey! Lauren. Are you o—”

  She shook her head, not bothering to look back at the little man.

  “Not now.”

  She walked the rest of the way uninterrupted. No one was hanging outside the dorms to bother her. Somewhere along the way, the raindrops on her face began to mix with frustrated tears.

  She mounted the steps up to her dorm. Harper was probably inside, watching one of her shows. At least she didn’t talk much, or seem to give a shit about anything around her. That was the kind of roommate Lauren wanted at the moment.

  She unlocked her front door. Inside, the overhead light was on, and the TV off. The opposite of what she was expecting.

  Harper wasn’t sitting on the couch. Agent Hogan was.

  He looked over at her as she stopped in the entryway. Lauren slammed the door shut behind her.

  “That cunt wants to keep me here on campus for two weeks.”

  “Lauren…”

  She stomped into the living room.

  “Why the fuck weren’t you the one waiting when I woke up?”

  He sighed and crossed his legs. He looked tired. His black suit was wrinkled, like it had been slept in.

  “Because it’s not my job to be.”

  She crossed her arms. She wanted to be mad at him. She still didn’t understand why she couldn’t be out there with him, helping his search, instead of trying to belong here.

  He clearly knew Lauren would be furious. He read her like a book before she even woke up. So he waited here for her.

  He motioned his hand downward for Lauren to sit. She sunk into the recliner beside the couch.

  “What are you doing here?” she demanded to know. “I thought you said you wouldn’t be around much.”

  “I happened to be in the area.”

  “Why?” Lauren pressed.

  His tired, half-lidded gaze was unimpressed with her anger. For some reason it slowed Lauren. Forced her to take a steadying breath.

  “Lauren, we both know the only reason you haven’t fled from this place already is that you somehow know your sister is nearby.”

  “You know that? How?” She leaned in, daring to feel excitement. “Have you found something?”

  Hogan’s expression let her know not to get her hopes up.

  “Crossing a desert without any clues for an old hound like me to follow would be an impressive feat. Not impossible, but apparently not doable by your captors in the time crunch you and I gave them. So I followed. They led to this metropolitan area. But then they pinched their noses and dived back underwater. This city’s full of diversions. Patrons to hide them. Clients to fund them. Shells within shells.”

  “So what? You gave up?”

  Hogan shook his head. “The only thing I’ve ever given up on is marriage. Everything else? When my boss tells me to find her something, I find it. The only variable is time.”

  He straightened his tie. It didn’t help much with his restless look.

  “Which brings me back to you. How do you know to stay put and look for her?”

  Lauren explained her tugging feeling. She thought it would sound ridiculous, but Hogan listened carefully. He seemed to believe her.

  “Well, that’s something,” he said. “Shame it can’t be more accurate. You let me know if it ever gets stronger or weaker. Or changes at all.”

  He stood to leave. Lauren wasn’t done with him.

  “If you won’t let me help, tell Dodds she can’t ground me for two weeks.”

  “I have no authority over that. Agent Dodds is in charge of the powered youths. You are a powered youth.”

  “This is fucking bullshit,” Lauren spat.

  Hogan rubbed his eyes as he gripped the door handle. He turned back to Lauren.

  “You want to help? Follow the program. This school isn’t daycare. It’s a crucible to make you stronger. We’re gonna need you strong. Your sister is gonna need you strong.”

  “I am strong,” Lauren pleaded. To him. To herself.

  He lingered at the open door, cool air blowing in.

  “Not enough yet. Not for the fights coming.”

  Then he was gone.

  Lauren barely made it to her room before she broke down crying.