Swipe

said. “Follow me!”
    He turned to run, but Hailey planted her feet firmly on the ground. Logan stumbled a little against her weight. He turned to her. Slowly it dawned on him . . . something impossible . . . something that could not be.
    “Hailey,” Logan said. “What exactly is going on here?”
    “I’m sorry, Logan,” Hailey said, still frozen, and even her lips seemed not to move.
    So that was it, then. After all the games, and discoveries, and fears, and revelations, at the final hour, Logan had let his loneliness blind him.
    The spy at Spokie Middle was Hailey.
    He didn’t feel betrayed. He just felt empty.
    “You’ve done well, Hailey,” Jo said, stepping out from the shadows. “Perfectly, in fact. Thank you.”
    Something in Logan snapped. He pounced before anyone knew what had happened. Immediately he was on Tyler, punching him, clawing at him, the two of them rolling on the ground, cursing, bleeding. It took all the strength of Eddie and Jo and Hailey together to hold Logan back, and when they finally had him, everyone in the yard was bruised and cut and out of breath. Tyler had both knees on Logan’s chest now, and Hailey held his head with her fingers pressed firmly on the brows above Logan’s eyes. She held him so he looked straight up into the sky, so that he could see when out of the darkness Blake emerged and towered above the tableau. The small redheaded kid from the Row stood by his side, holding Blake’s hand.
    “I saved you!” Logan said. “I let you go! We’re done now! You’ve ruined my life! Just leave me alone!”
    “No can do,” Blake said. “Sorry.”
    Jo stood and joined Blake by his side. “Logan,” she said. “Thank you for coming.” It was the oddest possible thing for her to say, so unexpected that Logan stopped struggling altogether. “And just in time too.” She knelt down to put a hand on his shoulder, looking into his eyes with concern and gravity. “You are in terrible danger.” She frowned. “Please come in. There’s someone we’d like you to meet.”
    4
    Inside the warehouse, the Dust escorted Logan through a maze of crates and boxes, beyond which glowed the aura of candlelight from a stage cluttered with the strange sight of books and paper.
    At the center of that stage stood a person.
    “Peck.”
    “Logan. We’re so glad you’re here.” Peck smiled. “After all the trouble. I’d offer you a drink if I didn’t suppose you’d assume it was poisoned.”
    Logan looked into his eyes, searching Peck’s face. What he saw confused him, because what he saw was not the face of a killer. His were not the cold, sinister eyes of a criminal. They were empathetic. They were warm. They were of a boy no older than Logan’s sister might have been, had she lived.
    “You must have many questions for me,” Peck said.
    It’s all part of it. It’s all a trap. Don’t be fooled! Logan reached for his tablet and found it gone. He spun quickly to see Hailey turn it off just before pocketing it. She shook her head slowly. You’re alone , the gesture seemed to say. No phone calls. No cries for help. You’re playing by our rules now . . . if you ever weren’t .
    “I’d just as soon you talk first,” Logan said. “You seem to be the one to have called this little meeting.”
    Peck nodded. “Fair enough. First, then, I’ll apologize for all the secrecy, and for our invasion of your privacy. I hope you understand why I couldn’t simply . . . invite you to the party.”
    “But I don’t understand,” Logan said. “I don’t understand you people at all! If you’re aiming to kill me, take your shot! You’ve won, all right? You’ve won!”
    Peck looked disgusted, offended, even. “ Kill you?” he said. “Logan.” Peck assumed the look of a man choosing his words so carefully that none even came out.
    “Then what?” Logan asked. “What is this?” A wave of relief flooded through him, but he tried not to let it show as any sign of weakness. One way or another, this remained a matter of life and death.
    “Surely by now you know what this is about,” Peck said. He looked genuinely convinced that Logan must.
    “I know you kidnap Pledges. I know you kill the Marked. And DOME agents—”
    Peck shuddered at the accusations. “You can’t honestly tell me you risked so much to spy on my friends just to come to those conclusions?”
    For a moment Logan felt a tinge of self-doubt. “I’m not sure what I’ve concluded,” he said. “I admit