happened while we’d struggled in bed or on the way to the car trunk. Tracking us from the start meant they were assured we couldn’t have jumped up and run off at some point.
“They aren’t really designed for GPS. They just send out a frequency,” he said. “There’s a local scanner out there somewhere that can pick it up. It wouldn't have enough energy for a satellite transmission but it can make it easier to follow you if they wanted to tail you. If they’re searching for you now, this is what they’re looking for.”
“How come they didn’t find me before? They were looking for me while I was keeping an eye on Brandon and they were talking to him.”
“You may have been close enough to Brandon that they were picking up the same frequency from him. These wouldn’t have that far of a range and they’re not very precise, but if they picked it up, they’d know they were close. It’s like playing Hot or Cold.”
“What if they’re following us now?”
“We want them to follow if they are, but we want them closer. We don’t want to make this easy for them. If you want to get to know your stalkers, you need to get them as close as possible and draw them out into the open, into the public areas.” He tossed the three units into the fountain and continued to comb my hair. “With these, they could stay at a distance and keep an eye on you. That’s not what we want.”
Sophisticated. This German and his pals were even smarter than I thought. Could I have ever survived this without Axel and the guys? Probably, but at least with them, it’d be easier. I’d not thought about bugs, and probably would have been picked up pretty quickly if they came across that signal.
I sucked in a slow, long breath and exhaled. I was fooling myself. These guys didn’t even need me.
Axel took his time, going through every lock of hair. The teeth bit into my scalp when he got close, but it was necessary, because the little trackers were really small. He checked behind my ears, in my ears, angled my chin around to look underneath my jaw. He wanted to make sure nothing else fell out and attached to my skin. I’d never caught lice going to school, but I thought the process to clean out those real bugs must be similar. Checking for metal bugs was like catching lice, but way more dangerous. That was a crazy thought.
Again a silence fell between us, and I stared at the dead fountain, almost falling asleep where I stood as he inspected me.
“Are you so worried about your brother that you’re avoiding me?” he asked quietly.
There it was. The question I’d been thinking he’d ask sooner or later. “No,” I said. I wasn’t in the mood to elaborate because if I said what I was really thinking out loud, he’d ask more questions. It was something some of the other Academy boys asked quietly, or sometimes in odd, roundabout ways and I distracted them with something else.
They wanted to know how I felt, and the truth was more complicated than they wanted to really know. I thought over time, I’d eventually get over how I was feeling, but that wasn’t the case. My feelings only grew stronger.
After I responded, and I didn’t know what else to say, I remained quiet, hoping he’d take a hint.
“You can tell me if you’re not interested,” he said. “Not trying to be passive-aggressive about it. I’m interested in you. I just want to know where I stand.”
I grunted.
“What was that?” he asked a little louder.
What an ass. He waited until I was vulnerable, naked and couldn’t run and he was going to corner me with something like that? Did he really need to know that badly? I had to remind myself not to let him brush my hair from now on. That seemed to be his way of saying we need to talk.
It was difficult now, though, to not simply give in. Wouldn’t it be nice to be able to lean into him? To feel like I’d been missed and worried about, and just be held for a while? I’d felt so vulnerable since I’d
“They aren’t really designed for GPS. They just send out a frequency,” he said. “There’s a local scanner out there somewhere that can pick it up. It wouldn't have enough energy for a satellite transmission but it can make it easier to follow you if they wanted to tail you. If they’re searching for you now, this is what they’re looking for.”
“How come they didn’t find me before? They were looking for me while I was keeping an eye on Brandon and they were talking to him.”
“You may have been close enough to Brandon that they were picking up the same frequency from him. These wouldn’t have that far of a range and they’re not very precise, but if they picked it up, they’d know they were close. It’s like playing Hot or Cold.”
“What if they’re following us now?”
“We want them to follow if they are, but we want them closer. We don’t want to make this easy for them. If you want to get to know your stalkers, you need to get them as close as possible and draw them out into the open, into the public areas.” He tossed the three units into the fountain and continued to comb my hair. “With these, they could stay at a distance and keep an eye on you. That’s not what we want.”
Sophisticated. This German and his pals were even smarter than I thought. Could I have ever survived this without Axel and the guys? Probably, but at least with them, it’d be easier. I’d not thought about bugs, and probably would have been picked up pretty quickly if they came across that signal.
I sucked in a slow, long breath and exhaled. I was fooling myself. These guys didn’t even need me.
Axel took his time, going through every lock of hair. The teeth bit into my scalp when he got close, but it was necessary, because the little trackers were really small. He checked behind my ears, in my ears, angled my chin around to look underneath my jaw. He wanted to make sure nothing else fell out and attached to my skin. I’d never caught lice going to school, but I thought the process to clean out those real bugs must be similar. Checking for metal bugs was like catching lice, but way more dangerous. That was a crazy thought.
Again a silence fell between us, and I stared at the dead fountain, almost falling asleep where I stood as he inspected me.
“Are you so worried about your brother that you’re avoiding me?” he asked quietly.
There it was. The question I’d been thinking he’d ask sooner or later. “No,” I said. I wasn’t in the mood to elaborate because if I said what I was really thinking out loud, he’d ask more questions. It was something some of the other Academy boys asked quietly, or sometimes in odd, roundabout ways and I distracted them with something else.
They wanted to know how I felt, and the truth was more complicated than they wanted to really know. I thought over time, I’d eventually get over how I was feeling, but that wasn’t the case. My feelings only grew stronger.
After I responded, and I didn’t know what else to say, I remained quiet, hoping he’d take a hint.
“You can tell me if you’re not interested,” he said. “Not trying to be passive-aggressive about it. I’m interested in you. I just want to know where I stand.”
I grunted.
“What was that?” he asked a little louder.
What an ass. He waited until I was vulnerable, naked and couldn’t run and he was going to corner me with something like that? Did he really need to know that badly? I had to remind myself not to let him brush my hair from now on. That seemed to be his way of saying we need to talk.
It was difficult now, though, to not simply give in. Wouldn’t it be nice to be able to lean into him? To feel like I’d been missed and worried about, and just be held for a while? I’d felt so vulnerable since I’d
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