Forbidden (The Seeker Saga, #2) by Sarah Swan

best part is that the elevators go to a private exit at the back of the dorm.  If we’re lucky, there’s not going to be anyone out there in the dark.”
    “And then we can go into the forest,” I said, catching on.  “We won’t need to take the main path.”
    “Right,” Ashley said.  “From there, it won’t be far to the caves.”
    Just then, an urgent knock sounded at the door.  I jumped, and my heart jumped with me.  Ashley’s head spun around.  After a moment, Rob went to the door again.
    “Yes?” he said cautiously.
    “Rob?” came the reply from the other side.  “It’s Liz.  Madison and Eve are with me.  What’s going on?”
    “You’ll see soon enough,” Rob muttered as he opened the door to let the three girls in.  Liz was wearing a licorice drape trench over white jeans and a red blouse cut deep to the neck.  Madison, who sometimes reminded me of Liz’s shorter twin, had her hair swept back over a ruffled brown jacket.  Eve, dressed all in black with her hair spiked dangerously to the side, held a casual aloofness that she usually assumed. But that evaporated when she saw the inside of the room.
    “What happened?” Eve quickly demanded. 
    Once more, I found myself retelling the story of coming back to my room, of being attacked, and of being saved by Rob.  The girls listened silently as I talked and sneaked anxious looks at each other.  Once I concluded with how Rob tied the attacker up, Ashley spoke.
    “We need to get him out of here,” she said.  “The best option that I can think of is the caves.  We can keep him there until morning, at least, and figure out what to do next then.”
    “That’s a good idea,” Eve said simply.  “But how do we get him out of the room?”
    “The janitor’s elevator.  Liz, you have your key?”
    Liz nodded absently.  Most of her attention had shifted to the man.  “It’s upstairs in my room.  I can go grab it.”
    “I’ll go with you,” I quickly volunteered.  “I don’t want you to be alone.”  I also needed to tell Liz that I suspected the crystals had some part in this. 
    Rob shook his head.  “If there’s anybody else out there, I should be the one to go.”  He retrieved his baseball bat from the floor.  “This has served me well so far.”
    There was no way for me to argue without seeming confrontational, so I nodded my consent.  At least, with Rob out of the room, I’d be able to speak to the other girls freely.
    “Let’s go,” Liz said, starting for the door.  “We’ll be back in a few minutes.”
    With both of them out of the room, an uneasy silence descended upon the four of us.  Madison shifted her feet uncomfortably. Ashley cleared her throat. Even Eve looked a little disturbed.  I fingered the crystal in my pocket. It did not quite give me the peace of mind I was hoping for.
    “So,” Ashley said after a long moment, “it looks like things are starting to get dangerous around here.”
    “Do you think it has something to do with the crystals?” Madison asked suddenly.  It was the first time she had spoken since coming to my room. Her voice came as a tiny peep. 
    “Of course it has something to do with the crystals!” Eve exploded, causing Madison to jump back.  Eve continued on without softening her tone.  “The question is, was this man after Tracy in particular, or could it have been any one of us?  How safe are we here anymore?”
    “We don’t know everything,” Ashley said in a mediating voice.  “We don’t know anything !  We can’t presume it was about the crystals without proof.  All we really know is that a man just tried kidnapping Tracy.” 
    “Well, what else would it be about?” Eve demanded.  “What—” she cut off at a knock on the door, and Liz’s voice on the other side.  Shooting Ashley and Madison a look that said the discussion wasn’t even close to over, Eve went to open the door.
    Rob and Liz slipped inside.  “I got the key,” Liz said.