“I guess it’s plausible…” I began. Seniors had a 10:30 curfew, so Daniel could’ve stopped by on the later side. And Bunkerhadconsulted his watch after catching Tag and me, undoubtedly unsure about the time.
Tag didn’t say anything. His silences were so loud that sometimes it was impossible to ignore him. You wanted to know what he was thinking.
Alex sighed. “Really, Taggart?”
“We have to check, Alexander. I don’t want to chance it.”
“Fine,” Alex gritted out, “but I have to tell you, I don’thave much confidence in that old fire escape’s weight-bearing capabilities…”
Over at Macalester House, the freshmen boys’ dorm, there was a rusty fire escape that led directly up to Daniel and Manik’s suite. “I can’t believe you haven’t had Buildings and Grounds dismantle it yet,” my mom had told Josh at dinner right before school started in August. “It’s practically an invitation for your prefects to sneak out or sneak others in.”
“I’m aware,” Josh said after finishing off his rack of ribs. “That’s why I chose two guys who wouldn’t even consider it. They’re too responsible.” He took a sip of beer. “And from what I can tell, they don’t exactly have the biggest social lives.”
“That’s not true,” I remembered saying. “Daniel Rivera was elected school president.”
“A vote that definitely prioritized competency over likability…” My mom shook her head, still disappointed for Alex.
Josh shrugged. “Even better. He’ll be too busy to get any action.”
“Josh!” my mom and I both exclaimed, and I thought something similar now. One—possibly two—prefects had snuck out of the dorm from right under his nose. The fire escape was right above his first-floor apartment!
“Alright, let’s go,” Alex said flatly. “Preferably with our fingers crossed.”
“No,” Tag said before anyone could move. “We’re not all doing this.”
Alex groaned. “Taggart, you just said you wanted—”
“Yes, he wants confirmation,” I blurted, surfing Tag’s wavelength. “But notallof us need to confirm that Daniel’s melatonin is doing its job.”
“Exactly.” Tag stepped closer to me. “Mack House is in the opposite direction, so everyone going will waste time. We’ll be completely off course.” He paused, then delivered the hard truth. “Manik, I think you should go check on Daniel and keep an eye on him.”
Manik squeaked. “Really? Me?”
“Yes, it makes the most sense.”
“How so?”
“Well, for starters, you live there.”
“But what if he catches me coming back?”
“Have an alibi ready,” Tag said, and I impulsively knocked his knuckles with mine. It was an old code between us. Two knocks meant,You’re funny.
Tag flicked my arm.Thanks.
Manik was silent but contemplative.Come on, I thought, holding in a breath.Come on, Manik. You’d be doing this for the greater good of the team…
“Wait,” Alex said. “Don’t send him yet—we might be overthinking this.” He laughed. “All we have to do is check Daniel’s location on the Snap Map.”
“Daniel doesn’t have Snapchat,” I said, hoping everyone else had set their profiles to Ghost Mode. We couldn’t have afellow student randomly checking the map in the middle of the night and not seeing us in our houses.
“Do you even know me?” Alex said when Tag confirmed that everyone was invisible. “I’m always in Ghost Mode.”
“I’ll check Find My Friends,” I said, pulling my phone from my pocket. “He’s on Find My Friends.”
But Daniel’s profile gave us virtually no information other than the fact that he had been in the dining hall at 6:34 p.m. for dinner. “No dice,” Tag said, looking over my shoulder. “He has it set up so that his location isn’t updated unless he’s actively using the app.”
I glanced up from my bright screen. “Please, Manik?”
