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“Today, Timothy Andrew Wray and co-conspirators were indicted for the crimes of sex trafficking, false imprisonment, money laundering, racketeering, and tax evasion.”

“Oh my God,” Imogene whispers beside me. Her fingers brush against mine and I hold onto them tight. Silas sits up, possibly for the first time in a week.

“Prior to this, Timothy was wanted for tax evasion and questioning, but due to the discovery of an enormous amount of irrefutable evidence by the FBI,” the camera widens, revealing Agent McNair standing just to the side, “the state had no choice but to expand the scope of our investigation and alter the charges.”

“Holy shit,” Levi says, closing the book in his hand.

“As of right now, all four of the people indicted are unaccounted for. We are asking the community to report any sightings or information you may have on the following people to the tip line below." Photos appear on the screen, “Timothy Wray, who goes by the name Anex, and his followers Margaret Ackerman, Erik Heisman, and Jasmine West, heir to the Cobra Tequila empire.”

“Fuck,” Silas says, running his hand through his hair. “Rex and I,” he looks back at me. “We recruited her.”

“I remember her,” I say. From the frat parties. She’d been on the hook for a while. I guess Rex and Silas locked her down.

“We caution you not to approach any of these people on your own. They are dangerous, their compound had extensive explosives and weaponry. We must assume they are armed and should be approached with caution.”

We watch the rest of the press conference, but the attorney general declines to answer questions from the press.

“What they’re saying,” Levi rubs his chin, “is that they have no fucking clue where he is.”

“Maybe it’s a trick,” Imogene argues. “Like, they’re trying to pretend they don’t have anything on him, making him more overconfident.”

“I need some air,” I say once it’s over. I walk to the door and open it. Mallory is on the deck, watching the press conference on his phone.

“Where are you going?”

“For a walk,” I reply.

“Not sure that’s a good idea, Elon.”

“Fuck good ideas!” My patience is hanging by a thread. “No one has a fucking clue where Anex is. We’ve been cooped up for a week. I need some goddamn air before I lose my mind.”

Imogene steps out of the house and shuts the door behind her. She looks at Mallory. “I’ll go with him.”

“That doesn’t make me feel more secure, Ms. Montgomery.”

“We’ll stay close. I promise.”

He frowns and shakes his head, but says, “Fine, but I want you in sight of the house at all times. I’ll be watching.”

“Don’t worry,” she says, grabbing my hand, “we’re used to that.”

Gravel crunches under foot, and I try to steady my breathing as we walk farther away from the house. My skin itches knowing the agents are nearby but I suspect it’s less about them and more like what Imogene said, we’re used to having a lack of privacy.

“Talk to me,” she says, tightening her grip on my hand.

“I just needed some air, that’s all.” I glance over at her, at the boots and fitted jeans. At the button-down plaid shirt with the sleeves rolled up to her elbows. “That press conference… it just feels like more games, you know?”

“I believe in Agent McNair,” she says, leading me to an outcropping of rocks. They’re mossy on the sides, but smooth on the top. I grab her hips and lift her to sit on top. She lets me fit in between her legs, linking her arms around my neck. “I believe she’ll catch him.”

“How?” I ask with complete sincerity. “How do you still believe?”

She shrugs and plays with the hair at the back of my neck. It’s grown out, longer than I wore it at Serendee. “I grew up thinking the outside world was scary and dark. That people were conniving and ruined by the Secular world. That all they wanted was money and to exploit our bodies.”

“When really Anex was already doing it,” I add. “I know, but that betrayal, it should make you more pessimistic. If he could convince an entire community, he’ll be able to talk his way out of all of this with that attorney general, or a jury in a courthouse.”

“He may,” she admits, “but until then I just want to live my best life.”

I look around the woods, taking in the quiet, the cold. There are no leaves on the trees other than the pines. This far away from the house, other than the occasional bird, or snap of a twig, it feels like we’re the only ones alive.