I woke up having no clue how long I'd passed out for. I squinted against the harsh light from the blazing sun and felt a hand on my shoulder. "Cammie?"

"How long have I been out for?" I asked, my voice sounding a bit scratchy. I sat up and got a head rush.

"Hey, don't rush yourself, you hit your head pretty hard." Zach cautioned.

I repeated my question and finally got an answer from him. "About twenty minutes." He examined me closely. From his expression I could tell he was desperate for some answers and was concerned. "Hold on. Don't run off screaming or anything like Holden did in The Catcher In The Rye, 'kay?"

I frowned. "What the heck are you talking about?"

He lightly placed his hand on my head and felt around it. "Tell me if it hurts. I need to know where you fell."

"Okay… What for?" His hand drifted over a sore area and I winced.

"Didn't I just ask you to tell me where it hurt?" He said.

"Sorry." I mumbled. "And yeah, it does hurt, but just because you pressed down on it."

"I didn't press down on it, Cammie." He said vaguely and kind of under his breath because he was too preoccupied wetting a hand towel. He then gently dabbed the towel over the painful spot gaining a few "ow's" from me.

"What happened? To my head I mean?"

"You fell on a rock. You were bleeding but I wasn't sure where it was coming from." He said.

I cringed. "Why'd you wait for me to wake up? Would've been less painful."

"Well, for starters, you had a major nose bleed. Are you feeling a bit lightheaded or dizzy?"

"I think those words mean the same thing, smarty." I said. "And just a bit." I added.

He smirked and focused on my head again. I don't think he noticed but his other hand that wasn't holding the towel occasionally drifted to my shoulder, touched my face, and seemed to stroke my hair instead of part it to clean out the wound. He lifted his hand. "Okay, I think that's all we can do…"

I looked at him. "That is a very but statement."

He tried to make sense of what I said but I could tell he couldn't.

"What I meant was that there should be a 'but' following that." I corrected myself.

"Okay, yeah that was a "but statement". I think that just in case we should get you to a hospital to check you out." He said.

"What? Why?" I blurted. "I feel perfectly fine."

He gave me an exasperated look. "Cammie, you passed out for out for twenty minutes right after you practically hemorrhage and then bash your head against a rock. Oh yeah, I bet you're feeling perfectly fine."

I scowled at him, why couldn't he do things my way for once? "Zach. I'll be okay. Stop worrying about me."

He took the hint and helped me get up. I closed my eyes from a major head rush and would've fallen if Zach hadn't been holding me. I moaned quietly hoping it wouldn't trigger another response from Zach that he just had to get me to the ER right away.

"Cam, are you sure you're okay?" So much for hoping.

"Yeah, I promise. I'll be okay." I reassured him.

He looked at me skeptically but let it slide.

A blue car started speeding by but stopped when the driver saw us. He got out of his car frantically once he got a better look at me. He had a bushy mustache and a bulging stomach that his suspenders and belt didn't help stay in. He kinda reminded me of a cowboy, just times 10 in size. "Hey, you kids alright?" He even had a southern accent.

"Yeah, we're fine. She just had a little nose bleed. Plus, the sight of blood makes her a bit queasy so that didn't really help." Zach lied. Only after a second I realized that not all of it was a lie.

The man still looked uncertain. "You sure?"

"Yeah. Definitely." He said.

"Okay, look, let me help you out. I've got a first aid kit in the car," He turned to get it out, since Zach had put ours back in the car. "By the way, the name's Dan."

"Cammie, get behind the car now." Zach ordered in a whisper.

I didn't know why he wanted me to but I could tell it wasn't the time to ask questions. Not making a sound against the sand I quickly hid with Zach behind me. Then the man turned so suddenly, a gun in his hand, and shot at where we were supposed to be. He looked surprised but recovered quickly.

I noticed that Zach was holding a gun too. He took out another one and carefully gave it to me. My heart skipped a beat. There was no way in hell that I was going to shoot someone.

He motioned me to move to the other side of the car, 'Dan' was coming around it.

"You can't hide out here. We're in the middle of nowhere if you haven't noticed. Perfect place to get killed, huh?" 'Dan' called out.

Zach crouched low, lifted his gun and pointed it at 'Dan'. He saw and began to shoot. I ducked and the bullet missed Zach by a few inches.

"Cammie, get in the car now!" Zach yelled. I did exactly as told but when I was about to open the car door a bullet shattered the glass of the window. I ducked and got into the car Zach close behind me. He slammed the door shut and fiddled to get the car going. 'Dan' was coming around, getting closer and closer.

"Zach." I warned. He ignored me. "Zach." I said louder.

'Dan' came to Zach's side gun pointed out.

"Get down!" I yelled then a second later shot the window, sprinkling glass all over and then at Dan three times. He made a wet sound as though his lungs were filled with blood. His eyes bugged out and he fell to the ground. I didn't dare look at what I'd done.

I slumped in my seat and put my hands over my face. "Oh God. Who was that? And don't say Dan because that won't even be funny."

"I dunno, but we're not gonna stick around to find out." Zach said.

The car started with a roar and then another loud sound followed. I looked up when Zach said. "Well that can't be good." He got out and I did too.

He popped open the hood and smoke rushed out. He waved his hands around then took a closer look. After examining it he leaned against the car and looked at loss for a moment. "The engine's busted and there's no way I can fix it."

"So what does that mean…" I asked slowly.

"It means we're gonna have to walk from here," He said, walking around to get the bags.

I moaned. "Noooo. Are you sure you can't fix it?"

He looked up at me across the seats. "I'm sure, Cammie. Come on, let's get moving if we want to get out of here."

Just then I realized he hadn't called me 'Gallagher Girl' ever since he came to get me. I wondered what it meant as we took out the bags. Was he really that worked up over everything that he wasn't using my nickname.

We began walking both of us carrying the duffel bag between us, each holding one handle.

I had a headache from passing out, my nose bleed, and the fight. There was just too much to deal with I felt like my head was going to explode.

After a while Zach asked. "Are you ok?"

I glanced over at him. "What do you mean?"

He kept his eyes forward. "I mean, are you hurting anywhere? Are you in pain?"

I adjusted my bag on my shoulder. "I'm fine." I lied.

He snorted. "Liar."

I frowned at him. "Why would you think I was lying?"

This time he did look at me. "Because that's what you always say when you are., 'I'm fine'. Tell me where it hurts."

"Zach, I am fine." I repeated with more force. "Don't you trust me?"

He didn't hesitate to answer but he didn't straight away. "Spies don't trust anyone."


The sky was pitch black with stars twinkling here and there. There was a soft breeze wafting through my loose hair. The sandy ground beneath us crinkled with every one of our steps.

My feet were screaming at me, we'd been walking for hours on end, getting nowhere. It's like this place we were in never ended.

All the while, Zach and I were playing a game called Truth that I'd read about from The Truth About Forever by Sarah Dessen.

"Okay, what do you hate most in the world?" I asked.

"Losing." He replied.

"That's a bit stuck up isn't it?" I responded.

"Ah, it's my turn to ask the question. You can ask that one later." He smirked. "Okay…" He tapped his finger against his chin mockingly. "Aha. Okay, what did you think of me the first time we met and why?"

"That's two questions." I pointed out. "I hated you. That first day was awful. I thought I'd gotten rid of you but then bam! There you are again, making me look like I failed once again in front of Solomon."

His expression wasn't upset or surprised. "Nice to know. Your turn."

I decided to ask the question I'd been pondering over for a while. "Why haven't you called me 'Gallagher Girl' since you came for me a couple days ago?"

He sighed. "I can't pass, can I?"

I shook my head. "I'll win if you do."

"Fine… I haven't called you 'Gallagher Girl' because it doesn't seem appropriate in this situation we're in. Every minute we are risking everything. My mind's been scattered all over the place I just… I don't know how to explain it. It's just not fitting in with the state we're in."

I hadn't really understood what he'd said but I got the general gist of it.

"What are you scared of most?" He said.

I realized the game was taking a rather personal turn. "Nothing anymore. Everything I'm scared of has happened. I was scared the CoC would hurt my family and they did. I don't care if they're after me. I don't care if they find me. I mean, really, if we get through this, what do I have to look forward to? Nothing. Absolutely nothing. My turn. How did you know the Circle was coming?"

"Pass." He said.

"What?" I blurted. "Zach! It's a simple question!"

"And a not so simple answer." He said.

"Zach! I deserve to know! It's my life we're talking about here, not yours. No offense, but this time it's not about you, it's about me. People are after me."

He still didn't answer my question. I dropped the bag and blocked his path. I held a hand up against him and demanded he tell me.

He looked down at me and let go of the bag. "Cammie, I can't tell you. You wouldn't be able to handle it."

"Tell me." I growled. "I've dealt with all this so far, I'll be able to cope with this."

He ran his hand through his hair and blew out a deep breath. "Are you sure?"

I nodded.

"Everything they said about your dad was a lie." He said.

My hand wavered over his shirt unsteadily. "I don't understand."

"He's not dead, Cammie." He said. "He's undercover as a member of the CoC. He's been keeping the teachers of Blackthorne and Gallagher informed all along. I knew that they were coming first because he told me right after they decided everything."

I looked down, trying to formulate a response but coming up with none. I moved away from him and turned my back on him.

"Cammie, wait." He said.

I put my hands over my face to hide my tears. His hand touched my arm and I sunk down to the ground. I leaned against him and cried. He put his arms around me and held me.

Now, I wish he'd passed the question.


Tada! I updated! Sorry it's taken me a while. I also apologize that I haven't updated TDN for a while, I just need to make sense of the mumbo jumbo coming up in the next few chaps. I have general plans for it, so I can promise that it'll come soon.

Oh, and guys, if you have ANY suggestions for this story I would LOVE to hear about what you'd like to see. And please don't say more Zammie. I know I need more, i just need the perfect places to add it. And if u want more SUGGEST what you want of it. Not just more Zammie, extend on it.

OH! And thank you sooo much for the amazing reviews, I was SO shocked when I got 8 reviews when I checked my email, then kept getting more. I really appreciate it. So now I'm gonna bump it up.

10 reviews min=next chap!

I love you guys!

Ivoryyy