Wow, sorry guys. Life has been kind of hectic for a while hence the lack of updates. But thank you all for the reviews, and here's the next chapter. There's only a few more left, which means things are really about to start happening. Next chapter, for example, will reveal the identity of A (any last guesses?). So keep reading and reviewing, and I'll try to update more quickly. Enjoy!

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Hanna caught on pretty quickly. At least, she hoped she did, because if it had been going on for a while and she hadn't noticed… well, she didn't even want to think about that. It was a couple of isolated incidents, but she managed to stitch them together with clues she'd picked up over the course of about a week. She pulled it all together and came up with a theory, and she hated herself for it.

The catalyst, the thing that really got to her, was something entirely accidental. Hanna had stayed late at school to work on the yearbook – something her mother had talked her into, sensing that she needed to get out of the house more and suggesting that she just needed a new project to dedicate herself to – so by the time she finished, almost everyone else had gone home. There were a couple of sports teams still practicing, but even they were winding down. So Hanna wasn't expecting to come across anybody, which was why it was such a shock when she almost literally ran into someone just outside the library.

Hanna had been looking at her phone as she walked, so she didn't notice the other person until she was almost on top of them. She managed to swerve at the last moment, avoiding a collision, and she was halfway through muttering an apology before she pulled up short, realizing who it was. Emily was standing near a trashcan just by the door, holding a plastic-wrapped sandwich in one hand and a small tub of yogurt in the other.

Although Hanna had hated to admit it, her theory was probably right. She hadn't exactly been looking for proof, but here it was. Her eyes flickered between the two items of food and then up at Emily; a question, one the other girl chose to ignore.

"Sorry," Emily said, shoving the food into her bag as if she hadn't been just about to throw them away. She started to walk off, but Hanna grabbed her arm.

Emily actually jumped, which caused Hanna to let go immediately. Hanna looked down at her hands, realizing yet again just how strange this whole situation was. She could remember a time when she and Emily wouldn't hesitate to hold hands, to let their knees brush, to fling their arms around each other. And now here they were, and a single touch was enough to bring all of the awkwardness rushing back.

"Sorry," Hanna said, ducking her head. Emily stayed where she was, shifting her weight from foot to foot, a clear sign that she was uncomfortable. Hanna decided to make this quick, which meant there was no time for subtlety. "Have you been throwing away your lunch for long?"
It was still more blunt than she'd intended it, but she knew that being direct was the only way to get a reaction out of Emily. And it worked. The other girl became very still, her eyes widening slightly, her shoulders stiffening. Evidently she hadn't expected to be found out, to be confronted about it, and this made Hanna's heart hurt in ways she didn't know it could.

Her voice was a lot softer as she asked, "Why?"

In contrast, Emily's voice was razor sharp. "Why do you care?" she snapped, as if hoping that acidity would wash away her agitation. Hanna wondered if it worked, if it was worth it.

"I care about you," Hanna said, the words slipping from her mouth before she could think them through. This was a door she didn't want to open, one she couldn't risk going through, but it was too late now.

Emily's eyes softened, almost imperceptibly, but her posture became a little less guarded, a little more like the girl Hanna remembered. "Well, you should have thought about that before you walked away."

The words struck Hanna squarely in the heart and she had to bite her lip to stop herself from responding – although she wasn't sure if she would have replied with an exclamation of surprise or a sharp retort she didn't mean. She took a deep breath, steadying herself, and then said, "Just because we're not together doesn't mean I don't still care about you."

"If you do, you're doing a damn good job of hiding it." Emily folded her arms, back to being guarded, but Hanna couldn't blame her; it was only because she was hurt. And Hanna was the one who'd hurt her.

Hanna wanted to explain, but she couldn't find the words and she wasn't sure Emily had the time. She suddenly wished things could go back to the way they used to be, but she wasn't even sure what that meant. Did she want to go back to before she and Emily had started dating? Or back to the beginning of their relationship, when everything was exciting and secretive and almost magical?

"I'm sure you have another heart to break somewhere, so I'll leave you to it," Emily said, more weary than venomous now.

"Wait," Hanna said, and to her surprise the other girl did. She chewed on her lip, wondering how to word it. "You don't need to do that," she said finally, inclining her head toward the trashcan. "You're already…" She trailed off, trying to think of a word, but all that came to mind was something she wasn't sure she wanted to say. She said it anyway. "… perfect."

Emily hesitated, and Hanna thought she could see the first sign of tears in her eyes. "If I'm perfect," Emily said slowly, her voice so quiet that Hanna had to lean forward to hear her, "why did you leave me?"

Without waiting for an answer Emily turned on her heel and strode away, the sound of her footsteps echoing long after she was out of sight. Hanna stared after her, feeling guilt pricking at her heart and wishing it would just go away. She'd screwed up, and she knew that, but it felt like no matter what she did, she could never get it right. She could never fix what she'd broken.

With a sigh she turned and headed home.

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"Well that was a bust," Hanna grumbled, staring out the window an hour later.

Aria glanced over at her from the driver's seat. "It was a long shot anyway," she said, her voice falling a couple of notes short of reassuring. She sounded bone-achingly tired, and Hanna could relate to that more than she liked to admit.

They were on their way back from Noel's, having found out absolutely nothing. He hadn't in any way hinted that he was affiliated with or even knew about A, and he hadn't even shown the slightest knowledge of Emily being missing. Hanna still didn't entirely trust him, but he was either completely innocent or a lot more crafty than they gave him credit for. It didn't seem to matter which was true anymore, because either way he wasn't telling them anything anyway.

Hanna sighed, resting her forehead against the cool glass, and didn't reply. All too soon they were back at Aria's and explaining to the rest of the group that they hadn't come up with anything. She was mildly surprised to see that their group had grown – both Caleb and Maya had been called in too. It made sense; they were desperate, they were running out of time, and they needed all hands on deck. Some small pessimistic part of Hanna's mind kept telling her that it didn't matter, that they weren't going to find her anyway, but she pushed that voice away and focused on her determination. They were going to find Emily; they had to. The alternative was unthinkable.

Although Hanna was doing her best to stay calm, she reached her breaking point not long after they arrived. On the car ride over, she'd subtly contacted A. She hadn't wanted Aria to find out because they had all agreed not to contact A, at least not without discussing it with the group first. But Hanna had a feeling that somehow this was all her fault, and she was the one who needed to fix it. She'd offered A anything they wanted, not even caring that she was probably going to be manipulated in the process.

Ten minutes after they came back, A responded. Hanna glanced up at the others, who were discussing the best way to search for Emily – they even had some maps spread out on the bed, with little pins indicating areas they should particularly focus on – and then she opened the message.

So it's true; you're definitely going after me? Very well; I'm waiting. Ding ding. Sounds like time's running out. - A

As far as 'A' messages went, this was just as cryptic but much more frustrating than usual. It was also a lot longer, and Hanna re-read it three times trying to work out what it meant. A had messaged her for a reason; there must be something she could do. She ran the words over and over in her mind, searching for a pattern, a clue, something that she was missing. But she was working on little sleep and even less sanity, and it was hard enough to get her tired eyes to focus on the words, let alone make any kind of sense of them.

It took five minutes of puzzling over this before she snapped. Her phone was halfway across the room before she was aware she'd moved, and everyone's eyes turned to her. It was too much, it was all too much. Without a word she shot to her feet and fled, darting through the house as panic grew inside her. She'd been given a clue, she knew it, but what good was that if she couldn't decipher it? What good was she if she couldn't save Emily?

She was halfway down the street, no destination in mind and no intent of stopping, when someone caught up with her.

"Hey," said someone from behind her, and she felt a hand on her shoulder. She shrugged it off and kept walking, but a second later Spencer stepped out in front of her, blocking her way. "Woah," Spencer said, her eyes wide with worry. "Where are you going?"

Hanna shrugged, still running on anger and adrenalin. "Away. I don't know. I don't care."

There was so much sympathy in Spencer's eyes that Hanna had to look away. "It's dangerous to be out here," Spencer pointed out gently. "Come back inside."

There was sense in the idea, which was exactly why Hanna hated it. She was tired of logic and rational thinking. She wanted to do something, to be wild and impulsive and race to the rescue. But she didn't know where she was meant to –

Something clicked in her mind, but she couldn't quite make sense of it.

"Please," Spencer said, her voice unbearably tender. "I can't lose you too."

Hanna's eyes snapped up to hers and she felt guilt tug at her heart. They were already worrying about Emily; she didn't need to add to that. "I can't lose her," she said simply, and in that moment she let herself admit everything, let herself feel everything. She'd failed Emily, and she was still failing her, and she might never get to tell her how she feels, how she'd always felt.

"You're not going to," Spencer said, pulling Hanna into a hug. "We'll get her back, I promise," Spencer mumbled into Hanna's hair.

Hanna just nodded. She'd forgotten how good it felt to be held, to be comforted, to feel the slightest bit safe. She closed her eyes and leaned against Spencer, her anger giving way to despair.

But then that was washed away in a rush of clarity. She pulled away, hardly able to stop her excitement from spilling across her face. Spencer looked at her, beyond concerned – she was looking at her like she thought Hanna might have lost her mind.

"Hanna -?" Spencer prompted.

The wheels in Hanna's mind were turning full speed, but she slowed them down, ran through the realization one more time to make sure it was right. It was. She didn't just know it, she felt it. "We need to go back," she said, grabbing Spencer's hand and pulling her down the street, "now."

"What?" Spencer cried, struggling to keep up. "Why?"

Hanna turned back to face her, but she didn't stop moving. "Because," she said, her heart in her throat, "I know where Emily is."

Spencer didn't ask any more questions. She just put her head down and ran, and so did Hanna.

They were running out of time.

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Any idea where Hanna's going? I'll give you a clue - A pretty much told her. And if you figure that out, you'll probably figure out who A is too. Anyway. I hope you enjoyed the chapter, don't forget to review, and I'll see you all next time.