Oh, hai dere! Let's get to it quick. ;)

Max POV

Iggy sought me out early the next morning, before I even had the chance to collect my breakfast in the food line. In fact, I had only just managed to pick up a plate before he found me.

He shifted awkwardly in front of me, obviously uncertain of what he was going to say to me. I waited patiently (well, not really, my stomach was growing ever demanding) while he searched for something to say. And finally he found it. 'Fang says that Alicia's lying,' he blurted out, his eyes fixed firmly on his sneakers. 'He says that I should listen to what you have to say before I make any assumptions.'

I raised an eyebrow. So Fang had chatted with him after all. Fancy that. Iggy slowly looked up and met my eyes, then he made a gesturing motion. 'So...?' He said it like a question.

I rolled my eyes. 'First off, you're a jackass,' I said and held up a hand when he went to say something. 'Don't you dare deny it. Second, I'm only here for a year before I get let out. Alicia's staying for twenty one months. If I was the one who stabbed him, why would I have the shorter sentence?'

His brow creased and I could tell that he was confused. 'What are you trying to say?'

'Work it out, Iggy.' Then I reached up and kissed on the cheek. Then I slapped him. And then I walked away. Dramatic, right? Well, what can I say? Interesting exits are my thing.

At the usual table, Fang and Nudge had watched the entire brief exchange in the background and now as I joined them, Nudge burst out laughing – drawing stares from right around the generally quiet hall – and Fang let a small smirk onto his face that let me know that he was amused. It disappeared quickly, though, and I got the feeling that there was something bothering him. But what?

'Oh, man, Max,' Nudge giggled. 'You sure know how to make an impression.' She pointed behind me. 'Look at him! Totally dumbstruck.'

I turned around and sure enough, Iggy was standing there, staring into space as though he was not quite aware of what had happened. I let out a barking laugh myself.

After our laughs had subsided, I questioned Nudge, 'So, you informed Fang of this plan of ours?'

She winced. 'Yours. Not ours. And no, I haven't. I was too busy laughing at the display you put on over there.'

I smiled. 'I am very amusing, I agree.'

'You're embarrassing, too, though, gotta admit.'

'People who worry about humiliation are stupid.' I grinned. 'You have to live while you can.'

'I've never heard of embarrassment as a good thing, though,' she pointed out, but Fang cut in before I could say anything else.

'Anyway, putting aside the good and bad points of dignity...' he began pointedly. 'What exactly is this plan of yours?' He looked at me.

Leaning in, I quickly outlined what we were going to do, watching as his face transformed from the usual emotionless gaze to a look of complete interest.

When I was done, he glanced around conspiratorially, as though to make sure nobody else had heard anything that I had said. Then he asked, 'Just the three of us, then?'

'And Iggy,' Nudge said.

I rolled my eyes at her. 'If Iggy decides to pull his head in then yes, him too,' I told Fang.

Fang sat back on his bench. 'So, how exactly are we going to be able to get out of our cells for long enough that no one will notice we're gone?'

I pondered that for a moment. It was, in truth, one of the (many) things that I had not considered in the foundations of the plan. I was stumped. How were we going to get out? The locks were electric, at the very top end of technological development, and I distinctly remembered Ari – or maybe it was Brigid – telling us that there were only three people in the building who knew the code: himself, Brigid and the Director, Alan Stevens. For some reason, I doubted any of them would be very willing to help us out.

I shook my head in defeat. 'I'm not sure,' I said, frowning. 'We'll work something out.'

I heard a timid clearing of the throat and I turned to Nudge. 'Yeah?'

'I may be able to help you with that problem,' she said slowly.

My eyebrows shot up. 'How?' I asked.

'I'm a hacker, remember, Max? It's what I got landed in here for.' She stopped and bit her lip. 'I got into a pretty intense network, then. I don't see why I wouldn't be able to do it now.' She gave me a hopeful smile.

I exchanged a glance with Fang. 'But you got caught that time, Nudge,' I pointed out.

'So we take some extra precautions to make sure that we're not caught this time,' she shrugged. 'It shouldn't be impossible.'

I nodded reluctantly, recognising the merit of the idea. 'I'll think about it,' I said finally. When her face lit up excitedly, I added warningly, 'But that doesn't mean I'm saying yes.'

We lapsed into silence then, each eating our food. I was going over the plan in my mind, working out the kinks and bolts of the whole thing, adding details, making sure that it was a foolproof as I could possibly make it. It wasn't perfect, that was for sure. It was dangerous. There was a likelihood that we could be caught. What if there were guard stationed at night that we hadn't realised were there? What if the door was tougher to open then we counted on? What if the other prisoner kids decided to blab on us, for whatever reason? A thousand problems. I needed a thousand solutions.

There was a clearing of a throat above us and I looked up in surprise and irritation, shaken from my plotting. My eyebrows rose as I took in the strawberry blonde hair and the piercing blue eyes. 'What?'

Iggy looked supremely uncomfortable. 'Um, I asked Alicia about the sentence lengths,' he said, his expression telling me that he wanted to be anywhere but there. His fingers twisted together nervously.

'And...?' I trailed off, waiting for another lie that Alicia had fed him.

'She said that it was because she's older than you, and so they put the blame on her.'

My mouth twisted in a hard line. Of course. Of course she would say that.

Iggy flopped down into the seat next to me and I started in surprise. Wasn't he going to go back to Alicia and her little cronies?

He must've known what I was thinking, because he grinned at me, suddenly seeming more relaxed than he had done in ages. 'I know she's lying. I've dealt with the law before – I know they don't work that way.'

I grinned in relief. 'So you're back with us?' I asked.

'Totally,' he confirmed.

I looked at Nudge and Fang. They nodded at me and I took the go ahead.

'Well in that case, we have a lot to discuss.'

xxx

'And what number is Fang and Iggy's cell?' I quizzed Nudge, mindful to keep my voice low enough that nobody else could hear it.

'Thirty six,' she answered immediately. 'They're right at the end of the next hallway. Could be risky getting there.'

'And where is our target?' I continued.

'Right next to the gym. It's this big metal door that I doubt even a steamroller could crush. Totally intimidating.'

Nudge looked down at the standard suit that had been issued to us the day after we arrived, picking at it in dissatisfaction. It was made up of plain light grey material; a shapeless shirt and long, baggy pants. We were required to wear them instead of what we would normally choose to wear to 'promote equality among all people attending Gold Creek Correctional Facility'. At least, that's what Brigid told us when she delivered them to us. Not too sure that I agree.

'I wish we could have some darker clothes to put on,' Nudge complained now. 'I'm going to feel so exposed wearing these rags.'

I glanced up at the tiny barred window at the top of the room, able to catch only a glimpse of the bright stars that were shining through, specks of light on the dark canvas of space. 'It doesn't matter.' I checked the slim watch on my wrist. 'It's almost midnight. Nobody will be around.'

I slid off the bed, resisting the urge to clap my hand loudly like a drill sergeant. That would ruin everything. Instead, I simply said, 'Right. It's time. We're supposed to be at their cell by midnight.'

Nudge followed me over to the lock on our cell door. Her eyes were bright with anticipation, but she had turned a sickly pale colour that didn't mix with her dark skin. 'I feel like I'm about to throw up,' she whispered, leaning as far as she could around the bars so that she could see the number pad on the lock more clearly. As soon as she touched it, it lit up like a beacon (obviously touch sensitive) and I winced, hoping no one was awake to see. It was on the other side of the bars, which would cause some irritation, but Nudge had assured me that she would be able to work around it. Now, though, I wasn't so sure.

'You'll be alright though, yeah?' I asked, worry leaking into my tone.

She nodded. 'I can deal.'

As she set to work on the lock, I subconsciously noted that she was talking far less than usual. I wasn't used to her being so unwilling to converse. I hoped that it was just an effect of her anxiety over the mission.

I watched as her fingers flew across the number pad, her eyes intensely focused, her head bent in concentration. I saw a tiny bit of pink where her tongue protruded from her mouth a little, which made me smile.

She let out an irritated sigh and rocked back on her heels, a fierce frown forming. 'It's tough,' she said unwillingly. 'I didn't know it would be this hard.'

'Try again,' I urged, taking a quick look at my watch. We had three minutes before we had to be at Iggy and Fang's. And timing was crucial.

She hesitated, and then a look of determination overshadowed the frustration. 'Alright.'

Nudge set back to work and I tried to relax, but I couldn't help myself from taking glances at the watch every now and again.

Two and a half minutes.

'I think I might be getting somewhere!' Nudge's voice was excited.

Two minutes.

'Hang on...'

One and a half minutes.

My foot had started tapping. I was unable to hold my nerves. We had to get out now or we'd never make it.

One minute.

'I did it! I did it!' The elation was clear in Nudge's voice and I sprung to my feet like a Jack-in-the-Box as the door slowly swung open, released at last from its lock.

A huge grin spread across my face. 'Let's get out of here,' I ordered. 'We've got a minute to get to the others.'

'Oops!' Nudge squeaked, covering her mouth shamefully. 'Sorry.'

'Doesn't matter!' I said, buzzing with our success. 'We're out!'

We ran down the dark hall as fast and quietly as we could, praying that we'd make it in time and that nobody would wake up and raise the alarm. It was black all around us and we had trouble making out the numbers on the cell doors, but eventually we found the right place. By the time we got to Iggy and Fang, they were already pacing around their small space like trapped tigers and I heard audible sighs of relief as they caught sight of us.

'We thought you couldn't get out!' hissed Fang.

'Or that you'd forgotten about us!' Iggy put in over his shoulder.

I rolled my eyes at their antics as Nudge knelt at their lock. 'Chill,' I snapped. 'We're out and we're going to get you out. 'Kay?'

It took Nudge much less time to break the code this time round, now that she was familiar with the format. Barely a minutes had gone by when there was a hissing sound and the lock popped open, releasing the door.

Iggy and Fang scrambled out and Nudge stood. All eyes turned to me.

'Right.' I swallowed nervously and then gave a tight smile. My heart was beating in my throat. 'Let's go.'

I told you the action was coming! Why would you ever doubt me?

Also, it hasn't been even two weeks since I last updated. I expect an award or something, people!

But reviews will suffice just fine. ;)