Amber made her way quickly through the streets on her rollerblades.
"Hey, excuse me..." She stopped a kid, a wrinkly, grey-haired kid.
"Leave me alone, I've done nothing wrong..." He said.
"I just wanted..." Amber started, but the kid had already run off. She sighed, and carried on.

The remaining Mallrats were sitting down to lunch.
"I think we've got a way to spy on Ebony without being caught..." Ryan trailed off, noticing the solemn looks on the others faces. "...Where's Amber?" he said slowly, finally realising that she was not there.
"One step ahead of you. She's gone to find where Bray's being held." Dal explained.
"But she's on her own! She'll get..."
"Ryan!" Salene hissed, elbowing him.
"I miss Amber. And Bray." Patsy was getting upset.
"It's okay girls, they'll be back. They all will." Salene put an arm around each of them.
"I hope Lex isn't." Zandra stormed off.
"What's got into her?" Trudy asked.
"Lex came to me for advice...I told him what I knew that might help him get better. And now Zandra's blaming me for wrecking her marriage, and won't speak to Lex any more." Tai-San said.

Amber was resting against a wall, crying gently to herself.
"You all right?" she heard a small voice say, and looked up. A small girl had walked up to Amber. She couldn't have been older than about four.
"Yeah, I'm okay." Amber smiled at the girl.
"Sure?" The little girl sat down next to Amber.
"Kat, there you are!" A girl around Amber's age came out of a door not too far away. "Hi!" she said kindly to Amber. Amber automatically stood up and brushed herself down.
"Who are you?" Amber looked confused.
"Don't worry, we're not the Locos or Demon Dogs or Nomads or...oh you know. We're just loners."
"We?" Amber asked.
"Me, Kat and Alex. I'm Abbi by the way." Abbi explained.
"I'm Amber." She smiled.
"Kat, be a good girl and go and find Alex for me." Abbi steered the little girl back inside. "Are you with a tribe?" she walked very slowly with Amber back inside.
"Yeah, the Mallrats."
"Then why aren't you back at the mall? It's not very safe on the streets with the virus and all..." Abbi asked. Amber was about to reply when a boy walked into the room.
"This is Alex." Abbi said, walking over to him and putting an arm round his waist.
"Hi....ummm..." he said.
"Amber." Amber told him.
"Do you want a coffee of something?" Amber nodded, and he walked out the room.
"You don't look too happy...is something on your mind?" Abbi sat down opposite Amber in an armchair.
"You asked me before why I was out on the streets...well I was looking for the Loco's Headquarters."
"What! Are you mad!" Abbi looked shocked.
"No...I just think I'm in love." She looked sad.
"Someone special being held captive?" Abbi asked, and Amber nodded, looking at the floor.
"Yep." Amber was getting all choked up.
"And you think it's wise to go and confront the Locos, on your own, in this state?" Abbi reasoned. Amber shook her head weakly.
"Here." Alex had come into the room and passed Amber a coffee cautiously.
"Thanks." She looked up for a moment.

An hour later Amber said goodbye to her three new friends.
"Promise me you won't try to find the Locos headquarters." Abbi looked at Amber.
"Yeah. Okay." Amber said quietly. She bent down to Kat. "Hopefully I'll see you soon." She smiled.
"Bye-bye Amber." Kat grinned.
"Good Luck!" Alex shouted after her.
"You too!" Amber shouted back.