AN: This story isn't nearly as popular as the first one. Oh well. I like it.

Lexy came back to consciousness without opening her eyes. She was in bed. So it had all been a dream. A horrible, horrible dream. She reached over with her eyes still closed, to turn on her I-home stereo. But there was nothing there. She moved her had back and forth a few times to make sure. Yep, only air. She cracked open one eye and light felt like it burned. She closed her eye quickly. Who on Earth left the lights on in a room where someone was sleeping? And speaking of which, where was she sleeping. She cautiously opened her eyes and rubbed them. Well, it wasn't a hospital. It looked like a mother-in-law's suite, two rooms, connected. One had a bed, a dresser and a nightstand, the other was furnished with a TV, a bookshelf and a futon. It looked like a typical teenager's room. And Lexy wondered why she was there. She noticed her messenger bag was still slung across her shoulder. Lexy sat up and rubbed her bruised arm. So there had been a crash. "Hello?" she called out. She waited a little while. "Hello!?" she tried again. "Whatever," she muttered to herself.

Just then the door flew open. "Oh," murmured Lexy. "Hello there," she said.

Ian sneered. "What do you want?"

"What do I want? I was just knocked out in a car accident, which I'm assuming was caused by a radio controlled car controlled by you. I'm now in a room I've never seen before, I have no clue what happened to my parents, and you probably took my computer!" She looked in her bag. "You didn't take my computer?"

"I saw no reason to. This room has been specially equipped for you. No cable or wireless devices, phones, laptops, cable TV, even that wirless connection thing on the Nintendo DS, will work unless you have a transmitter within about five or six feet of the room, which you don't." He smirked at her. "By the way, congratulations about realizing the radio control car factor. You've no idea how challenging that was. As for your parents, I don't know what happened to them. But I'm sure you're genius fried Ben will figure it out and call, demanding to talk to you, and tell me what happened. I assume he'll be fairly upset."

"Why would Ben be calling?"

"Excuse me?"

"Why not Riley?" she demanded. Ian grimaced. This girl was too smart for her own good.

"Because Ben will be the one calling, I'm almost certain of it," he said dismissively. But Lexy could sense something was wrong. Unnoticed to Ian, she slipped something in her large pocket.

"Can I go to the bathroom?"

"Is that really necessary?"

She looked at her watch. "Well, considering I've been unconscious for nearly… eight hours and I had a coke before I left, yes, yes it is." Ian rolled his eyes.

"Fine, get up." She shrugged off her bag and got out of bed. Just as she suspected, Ian led her about two feet down a hallway. Lexy opened the door and went in. She actually did, have to go to the bathroom, but first, she had something to do. She pulled the wireless transmitter from her pocket and shoved it to the back corner of the cabinet. Now she had internet. And cable. And a phone. Cool. When she was done she left the bathroom and went back to the room. She had a lot to figure out.

--

Seven and a half hours earlier…

"Riley?" Ben knocked on Riley's door, nervously. He had called Riley at least three or four times and he hadn't answered. "Riley open up!" Ben rolled his eyes and sighed. "Riley, Abi's not with me!" Ben called. He shook his head and pulled a key out of his pocket. He jammed it in the lock and turned. "Come on Riley, I know we haven't talked in a week, it's not that we don't want to believe you, but Ian is in jail, and he'd probably have made his move by now. And I've been busy believe it or not." Ben pushed open the door, but it was dark, which was weird, since Riley's car was out front, he should've been home. Maybe he was just watching a movie. Ben flipped on the lights and screamed. His voice sounded inhuman even to him as he flung himself towards his pale friend lying on the ground.

"Riley! RILEY!" he shouted. "I'm sorry, if I had believed you…" Ben shook himself. He pulled out his phone and called 911. "Yes, hello, my friend, he's been shot…I don't know, I found him here, please hurry," Ben gave them the address and hung up. He looked at the book in Riley's hand, it was one of Lexy's, Castaways of the Flying Dutchman. Lexy. Suddenly the smashed up car he saw being towed on the way over here looked very familiar. Not a good sign. "Hold on, Riley," he said. He put a hand to his friend's chest. Riley was still breathing. That was good. Suddenly, Ben recalled Riley taking in his sleep the day before they had found the Charlotte.

"Giant Refrigerator, big teeth, ate Ian…" he had muttered, Ben remembered it perfectly. Despite the freezing cold, the seemingly fruitless quest and Ian's threat to remove the funding if they didn't find the thing soon, Ben had chuckled at his younger friend. Ian however, didn't find it very funny. Go Figure.

"Come on Riley, stay with me, no one else can make me laugh like you can," Ben begged, his mind snapping back to the present. He heard a car door slam and looked outside. Sabrina, getting home from work.

She ran up to the door. "Ben, what's… wrong," she trailed off, staring at Riley. "No," she whispered. "It was Ian, wasn't it?" Ben only nodded.

The sirens flashed outside. Medical personnel rushed in and carried Riley off on a stretcher. Ben's eyes followed him, out the door, down the stairs, into the ambulance.

"One of you can go with him." The man in charge said. Ben and Sabrina exchanged glances.

"Go," they said at the same time.

"No way," said Sabrina. She pushed him forward. "Go with him. He needs you. I'll break it to Abigail."

Ben nodded. "Okay," he said. Sabrina watched alone on the driveway as the ambulance pulled away.

AN: Review!! I left you in suspense. Riley may die, he may not, but one main character will probably die before this story's over