During lunch on Friday, Jacob groaned inwardly when Tani and Aloren started another conversation about the blond guy from her math class.
“Oh!” Aloren exclaimed. “He’s coming! What do I do?”
Jacob turned to see who Aloren had been crushing on for the past few days. He nearly spit out the food in his mouth. Kevin was walking toward them.
Apparently it shocked Tani too. “Kevin?” she hissed. “Kevin’s the guy?” She looked at Jacob, possibly trying to gauge his reaction. He put on his best poker face.
“Hey, Aloren,” Kevin said. He paused when he saw she was with Jacob. “So . . . are Jacob and Matt your host family?”
Aloren blushed, looking down. She actually blushed! “Sort of. Jacob and I are in many classes together. He’s helping me with my homework.”
“Hmm.” The two guys eyed each other. Jacob tried to mask his frustration and jealousy. He could tell by the swirling colors that Kevin felt the same way, but it didn’t show on his face—apparently he was good at hiding his emotions.
“Mind if I join you?”
Aloren scooted closer to Jacob, patting the spot on the other side of her, before Jacob could tell him to get lost. “Sure. There’s plenty of room.”
Jacob’s mouth popped open and he felt red creep across his face. How could she do that?
Kevin sat on the other side of Aloren, and she turned toward him. They flirted and talked. Josh was busy chatting with one of the football players, and Tani looked like a third wheel, though she tried to join the conversations around her wherever possible.
Matt elbowed Jacob. “Competition, huh?” he whispered. “What are you going to do about this?”
Jacob shook his head. “Nothing I can do,” he whispered back, making sure Aloren and Kevin couldn’t hear. They were obviously in their own world. “She’s been talking about him non-stop.”
“Oh, don’t I know it.”
Sammy leaned forward and whispered, “You like Aloren, Jacob?”
Jacob flushed again and was about to answer when Matt cut him off. “Isn’t it obvious?”
“Actually, no, it isn’t,” Sammy said. “I wouldn’t have guessed if you hadn’t said something.”
“Great, Matt. Thanks.” Jacob glared at his brother. “Don’t say anything to anyone else, okay? It’s no one’s business.”
Matt put his hands up. “No worries. I won’t.”
Jacob relaxed—Matt could be trusted, as long as he knew the boundaries.
“So, what are you going to do?” Sammy asked. “You can’t just let Kevin have her.”
“There’s nothing I can do,” Jacob said. “She makes her own choices.”
No one said anything, and Jacob tried to focus on finishing his lunch.
***
Ebony and Akeno were ready and waiting when Jacob, Aloren, and Dad arrived at the tree.
“I’m on a late lunch,” Dad said, “so I’m only here for a moment.” He motioned for everyone to sit. “How many doors did Kenji make?”
“Twenty. They’re all here.” Ebony lifted a knapsack. “Shrunk and ready to go.”
“Okay. I’ve got a map of August Township.” Dad pulled it out and indicated things as he spoke. “First, place doors here, here, and here. Make sure they’re well hidden. After that, place one every half mile or so. We’ll want to have as many escape routes as possible.”
Ebony nodded. “We numbered them so Jacob won’t have a problem figuring out which door to use.”
“Good,” Dad said. “Next, you have to go through the forest before you can get into the city itself. Be extremely careful—the Lorkon don’t use ordinary traps, as we know. I hoped Aldo could give you more instructions. He’s very familiar with the area. Unfortunately, the remedy won’t be ready until tomorrow, so in the meantime, we’re going to learn as much about the place as we can.” He folded the map. “We’ll need one of you to keep a detailed journal of what you find.” Dad held up a small leather book.
“I’ll do that,” Aloren said. “Gallus has me make notes of my trips all the time.”
“Excellent.” Dad handed her the book and the map. “Mark the placement of the doors on the map, and keep it with the journal.” He sighed, running his hand through his hair—what remained of it. “You’ll leave now, or as soon as possible. Check back with us frequently. Oh, and also, which Minya are you taking?”
“Mine,” Aloren said. “And Kenji will use Early, should he need to get in touch with us.”
Dad nodded. “Be safe.” He looked out the window of the tree. “I wish I could go.”
Kenji and Brojan had insisted Dad stay behind—he was too important to Gevkan to put himself in potentially dangerous situations. “Maybe when we get the Shiengols.” He put his hand on Jacob’s shoulder. “Be careful, son. Take care of the group. And the rest of you,” he motioned to the others, “watch over my son.”