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It turned out science & tech was just the beginning. Logan simply did not know who to trust. In gym, Hailey's friend Veronica picked Logan first for her team in hover-dodge. Veronica
never
picked Logan first for hover-dodge. He tried to be nonchalant about it as he ran around the hardwood floor, but he couldn't help bringing it up as he tossed the hoverdisk over the line.

“Feeling generous today?” Logan said.

Veronica kept her eyes on the disk, which zigzagged unpredictably through the air. “What are you talking about?”

“When's the last time you picked me for your team, huh? I honestly can't remember.”

“You're good at this game,” Veronica said. “You used to play in the Spokie league.”

“Yeah, in fifth grade,” Logan said dismissively. He dodged the disk but only barely.

“Fine. Whatever. Chalk it up to random luck. Didn't you wanna be on the winning team?”

“I dunno,” Logan snapped. “Depends how badly you wanted the chance to talk to me. ‘How's Erin, Logan? What are you doing with
Erin
?'”

Veronica gave Logan a disgusted look as the hoverdisk smacked their teammates and sent several players to the sidelines. “Get over yourself,” she said. “Your new girlfriend doesn't impress me. Now pay attention to the game.”

In the locker room afterward, Logan bent down to tie his shoelace and jumped violently when Tom approached him again, tapping his shoulder from behind. “Whoa, you okay, man? Listen, not here to bother you about Erin—I just wanted to say, the drama club still doesn't have a full cast for
Mark of a Salesman
, and I really do think you'd be perfect for the—”

“Tom, I'm not trying out for that stupid play and I never will, ever! Why do you want me to meet new people so bad, huh? I spend a little bit of time with the new girl and all of a sudden—”

“Why wouldn't I, Logan? We're friends.”

It was fear boiling up inside of Logan, immense, implacable fear, but when it came out, it came out as red-hot anger. “What is your problem, Tom? Can't you take a hint? I'm
avoiding
you! I'm avoiding everyone in this lousy school, so just get lost!”

Tom looked like he didn't know what hit him. “Sorry, man. We'll find someone else. I'm sorry.”

And Logan tied his other shoe alone.

Pretty soon, the whole school was abuzz with excitement and speculation over the budding relationship between Logan and Erin. Everyone had witnessed Erin's scene at lunch. The season of new-girl gossip wouldn't have been over even under normal circumstances, but added to the prospect of new romance, the rumors had reached a fever pitch. What was a pretty, Marked girl from Beacon doing with a quiet, underage boy from Spokie? It wasn't long before the hallway taunts began, followed by the prank tablet messages, the probing questions, the sideways glances, the curious invitations to parties and get-togethers . . . to Logan, everything was suspicious.

“You're on edge,” Hailey said, catching him on the escalator as Logan rode up to meet his dad.

“You think? Everyone in school wants a piece of me.” But of course he didn't mention the extent of his situation, and just how threatening that sudden popularity actually was.

“Well, you and Erin seem to be . . . heating up.” Hailey stared intently at the railing of the escalator. She noticed it move just ever so slightly slower than the stairs and watched her hand begin to trail the rest of her. “We never did get that chance to hang out,” she said. “If you wanna just call it off, I'd understand.”

Logan immediately thought of his promise to Dane, and yet still he heard himself say, “No!” before he could stop it. Until that moment Logan hadn't realized just how much he'd been looking forward to seeing Hailey. How much it was anchoring him in the turbulence of everything else. “No, I don't want that at all. It's just . . . sorta on hold until I'm not grounded . . . and . . . other things . . .”

“Oh, I know,” Hailey said. “Even so. We can just forget about it if you want.” Hailey shrugged. “Like I said. I'd understand.”

“Don't forget about it!” Logan called.

But she walked on up the escalator without looking back.

“Good one,” Dane said behind him, with a venom that struck Logan blind and seeped right under his skin. “Thanks for keeping your promise.”

“Dane,” Logan said, horrified by his luck. “Look, honestly, it's not what you think.” They'd emerged from the school's underground hallways and reached ground level at this point. Mr. Langly was at the edge of the sports field, waiting for his son.

“How would you have any idea what I think?” Dane asked. “You don't even talk to me anymore.”

“Dude, please. We're friends—”

“You don't have any friends, Logan. Everyone here hates you. And the ones who didn't . . .” Logan couldn't help thinking Dane was talking about the two of them now. “Good job pushing them away.” Then he left Logan in the field, letting his shoulder shove Logan's hard as he passed by and continued down the block.

Logan's head was down and heavy when he said, “Hi, Dad. Let's go home.”

After a while Logan almost got used to spending his days in terror at school, in solitary confinement at home, outsmarted, cornered, beaten. There was nothing left.

By the end of the month, he was practically counting the hours until a faceless stranger named Peck, who had already ruined so much of Logan's life, just whisked him away and stamped the rest of it out for good.

4

Things were looking no better on Erin's front against the Dust.

Another night, another rollerstick trip to the stadium. She hoped they weren't expecting her. She hoped they were still there. She hoped for anything that wasn't the situation she'd found herself in the last few weeks.

Home was a distant memory now. Her family reunion was a fantasy.

Erin was fighting for survival.

She rolled up to the stadium and stopped the stick far enough out to maintain her silence upon approach. It was dark everywhere under the towering bleachers and across the empty field. Erin stood still and listened for a voice.

“Clock's ticking,” one finally said, the words echoing in the darkness. “We move in this weekend.” Erin recognized it as coming from the girl she now knew as Joanne.

“What makes you so sure we'll have any more luck with this guy than we did with Logan?” a boy asked. Erin recognized him as the one named Blake. “This guy doesn't trust us and he's not afraid of us. What influence will we have?”

“None,” Jo said. “We're gonna have to bag 'im.”

“You're being reckless,” Blake said. “Prompt a struggle? In
that
house? No way. We won't make it off the
yard
before police have the place surrounded.”

“We won't bag him at home,” Jo said. “An opportunity . . . has presented itself.”

“Oh yeah?”

“Our contact says he's playing a concert tonight in a battle of the bands at the Spokie community center. Dark lights, loud music, big crowd. He can put up any fight he wants. No one will notice. He'll be gone before the evening's through.”

“It's hasty,” Blake said. “It's desperate.”

“We
are
desperate,” Jo said. “Hiding in bleachers, farming our spy games out to a middle schooler. Time's up, Blake. We need to finish dusting this town and move on. Logan's been a distraction for too long—”

“For good reason—”

“And we'll return to him. He's still Peck's top priority. But this is more urgent. This kid Pledges next week. We take him out now or never.”

“Fine,” Blake said. “Peck approves?”

“He insists.”

There was a sigh of assent.

“Hey, boys!” Blake said. “We got a new game for you!”

Erin heard shuffling as the two younger boys ran across the bleachers above her.

Blake laughed. “And you're gonna love this one.” He paused. “It's called ‘Kidnap Dane Harold.'”

5

“That does it,” Logan said. “Enough's enough.”

Erin peered at him through the tablet connection. She'd only just begun explaining the most recent turn of events. “You're walking. Why are you walking? I can tell that you're walking.” Logan had been sitting on his bed when she called.

“That's right,” Logan said. And he went to his stairwell door. “With all due respect to my folks, they don't know what they're dealing with here. And you need my help.”

“Logan, you're grounded. Like,
way
grounded. If your parents find you gone, they're gonna kill you.”

“They won't,” Logan said. “They'll be angry. But they aren't going to kill me.” Suddenly he looked grim over the connection. “Peck will.”

Erin realized he was right, or close enough to it.

“I need to get back in the game, Erin. Meet me at Center Square. You can explain the rest along the way.”

And Logan slid out his stairwell door and off into the night.

“Why Dane, do you think? There must be a pattern here.” Erin shook her head, frustrated. “But what? That's what I still can't figure out.”

Logan thought about it. He had his arms around Erin's waist now, and they sped through the Spokie streets on her rollerstick like it was nothing at all.

“You said they mentioned ‘dusting the town.' They're clearly targeting Pledges. You think they're trying to terrorize Spokie into going Markless?”

“That's impossible . . . ,” Erin said.

“With DOME
this
worked up? I'm not so sure.”

“It's simpler than that. At least so far. They aren't targeting
all
Pledges. They seem to have their hearts set on just a few.”

“Lucky me,” Logan said.

“So then what is it about you?” Erin asked. “What is it about Dane? What was it about Meg?”

“I have no idea,” Logan said. “But I know it started after my sister Pledged. When she disappeared . . . that's when it all began.”