Cinder was released from the hospital the next night, against the protests of Dr. Lyndon. She had only been home an hour when her mom decided to give her the bad news.
Mrs. Manchester walked into Cinder's room. "Hey sweetie. What are you doing?"
"Huh? Oh," Cinder glanced at the letter in her hand, "just reading the letters Zac wrote me while they were on tour."
Mrs. Manchester sat on the bed beside Cinder and stroked her long dirty blond hair. "Oh yes, Zac is a lovely boy. Still, may I give you some advice?" She continued without waiting for a reply. "Those Hanson boys, as polite as they seem, aren't all sweet and innocent. You need to stay away from Zac, from the whole family. And maybe from Skye and Matt, since they're so cozy with the Hansons."
"No!" Cinder exclaimed. "Mom, they are my friends!"
"I knew you'd protest." Mrs. Mancester walked to the door. Just before she left the room, she turned and announced her decision. "That's why I went ahead and planned everything. Pack your bags. We'll be living in Oklahoma City by next month. And remember, this is for your own good."
Cinder cried and cried, thinking of everything she would have to leave behind.
Ike and Skye hadn't spoken since Cinder had awoken. Their only exchanges were silent glances and smiles in the hall as Skye went up to Tay's room.
While Cinder was crying in her room, Zac was thinking. Zac was, despite his goofiness, a very smart guy. In fact, it was hard to get anything by him. Right now, he knew that something was wrong and it was up to him to fix it.
"A plan," he muttered, "I need a plan...AHA!" A few phone calls later, his scheme was in motion. Soon Ike and Skye would be back together and Tay would be on his own.
Meanwhile, Tay and Skye were chilling at their old haunt, the Dungeon, with Matt and Jess. Jess and Skye left the boys to go to the bathroom.
Matt looked at Tay. "I know what you really are, you stupid bastard, and if you hurt my cousin, I will kill you." Then he departed, moving toward the dance floor, leaving a surprised Tay to wonder exactly how much Matt knew.
Skye and Jess entered the bathroom, pushing their way to the mirror past all the cool Goth girls hanging around.
"Skye," Jess said softly, "can I warn you about something?"
Skye looked at the younger girl strangely. "Jess, you know I always listen to what you say."
"I just want you to know that...Tay's not all you want to think he is. I know him. He's...just watch out for him."
Then she too disappeared, leaving Skye to chew on something for awhile.
