Jason had already headed to the other side of the forest, along with Lanier, to intercept some of the people there. They had just finished 'putting down' a group when Salana contacted him about finding out the exact direction she needed to be in and whether she was going the right way or not. She had also asked if she needed to reach Soteria and Aletheia by a particular time frame for them to be safe, or if they would be safe regardless.
To say he was shocked by her unexpected request would be putting it mildly, since he would have needed to calculate her. That was something she had always been extremely against, even when it could help her in the long run. While he was perplexed by the unexpected request, he had graciously complied.
