“Wren,” Sly says carefully as he reaches for a stack and fingers through it quickly. “Where did you get this?”
“I took it from my brother’s office.”
“He just had this sitting around?” he asks, turning back to the cash.
I shake my head. “Not sitting around, exactly. It was inhis safe. Why? Is it enough to last us a few days?” I look back at the stacks as I try to figure out how much I’ve used. But since the same-size bill can be anything from one dollar to a hundred, it’s hard to tell without counting.
Dex snorts as Pete grabs a single hundred-dollar bill. “I’ll leave you to count this, Sly. I’m gonna grab us some food.”
“You’re leaving?” I ask in alarm.
“I’ll be back,” he tells me with a quick smile as he turns to leave.
“But… what if someone recognizes you? And they send you back to prison?” Anxiety claws its way up my throat at the thought of him getting caught.
“Hey, it’ll be okay. Nobody's going to recognize me,” he says, coming to sit on the bed beside where I’m standing, grabbing my hands and holding them between his.
“You don’t know that!” My body starts to shake with dread. I wasn’t even this scared when I ran away from home. My breath comes out in shallow gasps as I struggle to breathe.
“Shit! Wren? Wren, look at me!” Pete tries to coax me to look his way, but my vision starts to blur. Whether from the newly forming tears or the sudden headache, I’m not sure.
Warm arms surround me, and I’m pulled onto someone’s lap.
“Breathe with him,” someone tells me, and I try to relax enough to feel the body wrapped around mine. A large chest rises and falls against my back, and I try to mirror the movement.
“Good girl, that’s it, keep going.” I recognize Sly’s voice, but it’s not coming from behind me.
I take a few more deep breaths, realizing my headache and chest pains are easing, along with the tears. I wipe myeyes and tilt my head back to see who’s wrapped around me.
“Thank you, Jagger,” I whisper when my eyes meet his. He nods, and I turn back to see the other three looking at me in concern.
“I’m sorry. I don’t know what happened.”
“I think you had a panic attack,” Sly says calmly.
“I’ve never had one before.”
“How are you feeling now?” Sly asks, his eyes scanning the side of my face.
“Okay.”
“Maybe we should order pizza tonight?” he asks, changing the subject as his gaze turns to Pete in question.
Jagger places the bag of previously forgotten ice against my cheek as he continues to hold me.
“Good idea,” Pete says, eyeing me with a hint of trepidation.
“There are some local pizza shop flyers in that folder,” Sly tells him as he passes him a cell phone and points to the desk. I watch as he thumbs through the flyer, then places an order.
“Excuse me!” Dex says, swinging out an arm dramatically and pushing Sly out of his way as he moves to kneel in front of me. When his eyes meet mine, an enormous smile covers his face. It’s so big it makes him look a little unhinged, but I continue to watch him, unsure what he’s doing.
He reaches into his pocket and pulls out the remains of several crushed dandelions. He frowns down at them before plastering that crazy smile back on his face and looking at me as he holds them out like an offering. “I picked these just for you, Wren.”
Unsure how to respond, my eyes dart over his head, and I see Pete quickly turn away, amusement lighting his face.
“Thank you, Dex. They’re so—” I cut myself off, unable to lie. “That was really thoughtful. When did you even have time to find these?” I ask curiously as I look at the crushed weeds.
“I grabbed them as we were running from the prison.” I look up at him in surprise. He was literally running for his life, and took a moment to stop and pick flowers for me? He really is just as sweet as his letters made him out to be.
