Page 122 of Leave a Mark
Wren rolled her eyes, lowered the ring back into the soap, and… more slowly… tugged on the rope. The girls giggled as it stretched above their waists, but, almost in slow motion, the membrane separated itself from the ring.
“Again. Even slower.”
Wren shot him a look. “I need to be careful,” she muttered so only he could hear. “You’ll brainwash me like you did everyone else.”
She only had a moment to appreciate the look of shock on his face before he recovered. “That’s not brainwashing. It’s love.”
“Puh,”she scoffed. “They don’t even know why they’re here,” she said, lifting the ring a third time, moving slow and steady until the bubble rose above the girls’ heads, leaving them sheathed in an undulating wall of wonder. The bubble held even as they cheered.
“Nice,” Lee said, nodding. “And they do know why they’re here. They’re here for you.”
Wren took her eyes off the bubble wall and focused on Lee. “And why am I here?”
Lee nodded toward the bubble ring. “For this.”
At that moment, the bubble wall popped, and the girls jumped up and down in triumph.
“Was that fun?” Lee asked them.
“Yeah!” they cheered in unison. Livvy hopped off the pad, and Sissy followed.
“Hold on a minute, girls,” Lee called after them. “Before you go, tell Ms. Wren, here, how old you are.”
Wren frowned at this strange command.
“I’m five!” Sissy exclaimed, holding up a pudgy hand, all fingers splayed.
“And I’m six-and-a-half,” Livvy affirmed. She was a few inches taller than Sissy, but together they couldn’t weigh even one hundred pounds.
“Six-and-a-half?” Lee echoed, admiration rich in his voice. “My goodness, that’s grown up.” Lee’s gaze slanted toward Wren.
“What are you doing?” she asked, almost inaudibly.
He held her look, his own voice dropping. “I’m trying to show you something.”
Wren looked back at the girls as they scampered toward the bubble trough. They were so little. Just babies, really. Five and six-and-a-half.
Six-and-a-half.
As she stared, the air in her lungs dried up. In fact, so did all the air in the room. In the whole museum. Her lungs pumped in and out, but nothing moved through them. Her lips started to tingle. The room swayed.
“Wren.” Lee gripped her arm. “You’re hyperventilating. Slow your breath.”
But she just shook her head and rasped. “No air… I have to get out.”
“Let’s go,” he said with a nod, and then he was pulling her toward the exit, which was good since her quads spasmed. Without his help, she may have just crumpled to the floor.
Outside, there was sunlight and less people, but still no air. Certain she’d pass out any second, Wren grasped for the wall, and Lee steered her toward it.
“I’m going to faint…” she warned.
“I’ll catch you,” Lee promised.
Her fingers scraped against the bricks, and Lee turned her to face him.
“I’m going to cover your mouth.” His voice was impossibly calm, and before she could fight him off, he sealed his hand over her mouth. “And I’m going to pinch your nose a little to slow your breathing.”
His thumb closed one nostril as Wren’s fingernails dug into the flesh of his hand. He didn’t flinch. She tried to beg him to let her breathe, but only a muffled whimper escaped.
