Page 250 of The Art of Almost Losing It
“We are going to be sitting in traffic for hours.” Connor’s on his phone.
“Shut up, Connor,” my brothers chorus.
I am in a daze. I keep dozing off, then I think about Dani trapped alone, scared, crying for help, and I start awake.What if she’s in trouble? Right now?
She’s with her parents,I remind myself.Finn texted.
The thought of being away from her—forever—looms dark and foreboding in my future.
I’ll never know if she’s okay or not.
She’ll find someone else.
She’ll fall in love with someone else.
What if he treats her badly?
He can’t treat her worse than I already did.
“Um—”
“Jesus, Connor—no one asked for your opinion. You wreck cars like a toddler. They need to take away your license,” Aaron snaps. “You need to take a left here, Grayson. I said take a left!” Aaron yells as Grayson does not take a left.
“This is the better route,” Grayson snaps.
“Traffic!” Aaron throws up his hands. “There’s traffic.”
“Guys…”
“Connor,seriously?”
“You need to see this.” He shoves his phone at Aaron.
I peer blearily at the screen. There’s a live stream of a local morning show on his phone.
“—have Colette Belmont here with us, who has information about the viral kidnapping video. More after the break.”
Oh shit.
Conner smirks at me. “Guess you’re going to get your wish. You’re going to prison after all!”
49
DANI
The sun is rising by the time I get home, bedraggled, stiff, and still cold even though Finn had the heat on in the car.
I sit in the back seat, staring out in a daze at the snowy landscape, hoping Graham was all right.
Finn and I didn’t talk, but I heard him on the phone with his brothers. They found Graham. Finally.
I’ll go see him, I decide.After I take a shower.Eat.
Hopefully, Mom and Dad will be out so I can take a nap on the sofa without Mom acting like I’m wasting the day away because I dared to sleep while the sun is out.
“It’s awful.” Piper wrenches the door open before I can find my keys with my still-cold fingers.
“I will never get warm.”
