I look at him, not sure what else to say. Would anything else even matter?

He goes on, barely breathing the words. “I know Harper is determined to defend him. He has her fooled somehow, but he knew what he was doing in that parking lot. I’d bet my life on it.”

“We can’t know. Not for sure,” I say, curling my hands into fists in my pockets.

It’s cold, but the wind feels quieter. I don’t know if the storm is done, but I’m grateful that it has loosened his grip for now. The silence is a gift and I close my eyes briefly to drink it in.

“Maybe we can’t know,” Josh says, clearly not content with my short response. “But he did steal the gasoline, right?”

“Right.”

Josh is so close now, I can’t see anything beyond his face. Flecks of silver glimmer in the green of his irises. “Don’t you think that says something about his character?”

“No, it doesn’t.”

We spring apart at the sound of Harper’s voice.

Heat flashes over my cheeks like a hard slap. I want to tell her it’s not what I think. I want to apologize. I want to know how she got over here so fast without us hearing, but the howl of the wind makes that part clear enough.

“Harper…” I say, but I don’t know what should come after. She’s staring at us stony-faced, and a sickening surge of adrenaline runs up through my middle. How long has she been standing here? How much did she hear?

For his part, Josh waits her out, his expression giving her nothing. She returns the look, not breaking eye contact even when she pulls the keys from her pocket and starts the car with the remote.

The sudden noise is startling and her expression is unsettling. It makes me think there are two sides to Harper. One girl seems to be falling to pieces. And the other has the whole world held tightly in her fist. The panicky version of Harper annoys me, but when she’s like this? On the plane it impressed me, but now… If I’m honest, this side of Harper is scary.

Why is she so determined to protect Brecken? What secret are they hiding?

“Look,” Josh says. “I’m not trying to play judge and jury here, but I’m worried about you. I’m worried about all of us.”

“Because of Brecken? Because he’s a big, bad guy?” Her voice is a candy-coated razor.

Anger flashes over Josh’s face, brief but intense, but he swallows it down, giving Harper a tight smile. “Suit yourself. I’ll be in the car.”

Harper whirls on me, face hard. “I suppose you want to leave him here, too?”