She’s crying because her friends are dead, and her enemies, and because it freaking sucks to have enemies, living or dead.

And now Amber’s dead, too.

Chapter 131

EXCEPT AMBER ISN’T DEAD.

The helicopter team lowers a rescuer on the end of a wire, and Dawn watches as he approaches the patch of green that is Amber’s jacket. And she listens on the radio as he describes what he’s seeing.

And at first he’s telling the rest of the rescuers that the woman isn’t moving, that he sees no signs of life.

But then he pauses, and his voice gets excited.

And when he comes back, he’s telling everyone he can feel a pulse.

(Amber’s alive.)

And this only makes Dawn cry harder.

Chapter 132

DAWN’S MOM AND STEPDAD are waiting for her.

Back at headquarters with a group of other parents who mostly look either angry or sad.

Cam and Wendy look relieved.

They’re waiting when Dawn steps off the helicopter, which takes off again immediately to ferry Amber to a hospital.

Cam and Wendy stand close to each other, Cam’s arm around Wendy’s shoulders like they’re the perfect parents, like Cam’s always been Wendy’s husband and Dawn’s dad never existed. They watch Dawn step off the helicopter and look relieved to see her, and Dawn supposes they are relieved, but that’s not really her concern at the moment.

She skirts Cam as he reaches out for a hug. Goes to Bryce instead, her little brother, who lingers in the background, wide-eyed, looking around as though he had no clue stuff like this actually existed.

Dawn hugs him.

“Don’t ever let them kidnap you,” she tells him.

Bryce hugs her back. Hard, like he’s still a child, like he’s as yet unaware that he’s a six-foot-plus behemoth who could crush Dawn with one hand.

“Are you okay?” Bryce asks.

Dawn lets him envelop her and she holds on for dear life.

“I am now,” she says.

Cam and Wendy are waiting when Bryce lets Dawn go.

Dawn’s not ready to speak to them yet.

She skirts Wendy as Wendy reaches for a hug. She crosses the helicopter landing area to the headquarters building, where a gaggle of suits stand in a huddle, still watching her, still adding up the bill they’re going to face when this goes to trial.

Dawn picks out the guy with the nicest-looking suit. He’s middle-aged and blandly handsome and has black hair going gray.

“I’m not going to sue you,” Dawn tells them.

The men blink.

They look at each other.

The man in the nicest suit says, “You’re not?”

Dawn shakes her head. “No,” she tells him. “Just don’t make me go home”—she gestures to Cam and Wendy—“with them.”