—well, Dawn isn’t sure she’ll ever get out of this program.

(Or, like, jail.)

She doesn’t want to go home to her mom and her stepdad. She doesn’t want to go home to Julian. She wants to see her nana. And Warden looks so sure of himself, so confident he can lead them out of here, that Dawn starts to believe in his plan.

She starts to believe he can lead them twenty miles through the mountains and out to the highway. That he can take them from the highway to somewhere they can all scatter, disappear across the country like ghosts.

That he can take her to Chicago. To Nana.

Dawn starts to believe this is What Happens Next.

“I just need you to trust me,” Warden says. “Do you trust me?”

Chapter 51

“NAH,” ALEX SAYS.

Dawn blinks, turns to look at him, realizing she almost forgot the rest of the group is here. Like she’s been lost in Warden’s green eyes for a minute or two, and it’s only the sound of the new guy’s voice that snaps her out of it.

The Pack turns to look at Alex, who shrugs.

“No offense, dude,” he tells Warden. “I’m sure you know what you’re doing and you can get these folks to the highway. I just don’t really feel the need to escape.”

Warden says nothing. Just stares at him.

“It’s like,” Alex says, “that counselor, Amber, she might still be alive. And we all know Christian doesn’t know what he’s doing. You all do your thing; I’ll hike back to headquarters on my own. Call in the rescue chopper and I’ll play the hero.

“Shit,” he says, grinning. “They might even let me out early.”

For a long moment, nobody says anything.

Brandon and Evan look at Warden, as if they’re waiting on his cue for how to react. Dawn realizes she’s waiting, too. And she’s seeing how Alex doing hero things will get her off the hook—like, she doesn’t have to feel guilty about abandoning Amber. Not if Alex stays behind to shoulder that burden.

She can skip out with Warden and make tracks for Chicago.

She can leave her old life in the dust.

After a beat, Warden nods.

“Yeah,” he tells Alex. “Okay. You head back to headquarters, make sure the rescue team can find Amber. Just don’t tell the prison guards where we’re headed.”

Alex makes a gesture like he’s zipping his lips. “Snitches get stitches,” he says. “I won’t tell.”

It’s at that moment the wind suddenly picks up, and the first drops of rain blow in hard and cold from the west. Above the campsite, the Raven’s Claw is now completely obscured by clouds; the day’s light is waning, and the storm’s getting closer.

Dawn shivers.