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Carys slaps a hand over her face to hide her obnoxious laugh. “Oh my God. His work wife. That’s great.”
Chloe’s phone vibrates against the table, and she silences it. “It’s Nattie. I’ll call her back. She probably just wants to make sure I’m going to watch the game. Like I haven’t seen enough of our brothers playing football to last a lifetime.”
The phone vibrates again, and Chloe blows out a breath, then slides her finger over it. “Nat, I’m out to breakfast with the girls. Can I call you after?” Whatever Nattie just said has Chloe’s face going terrifyingly white as she looks over at Carys. “Breathe, Nattie. I need you to breathe. Where’s Brady?”
“What’s happening?” Carys asks, but Chloe’s eyes lock with mine, and my stomach drops.
Oh, God.
“Well, call his coach, Nat. Call Murph.” Chloe sits quietly for a minute, refusing to meet Carys’s eyes. “Hang up the phone, Nat. I’m calling Sabrina to come over until we can get Brady. Give me a few minutes, and I’ll call you back.” She sucks in a sharp breath. “I love you too, Nat. Call his coach. I’ll get Brina there as soon as I can.”
She ends the call, and it’s as if all the noise is sucked out of the room, and the world tilts on its axis.
The only thing I hear is the beat of my own heart.
“Chloe...” Carys’s whole body is shaking, her eyes full of unshed tears, waiting to break free. “What happened?”
Chloe takes a handful of money from her purse and throws it on the table. “We’ve got to go.” She pushes Carys out of the booth, then grabs my arm. “Call Max. Tell him to meet us at Coach’s house.”
Maddie and I follow them outside The Busy Bee, the two of us holding hands like scared kids.
Carys grabs Chloe’s arm with shaking hands and whispers, “What. Happened?” Her wild green eyes are wet and terrified, and her lower lip trembles as she waits for an answer.
“Let’s go to your mom’s, Care Bear.” Chloe looks at me over the top of Carys’s head, and Carys snaps as she vacillates between all of us. Her body is rigid as she grabs Chloe’s arms.
“Chloe,” she begs through the tears that are pouring down her face. “Please, just tell me. I need to know.” When Chloe doesn’t answer, Carys screams, “Tell me!”
Chloe grabs Carys’s hands while Maddie and I stand on either side of her. “It’s Cooper.”
“Is he dead?” The words are barely above a whisper as Carys shakes where she stands.
Chloe tilts her head to the side, and a tear leaks down her cheek. “We don’t know. His unit... They were captured.”
The gut-wrenching cry Carys makes as she falls to the sidewalk is a sound I’ll never forget as long as I live.
