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Crispin stepped through the doors.
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Everybody got quiet.At least, that was how it seemed to Pen.
Pen knew.
Something was going to happen now.
She turned, carefully. She had to wear a sling for a month or two until her collarbone healed, Nikkie Jean had been very firm on that.
“Pen,” Zoey stood up. It was obvious Zoey was hurting really badly. But her sister would never let that show. Not Zoey.
There were women in the doors. They paused for a moment. Then stepped closer.
As the rest ofthosewomen stood. As the brothers and sisters around Pen stood, too.
“I think now…might be the time to do this. Then we’ll go home. You can have some time to think later. Murdoch’s brother and brothers-in-law are going to bring some furniture for the kids this afternoon. Nikkie Jean, Payton, and Paige are going to go clothes’ shopping for them—with Luc’s credit card, heaven help us. But we’re all going home and going to rest and be together.” Zoey put her hand out.
Pen put her right hand in her sister’s. Zoey had always led the way. She loved her sister so much. She could at least stillfeelthat. She still had Zoey. She still had her mom. He hadn’t taken Zoey away.
Pen turned. There were people there. And they were looking at her.
And…Thereshewas. “She’s real.”
“Yes. I didn’t realize how it would feel, seeing her. Knowing…what you missed. How much it hurts.” Zoey’s words were tight. Her hand, too. “What she missed. What…could have happened, if you were kept together.”
Zoey couldn’t have taken care of them both. It had been a fight for her to get Pen. They wouldn’t have given her both. Pen just knew that.
And if Pen had gone with her twin…she never would have hadZoey.Zoey was her mom and had been her world for as long as she could remember. She wouldn’t have had that. She wouldn’t have had Zoey.
She would have traded one sister for the other. And never even known until now.
Pen didn’t know how she was supposed tofeelright now.
Orion, though, he had no such fear. “Cwis! You here!”
He slipped off his chair and took off running.
Toward the girl on crutches who stood there. Staring.
From Pen’s own face.
Pen just stared back.
Orion ran to her. He was jabbering and pointing. At Pen and Zoey and Murdoch.
The girl knelt down, gingerly. She was hurt, too. She hugged him. But she…was hurting, too.
Eastman and his goons had hurt that girl, too. They’d hurt Pen’s twin sister, and Pen hadn’t even…known…she was there. She could have died, and Pen would never have known anything about her.
Why couldn’t she figure out how tofeel?
“I don’t know what happened to her,” Pen said quietly. “What he did.”
She looked at Zoey for the answer.
“He took her off campus early yesterday. Before noon. Her name is Crispin. She didn’t meet his needs because of her eyes,” Zoey said quietly. “So…he ordered them to take me to replace her. He was going to have her killed and hidden. Sydney found her and they got outside together. I found Orion. Then we found Sydney. I gave him to Sydney to get outside. Sydney had told Crispin to go for help. But Crispin came back. She came back to help Sydney getyouout, Pen. She wasn’t going to leave you behind. Sydney gave her Orion, and told her to get him away from there. That was when she left. She wanted to help you, but…”
