This sentence will be followed by a strange lookin' fellow with pouty lips. (• ε •)

Outside, the wind blew in soft gusts. Hair instantly invaded my face and I had to tuck it into a ponytail as soon as I took no less than five steps into the winding stone driveway. There were three black cars parked on the grassy area beside a line of blooming white flowers and a dark red Corvette on the opposite side. I walked to the lush garden bordering the penthouse and took a seat on the grass, blades of it tickling the palms of my hands. I was thankful to have my clothes back on again since it was so chilly. But the breath of fresh air was worth being cold for. It took some persuasion to make Wolfe unlock the doors but he gave in at the end and left to take a shower.

Even though it was a penthouse, the outside looked more like a mansion than anything else. There were only two suites, but the other was unoccupied. Wolfe's home stood alone on a sloping hill, built on higher ground and providing a stunning view all around with trees below. Manhattan sprawled in the distance, the tall skyscrapers and cold steel buildings reaching up to the greying sky above. The Brooklyn Bridge sat quietly in the horizon. It looked so far away that I felt an ache in the pit of my stomach. I didn't know whether it was because I missed home or because I didn't want to leave. In the last 24 hours, I learned more about Wolfe Sterling than government agents who were searching for the Crowns had in their whole lifetime.

Could I really go to the police after everything? I should. It was the right thing to do. I'd be a hero, plastered all over the state of New York as the girl who took down one of the most dangerous criminal organizations in the country. But I'd be betraying Wolfe. How could I do that? But how could I not? The Crowns could destroy my parent's livelihood and mine. They were criminals, after all, and if they were caught then we would be in as much trouble as they were.

And then I'd never taste the magic that was Twizzlers ever again. I couldn't jeopardize something like that.

The blades of grass were tall, not having been cut in a long while. I rested my chin on my knees and pulled a few out of the ground, playing with the strands and still trying to think of a reasonable explanation as to why Mom had left me in front of the Espresso House doors and I somehow managed to disappear for an entire day and night.

Explanation. What would be a good explanation? Anything was better than saying I was shot.

Dad, I was kidnapped by aliens but they couldn't use me in experiments because my bloodstream was filled with Twizzler molecules. Aliens have a different perception of time and so that is why I was gone for so long. They don't have phones or cellular reception because, duh, they're from outer space.

Mom, I accidentally took acid and tried to swim across the New York Harbor because Lady Liberty and I are in love and getting married. I was detained by the police overnight for questioning and they released me just this morning.

Dad, I was stuck in traffic. And before you ask, yes, it did take me 24 hours to finally get out. This is Brooklyn, after all.

Mom, I was trying to do a winged eyeliner and lost track of time. I mean, beauty can't be rushed.

Dad, time is an illusion and nothing is real.

Mom, in Soviet Russia, you're the one who went missing.

Oh man, I was so screwed. I was screwed harder than a pornstar. I was screwed so much, a screwdriver couldn't unscrew me because I was screwed so tightly. I was screwed more than the screws on a rollercoaster. And like a rollercoaster, I was going to be taking a dive pretty soon. Except I'd be taking a dive into a mountain of trouble and a life sentence of being grounded forever-

"Boo." A voice said right into my ear.

It was a quiet noise, but the suddenness of it scared me. Out of pure instinct, I gave a little scream and launched the blades of grass I had in my hand directly at the source of the voice. I scrambled up and whirled around, my heart beating as if I'd just run a marathon. Wasn't this a repeat performance? Hadn't I already launched a pair of keys into the face of Wolfe Sterling when he snuck up on me? God dammit.

Wolfe was holding onto his knees, doubled over from laughing. As I stood glaring at him, my fright slowly withered away until my heart returned to normal. Or at least, as normal as it got when Wolfe was around.

"Don't do that." I frowned. He was still laughing at me, the jerk. "One of these days, I'm going to have a rock in my hand when you try scaring me again and then we'll see who's laughing."

"Sorry." Wolfe said, not sounding sorry at all. He let out an involuntary snort of laughter before managing to gather his composure again. His hair sparkled with little droplets of water. Did he not understand the purpose of a towel? Wolfe was dressed in a light grey suit with a black tie, looking every bit as daunting as the papers said he was. With Wolfe's muscular stature and his quick temper, it was no wonder people were in so awe of this man. I was in awe of this man.

He sat down on the soft grass, patting the space beside him. I wanted to get home as soon as possible but after a moment's hesitation, I took a seat. We sat in silence for a while, staring out into the distance at the glory that was Manhattan. A helicopter hovered near a tall steel building before landing on the roof. My nose and ears felt cold, but the chill helped ease the pain of my shoulder. It was a deep, dulling ache from the muscle, a feeling that made me wince. The pain kept coming and going, like a radio that went in and out of tune.

Wolfe noticed me uncomfortably rubbing my shoulder and frowned. "Florence, don't put any pressure on it. You'll make it worse. It takes almost half a year for bullet wounds to heal. I would have given you a sling but I know you'd never willingly wear it."

"You have an impressive amount of knowledge on bullet wounds." I looked at his mangled knuckles but they made me want to cry so I looked away.

"When you live the kind of life that includes guns, it kinda helps to become a little bit of an expert on all things dangerous." Wolfe examined his hands and then looked away. I guess they also grossed him out. "And after a while, you get used to getting hurt. Almost like you developed a taste for pain."

"So you're a masochist."

"That is not what I meant!"

"I know." I grinned, trying to keep things lighthearted. I knew exactly what Wolfe meant.

He glanced at me warily, and then gave a tired sigh. I got the feeling that Wolfe was stressed out. I was surprised he wasn't dead yet. "You know, I thought you would have left as soon as I unlocked the door for you. I'm surprised you didn't run off the first chance you got." He spoke with a fake amusement, one that lingered on for too long that gave away the fact that he was forcing himself to sound okay. Whatever it was, whether it was me getting shot or him being away from his friends for quite a while, had taken a toll on Wolfe. I had never seen him like this. Away from the hustle and bustle of the city, Wolfe seemed like a whole new person.

"Like I would actually try to get down this hill." I chuckled, gesturing to the steeping mountain of earth we sat on. The bottom leveled out to a small clearing with thick, dense trees. Beyond that sprawled Manhattan, and somewhere in the distance, Brooklyn too. "I would probably lose my footing halfway and tumble down like a tumbleweed. I'd become a human bowling ball. I'd be a snowball getting bigger and bigger as it rolled down the hill."

"Or, you know, you could just use the stairs over there." Wolfe grinned, teeth flashing in the bright sunlight, and pointed out a stone staircase cut into the hill that led all the way down to the bottom.

My mouth dropped open. I never noticed it. "Wolfe! You could have told me that before you left to take a shower! I could have been in Times Square by now. Unbelieveable-"

Suddenly, a soft vibrating noise began. Startled, I felt around in the pockets of my pants and pulled out my phone. The display screen showed a phone call. Ade's picture, his bright face smiling happily at me from the screen, brought a lump to my throat. I didn't even know I had  my phone with me. I could've called my parents and offered them one of the six explanations stated above. Oh, man. Realizations, at this point, kind of seemed too late.

Wolfe noticed the caller and sat up straighter. "Don't answer that, Florence."

"I have to." Wary of his temper, I scrambled up too and scooted away. He stood up too and looked like he was about to lunge for my phone. Just as I was about to press the answer option, Wolfe's fingers clamped around my wrist. Both of them. A little more than startled by his reaction, I tried to twist my hands out of his grip but it didn't work. The skin on his fingers were callous and hurt.

Wolfe's eyes flashed dangerously. "Do not answer that fucking call, Florence-"

"Wolfe, stop!" I snapped and once again tried to squirm away. If anything, one of his hands tightened its grip around one of my hands, the one holding the phone. My panic increased. The vibrating happened again. As upset as I was with Ade, I had to talk to him. He was still my best friend. "Honestly! What's the big deal, it's just a phone call-"

The anger in his eyes steeled. A part of me guessed at what he was about to do next and in the few seconds that followed, I found out that I was correct in my assumption. Wolfe let go of one of my hands, twisting his other and mine around to my back. A sharp pain flowered up from the awkward position my shoulder was in. My fingers tightened to an iron grip around the vibrating object. No matter what, he wasn't getting it. Wolfe reached his arm around my waist and we wrestled for the phone for a few seconds, before I panicked and I tried twisting his nipple, but I couldn't really get a good grip because of his thick clothing.

He barely reacted, but in the precious few seconds, I gained the upperhand. Freeing myself from his grasp, I shoved Wolfe away. Well, it was more like I scrambled out of his reach because shoving Wolfe did nothing. Before he could wrestle the phone away, I quickly hit answer and said, "Hello?"

"For fuck's sake." Wolfe growled angrily. He reached for me again but I moved away just in time so his hands grabbed empty air. "He's not your friend, Florence! You don't need that guy as your anchor, not after the stunt he pulled. Hang up the phone or I promise, I'll do it for you-"

"Shh! Shut up!" I waved him off and listened. There was a soft, barely audible static from the other line. "Hello?" I asked again. Wolfe looked like he was about to kill me so I inched toward the stone staircase in case I needed to make a hasty escape. "Ade? Are you ther-"

"Florence." Ade's voice came through, cutting me off.

"Ade!" I squealed, keeping both hands clamped over my phone. Still taking caution of Wolfe, who was growing angrier by the second, I babbled on. "Oh, I missed you! How are you? Are you okay? Are my parents okay? Is Clancy okay-"

"Yes. We are all fine." Ade said. His voice was strangely monotone and dry, like he didn't want to speak anymore than he had to. A little tingle of warning bells clenched my stomach. Something sounded wrong. He sounded wrong. "Are you  okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine." I said, confused. "Ade, what's going on?"

"Nothing, Florence." He said, in the same hollow, emotionless voice. His words were soft spoken and that was very unlike him. I was starting to get worried. "I just wanted to see if you were...okay."

"Yes, I told you." I frowned. "I'm fine. I'm okay."

"That's...good then, I suppose." Ade paused for a second, and then his voice spoke softly, almost coldly. It wasn't the Ade I knew and loved. "Goodbye, Florence."

"Wait, what?" Alarmed, I glanced at Wolfe. "What do you mean, goodbye? Hold on, can we just-"

Suddenly, the dial tone cut me off.

He had hung up.

Shocked, I stared at the screen for a few seconds, unable to make sense of what just happened. Ade was always a bright, lively, lovable guy. Was. Why did he sound so dead? Who did I speak to? That was no Ade. Ade didn't hang up on me. He wouldn't do that. Why did he sound so cold? Why did he sound like...Wolfe? My mind was reeling. The dread that had settled into the pit of my abdomen flared up. Something was very wrong.

I guess I had been staring at the phone for a while now, open-mouthed in surprise because Wolfe suddenly touched my arm and I jumped. Ade's unexpected call left me feeling numb, and not just in my shoulder this time. Dumbfounded, I looked at Wolfe and then back to the black screen of my phone, and then back to Wolfe.

"I'm sorry, Florence." Wolfe said softly. He came to my side and wrapped an arm around my waist, holding me close. Almost pitifully, it seemed.

"For what?" I felt tears welling up in my eyes even though I knew I was overreacting. Ade was a touchy subject. Even if he left me, I still considered Ade my best friend. Granted, best friends don't just abandon each other in the time of need, but it's not like we were talking about some little middle school fight. The circumstances were dangerous, we were dealing with criminals and bad people. Ade had every right to leave, and I had every right to feel as if my heart had been broken into a million pieces. But still, friends were for life. I wasn't going to give up on Ade. He hadn't given up on me...right? Ade was a good person.

The regret in Wolfe's eyes was almost too much for me. He pulled me closer and said, "He wanted to see if you were still alive...or if they were successful in their mission to kill you."