Page 77 of Suspicious

My eyes widen as I shift closer, sliding a brochure across the table. “Okay, Tammy-Lynn, would you like to look through these options to see how I can help you?” I ask.

Haven rolls her eyes, then slumps her body forward as if she’s looking over the papers. “Fine! Why don’t you all try to brainwash me? Fucking conspiracy theorists,” she mumbles while the three of us lean in as if we’re looking over the paperwork.

My pulse begins to quicken, and I see the character of Tammy-Lynn disappear. Haven clearly seeps through as she looks right at me. “Bea, you gotta be careful out there. I fucked up a lot of Atlas’ people in here, and they didn’t crack. No one was willing to talk until I got the warden involved, and he let me do my thing. I was able to take one of the girls who I knew was close to cracking, held her in a private area, and was able to use my Blue Jay training. It took a lot of…persuasion,but I cracked her.”

Widening my eyes, I gasp. “Did you kill her?” I whisper.

Haven snorts out a laugh. “No, Jesus, the warden wouldn’t stand for that. A little brutality here, a few broken bones there,sure. But killing her? No.”

Slumping my tense muscles, I begin to relax. The last thing I want is for anyone to die because of me. I’m in the business of helping people—not hurting them.

This is all a little much.

“What did she tell you?” I ask.

Haven glances at Valerie, and they both exhale a long breath.

Oh no, this can’t be good.

Haven cranes her neck to the side, glancing around to see if anyone is listening, but no one is. She continues, “If what this girl was saying is true, and I tend to believe her because I have since gone to other members of Atlas’ crew to verify, then the source of the hack came fromreallyhigh up, Bea. It’snotgood.”

Furrowing my brows in confusion, I shake my head. “What does that mean?”

Valerie grimaces with an empathetic smile. “Honey, the hack came from the governor’s office.”

I snap my wide eyes to Haven to confirm, a slight cough escaping my mouth in shock. “Ah… the governor of California? As in Bennett Marshall, the man who they think is set to be the next running mate for the upcoming election?”

Haven shrugs. “Told you it wasn’t good.”

My head begins to swirl. Fuck! All this work Theo, Loki, and I have put into this app, and for some completely unknown reason, Bennett Marshall is coming after us. My breath catches, and suddenly, this giant room feels too small, too suffocating. My heart pounds faster and faster like it’s trying to explode out of my chest. The edges of my vision blur, and my hands tremble.

I can’t think straight.

My chest tightens, and it feels like there’s a weight pressing down on me, making it impossible to breathe. I try to swallow, but my throat is too dry. My mind races, spiraling out of control, and all I can think is…

I can’t handle this.

I can’t take on a political giant like him.

I’m just a girl who owns an app for crying out loud.

He’s destined to be the fucking Vice President!

The walls close in, and I’m drowning in my own panic.

Everything is too loud, too bright, and I’m completelyoverwhelmed, trapped in this suffocating whirlwind of anxiety—

A hand reaches out, touching mine. “Bea, take a deep breath in... and let it out slowly, just like you taught me, just like you taughteveryonein here. You can do this, Bea,” Valerie’s kind voice soothes my panic, and somehow, I find the strength to follow her lead.

Breathing in, then out, I let my panic attack slowly wash away. With a trembling bottom lip, I open my eyes, glancing up to look at Haven and Valerie as they both watch me with sympathetic eyes.

Letting out a stuttered breath, I sigh. “I’m so sorry you had to see that.”

They both shake their heads. “No need to apologize. We were just as shocked as you are when we found out. But Bea, you have to go back to the clubhouse and tell the guys. I don’t know how you’re going to get this taken care of, but theremustbe a way,” Haven urges.

Nodding frantically, I draw all the app information back toward me, then pull myself together. “Thank you for signing up, Tammy-Lynn. We look forward to seeing how your health and wellness journey begins,” I state a little louder, then I stand.

“Yeah, yeah. I’ll join the first meditation circle tomorrow morning. Will there be free edibles to help us reach our peakZenexperience?” Tammy-Lynn jests with a smirk.

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