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"Hang in there You want so Without answering him she raced to the bathroom at the back of the bus and voetting sick People would re white wouts out But she couldn’t worry about that yet When she was done being sick, she rinsed her mouth out and splashed cold water on her face Then she pulled her pants down and checked her bleeding It was heavy and thick She tried to feel sad, feel reret Instead, she felt only relief She held on to that relief as she made her way back to her seat

She closed her eyes and leaned her head back The man in the seat next to her patted her clammy hand and she opened her eyes He placed three saltines in her palm For the rest of the trip she nibbled on her crackers In her weakened state and on her empty stomach, they tasted like manna from heaven

"Thank you," she said He reached out and patted her shoulder A kind, grandfatherly touch She ached so ht now she wanted to sit next to hiainst hirabbed his hand and squeezed it

"It’s all right," the et carsick too soonna make it"

She smiled so he knew she heard him, but didn’t tell hiet carsick Any car, any kind, she could drive it She’d been driving since she elve years old She could hot-wire a car in under fifteen seconds She could shift like a race car driver She felt more at home in a car than she did anywhere else on earth--except for Søren’s bed Carsick was the last thing she was

When the pain passed, she lifted her head and rested back against the seat For a fewbreaths Slow breaths Breaths that filled her lungs and emptied herThen she remembered

"Little One, take deep breaths when you’re on the cross Deep full breaths Fill your lungs and empty your mind When I beat you, it’s for us, for our pleasure--yours and mine Don’t be afraid Never be afraid of me"

"Never ever, sir," she’d whispered back to hi away fro lady?" thetone in his voice

"I don’t run," Elle said "It’s not running away froood point Visiting friends or family here?"

"A friend," she said "I think he’s a friend I hope he is"

"Why wouldn’t he be?"

"I broke his heart once," she said, sain

"You look like a heartbreaker" The hed