"You're not supposed to be getting involved with drug rings," Jake said, staring at her because she seemed so calm and collected about this. "Do you realize what could have happened to you? People like this just don't let you off with a warning and a bloody lecture. You could have been hurt!"

And he'd have felt responsible. It wouldn't have been his fault in anyway save for the fact that he'd ignored her text for a few minutes that could have been used to get cops there quicker. He swallowed around that guilt and dug into his anger.

"Was a stupid story really that important?" Jake asked her, hands on his hips. "Before you say anything, let me answer the question for you: no, it's not. That was stupidly risky. It was dumb."