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“Shit,” I hear Aziah curse. “Talk to me, Rella.”
I want to. I want to open my mouth and tell him I’ll be okay, but I’m not sure if I ever will.
Using my heels, I rock back and forth, my eyes open but not focused on anything. I know Aziah’s in front of me, not too close, but too close for comfort. My vision begins to blur, and it feels like I have tiny spiders crawling over my scalp. I mumble something over and over again, but it’s so jumbled, I can’t even understand it.
“Trouble,” I hear him shout, but it sounds like he’s ten miles away.
Black spots dance in my eyes. I try to draw in a breath, but either there’s not enough air in the room or my lungs just aren’t working.
Just as the darkness takes over and I’m sucked into a black void, something warm and comforting surrounds me, followed by an agonized voice.
“You’re home, Rella. Nothing and no one will ever hurt you again.”
CHAPTER THREE
EMO
I CARRY RELLA’S UNCONSCIOUS and limp form to the bed. She’s so tiny and weightless, it feels like I could easily crush her with a simple squeeze of my arms.
“What in the hell happened?” Trouble demands, coming into the room.
Ignoring him, I gently lay Rella on the bed, making sure her head lies on the pillow, take a step back, and look down at her.
A sharp pain pierces my chest. I should have known better. Trouble said she wouldn’t let him get too close to her. If she won’t let her own brother get near her, she sure as shit won’t let me. But seeing the agony on her face as she spoke about being scared to come back here, I was moving across the floor before my brain registered what I was doing.
I don’t feel compassion or pity or concern toward people. Yes, I love my brothers and I’d give my life to protect them and the people in this town, but Rella is different. I feel everything for her. I feel so damn much that it’s overwhelming, and I don’t know what to do with all the emotions.
One thing I know for certain; she’s brave as fuck for coming to Malus. I wouldn’t have blamed her if she never stepped foot in this town again, even if it meant never having her brother in her life.
I take several more steps back until the backs of my legs meet the chair. I slump down, my elbows going to my knees and my eyes still locked on Rella’s face.
“Emo!” Trouble barks, appearing on the other side of the bed, a worried scowl warping his features as he looks down at his sister.
Without taking my eyes off Rella, I tell him hoarsely, “I got too close. She shut down, then passed out.”
Out the corner of my eye, I see him grip her wrist to check her pulse. It’s on the tip of my tongue to tell him to get his fucking hands off her, subconsciously knowing she would hate it if she were awake, but I hold the words in. Trouble would rather saw off his arm than hurt Rella. His movements are slow and gentle, so I know he’s being cautious in case she does wake up.
Her eyes don’t even twitch beneath her eyelids. Her chest moving as she breathes is the only indication that she’s alive. Her face is pale, too fucking pale, and I don’t like it.
Hearing that once she left Sweet Haven her abuse continued for fourteen more years and knowing I could have stopped it when I heard her scream that night a few days after she attempted to kill herself has my blood boiling and guilt stabbing at my insides. Why in the hell didn’t I investigate further? Why didn’t I demand to speak with Trouble and Rella’s parents? And how could she have survived losing that much blood? I may have only been twelve at the time, but even I knew she lost a dangerous amount.
“Her pulse is fine,” Trouble says, interrupting my thoughts. “It sounds like it was a panic attack.”
More guilt sinks in my stomach like a lead weight. Lowering my head, I grip my hair, smearing blood from my hand through the strands.
I should leave and stay the hell away. With damn good reason, and I wouldn’t expect anything less, all the shit Rella has been through has caused a lot of mental issues for her. It’s a goddamn miracle she’s as sane as she appears. Even without knowing how bad things were for her during her time with Marco and Gabriela, I know most people would be in a mental ward if they went through half the shit she did.
My number-one priority is to find them both and slowly peel the flesh from their bones. It’s a task I plan to enjoy thoroughly.
My mind is fucked to hell and back. Rella needs stability, comfort, and family right now. I’m about as stable as a house of cards during a windstorm. The only thing having me near will do is bring back the haunting memories of what I did to her when we were kids.
I think all this, but the thought of leaving this room terrifies me, like she’ll disappear if I let her out of my sight. Or I’ll wake from a dream only to find out it was a nightmare because she was never really here.
“Did she say anything to you?”
I drag my head up and regard Trouble. I don’t know when she came in, but Remi’s standing beside him, her own concerned gaze fixed on Rella.
“She was taken to some friends of the Moores. Names are Marco and Gabriela.” My jaw clenches. “She didn’t give me details, but those fuckers hurt her too. She was with them for fourteen fuckin’ years.”
