27. Prudence
After eating and eventually falling asleep between Creed and Griffin, a crash wakes me hours later, jarring me out of sleep so violently that I’m shaking and gasping for breath. I blink furiously through the dark room, trying to see what’s going on. Ever since the head showed up at the door, I’ve been on high alert, waiting for The Celestials to somehow get past Asher’s security and strike again. Is that what’s happening now? Have they come for us? My heart is pounding painfully, my palms clammy, and my brain desperately just trying to catch up after being yanked from a deep slumber so violently.
Griffin is in bed beside me, wide awake already and angling his body in front of mine in case someone bursts through the door. I hate it as much as I love it. That protective instinct in him warms me through to my soul, but also the thought of him stepping between me and danger and ending up hurt because of it? That makes me feel sick to my stomach. I’d never be able to live with myself if he, or any of these guys, got hurt because of me.
Another crash echoes through the room, coming from somewhere down the hall, and before I can react or ask what the hell is going on, Griffin tosses the covers off of himself and heads for the door. He pushes his curly hair out of his face, stumbling through the dark room in only a pair of black boxers, and grunts, “Stay here.” Then he’s gone, the door swinging shut behind him as he goes to fend off whoever it is making all that noise.
I stare hard at the closed door, clutching the sheets in my hands as I listen. There’s faint shouting from somewhere in the cabin, glass shattering, and a loud thud. I only last maybe two minutes after Griffin leaves me, and then I can’t take it anymore. I’m up and out of the room, worried about all three of those guys and my sister being out there while I hide away. Absolutely not. If I have to stand up to The Celestials in one of Griffin’s oversized shirts and sleep rumpled hair, then so fucking be it, but I refuse to stay back in my room while there’s danger.
I dart out of the room and down the hallway, prepared to see just about anything… except for what’s actually going on. Jerking to a stop, my mouth pops open to comment on what I’m seeing, but no words come to mind. Just heartbreak. It’s spearing through me, cutting my chest open with its jagged claws while I watch one of my loves fall apart before me.
“Creed! Drop it! It’s me, okay? You know me, man,” Asher urges, standing the closest to Creed as anyone else, but still with a safe distance between the cousins while Creed swings a kitchen knife through the air. Asher’s shirtless, standing wide with his hands out placatingly, like he’s trying to prove that he’s not a threat, but the message just isn’t getting through to his cousin.
Griffin and Genevieve are standing a few feet behind Asher, though Griffin has positioned himself in front of my sister in case things go south. Always the protector. It would make me smile like a damn fool if this situation wasn’t so nightmarish. My stomach twists, but I force my nerves down. Nothing is going to happen to anyone in this room.
I’ll make sure of it.
Creed sweeps his wild, unfocused eyes around the room, pinning Asher and then Griffin with his gaze almost like he’s trying to place them, but can’t quite figure out how he knows them. He slams his eyes closed, shaking his head violently and knocking his fist — the one holding the knife — against his skull like he’s trying to loosen something in there. “I-I’m not— We’re not safe. Not safe here, we’re not safe! I have to go— No! Get back!”
Asher jerks backward a step just as Creed slashes his knife through the air, a snarl on his lips that really should terrify me, but all I feel is the urgent need to rush to him and settle his broken mind.
Nobody has realized I’m in the room yet, so with a shaky breath and a silent pep talk to myself, I move forward. My legs tremble with every step, my lungs tight and suffocating me as I watch Creed. His chest is heaving, his skin deathly pale and sweaty, and his eyes — those beautiful, warm whiskey eyes that have captivated me from the first moment — they’re haunted. It’s as if every bad thing that’s ever happened in his life has come back full force and slammed into him all at once, tearing him from reality and dropping him into an endless pool of his own misery.
My eyes water, and right as I pass Griffin and Genevieve, I choke out a broken, “Creed?”
His gaze darts to me, his eyes widening slightly before his entire body seems to visibly relax. “P-Prudence?” he croaks weakly, reaching for me with his free hand, still angling the knife toward Asher to keep him back. Creed stumbles a bit, as if his muscles are giving out on him, but he rights himself quickly, pleading with his eyes for me to go to him.
And I do.
I’d do anything for him.
Griffin grunts something nervously, but I’m too focused on my storm of a man to hear him right. And from the whimper and snapped curse my sister lets loose, Griffin is too busy keeping her back to try and stop me. Suits me just fine.
”Prudence, wait—” Genevieve starts, but is promptly cut off by Asher.
“Don’t even fucking think about it,” Asher barks as I get level with him, closer and closer to Creed’s blade. He blocks my path, bravely putting his back to Creed and giving me his signature dick scowl. I try to sidestep him, but it’s no use, so I stop walking, arching a brow at the bossy asshole. A muscle in his jaw tics. “Creed is… He isn’t Creed right now. He had a nightmare, he was thrashing in the bed, and then he just… just fucking snapped and rushed to grab that knife. I can”t get through to him right now, and that makes him dangerous, okay? Just stay behind me, let me try to talk him down.”
The look I give Asher could melt skin off bone. He even swallows roughly, like he’s regretting his life choices under my glare. I poke my finger into his chest, speaking in a deathly low voice as I say, ”He’s never a danger to me. Don’t you ever insinuate otherwise. And the very fact that you’re saying he’s not in there? That my Creed is gone? Clearly you aren’t equipped to handle him, so let me by, so I can help Creed, because I’ll be damned if you misstep and confuse him any more than he already is.”
Asher’s nostrils flare as he glares down at me, but there’s a war in his eyes. He’s worried, yes. Scared for all of us. But he also cares about his cousin, and it’s obvious that seeing Creed like this has pushed Asher past his limits. There’s a small part of him, some desperation in his green eyes, that tells me he needs help here, even if he isn’t a fan of me being the one stepping in right now.
Some of my anger melts away, feeling for him, for Griffin, and mostly for Creed. This is a fucking mess, but I’m here now, and I’ll sort out Creed if it’s the last thing I do. Placing my hand on Asher’s bicep, I softly tell him, “I’ve got this, Asher. Please, let me help him. I”m the only one he”ll see right now.” Maybe I”m delusional for thinking that, but if I know a single thing about Creed, it”s that I”m safe with him no matter what state of mind he”s in. Which makes me the best option in this room to step forward and talk him down.
Creed whimpers before Asher has decided whether to let me through or not, and it”s a sound so broken and hollow that Asher and I move at the same time, determined to help piece Creed back together. Asher only manages one step forward, though, before that knife is swishing through the air in a clear warning. I don”t even look at the blade as I keep walking, and Creed doesn”t point it my way, just like I knew he wouldn”t.
Movement behind me informs me that Griffin is losing his patience, about to charge forward and probably snatch me right off my feet. I don’t spare him a single look, confident in Creed and I, in our bond and my ability to get through to him.
Taking a slow, careful step forward, drawing Creed’s frenzied eyes, I hold out my hands and whisper, “Hey, Creed. Baby, it’s me. I’m coming to you now, alright?”
Creed bites his bottom lip, fisting a hand in his hair. He still has the knife pointed in Asher’s direction with his other hand, but I don’t feel a shred of fear for myself. Creed would never hurt me. Never. I’m as sure of that right now as I am every other day with him.
“Ember,” Creed murmurs, tugging on his hair while his eyes swing from me to the people behind me. When he settles on me once more, he shakes his head and stutters out, ”I-I can’t— It’s all black and white and fucking gray. I can’t see any colors. H-how am I supposed to keep you safe if I can’t—” He stops and bangs his palm against his head, gritting out, “If I can’t get my head right? I’m crazy, Prudence. I’m crazy and insane and fucked up in every way, and I can’t keep you safe. I’m sorry, I’m so fucking sorry. I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry.” His voice cracks and tears race down his cheeks, absolutely shattering me into a million pieces while he bares his soul to the room. It feels like a personal moment, something that should be reserved for only the two of us, and I suddenly have the urge to shelter him from everyone else in this room. He doesn”t need witnesses to this. He just needs me and some quiet to settle his mind.
I lurch forward, not caring about the weapon he’s holding, practically slamming into Creed’s lean body and wrapping my arms around him. With my cheek resting over his pounding heart, I close my eyes and squeeze him tight. “I’m safe, Creed. I’m okay, I’m right here. Feel me, I’m here. I’m not going anywhere.”
His free hand spreads across my back, his fingers pressing into my skin like he needs to dig his way inside me to find himself again. “Do you promise? You’ll stay with me, Ember?” he whispers shakily.
My heart cracks right in half and collapses into the deep pit that is my stomach. Is that what tipped him over? Finding out I was planning on leaving, on trading myself in to The Celestials? God, Prudence, you dumb bitch. Look what you did to this sweet, broken man. I grip Creed impossibly tighter, feeling one of his tears drip onto my shoulder. My throat is too tight to utter a single word, but I squeeze Creed until I’m positive he can feel the way my heart beats for him.
Footsteps shuffle closer, but whoever it is — Asher or Griffin, or maybe even my sister — Creed doesn’t approve of anyone else being near him. His muscles lock up tight, his body going rigid against me while his arm tightens on my waist, and an honest to god growl rumbles up his throat. It’s a warning, a threat, and a sign of possession all wrapped up in one.
“Jesus fucking Christ,” Asher mumbles with a deep sigh.
“Are you okay, little flame?” Griffin asks hesitantly, sounding much closer than where I had passed him by a few minutes ago.
“I’m fine,” I reassure him in my calmest tone, pulling back from Creed just enough to look up into his eyes. In the few minutes that I’ve been close, wrapped around him like a gravity blanket, he’s started to come back down from whatever manic episode he was lost in. His eyes, while still slightly unfocused and wide, are much less frantic as he peers down at me. With Creed’s gaze pinned on me, I smile softly and say again, “I’m fine. I’m okay.” I’m speaking to Griffin, but I mean the words to each of my men, to reassure them and hopefully help drain some of their nerves.
“Yeah, well, I’m not,” Asher snaps.
Creed’s dangerous eyes flash at Asher, his lip curling up until he looks like a true predator. “Nobody fucking asked you,” Creed drawls, his voice deep and deadly. Then, looking back down at me, Creed’s features soften, and he twists a lock of my hair around his fingers. “My sweet Ember… My fiery red girl.”
I have to clear my throat before I manage to gently say, “Can you see my colors now, Creed? Are you coming back to me?”
He blinks a few times, as if he’s trying to force his eyes to soak in my appearance, and then he cups my face between both hands, even while his grip on the knife remains strong. “Almost, but I… Come with me?”
And because I’m hopelessly in love with this man and couldn’t be afraid of him even if I tried, I allow him to link our fingers together and guide me out of the room. I catch Asher’s eyes and give him a subtle shake of my head when he frowns at me, and though I can tell it pains him to do so, he collapses onto the couch with a roll of his eyes and leaves me to handle Creed on my own.
Let’s just hope I can draw my wild storm back out to me before his chaos can reach another boiling point.