15. Connor
15
Connor
I tilted my wrist to check my watch. Shit, I needed to get changed if I was going to make it to the club on time. There was a high stakes game starting in about an hour.
Maverick came into view as I hustled up the stairs. He was shirtless. His knuckles still wrapped in gym tape as he leaned against the wall outside Violet’s room.
“What are you doing?” I stopped in front of him. My gaze flicking from him to the door.
“Waiting for Violet.”
My eyes narrowed. He looked more concerned than his words expressed. His thick arms were crossed over his chest. The veins in his neck were tense. And the sharpness of his jaw could cut glass.
“We agreed she’d stay home for a while. Charlie and Brandon will be here.”
“I know.” He sighed at my raised brow. “Something is wrong, man. She saw me sparring with Charlie and she lost it. She thought he was hurting me. It wasn’t normal.”
“Is there a normal in this situation? After what she’s been through, it’s a miracle she’ll even speak to us.”
“I guess.” I could hear the disbelief in his tone. A low buzz started in my gut. I trusted Mav, maybe more than I trusted myself. Certainly more than any person in this world besides Reid.
He could be right, and something was wrong. Or he was worried for no reason. I wish I had answers. But all I had to give him was myself.
I took a spot next to him, leaning opposite Violet’s door. The minutes ticked by as we waited. But for what? Violet to appear? A noise? A sign?
Time seemed to blend together. I didn’t know if it was a minute or an hour when Reid came up the stairs, following the same path I had earlier. He stopped short when you saw us.
“What’s going on?”
“Not sure.” I shrugged, but the longer we stood here, the less casual I felt. “Mav’s worried about Violet.”
“What is she doing?”
“Showering.” He grumbled.
If I strained to listen, there was a faint sound of the water running. It did nothing to soothe the anxiety flowing through my veins.
“Don’t you think it’s a little creepy to stand outside her door?” Reid’s look of disapproval didn’t dispel Maverick. He just made a noncommittal noise.
We waited a few more minutes. My heart started to beat an uneasy rhythm. I stared at the wood, waiting for it to open. I thought about what I’d be doing if I was her. If I’d lost everything.
It wasn’t hard to imagine. I’d once been as low as her. Completely alone in the world and not sure how it had all come crashing down. And that void had lived in me until I’d met my brothers. Sometimes it was still there, maybe not a gaping chasm anymore. But a tiny hole in my heart that would stay empty forever.
I remembered the crazy thoughts that had gone through my mind when I’d lost my family. I felt the emotions again, like it had happened yesterday. The rage. The disbelief. The injustice. Then the agony.
I would’ve done anything to get rid of that pain.
My stomach dropped to my knees. “Mav, how long has she been in there?”
“Too long.”
I pictured Violet when we’d left her parents. The vacant look in her eyes. Soon it would be filled with all those emotions she couldn’t control.
My body shot forward, deciding before I had. “She’s hurting herself.”
“You don’t know that,” Reid said from behind me. I barely heard him.
“I know what I feel.”
“You don’t want to scare her.” I looked back to see Maverick running a hand over his jaw, but I was already opening the door.
“This isn’t a good idea.” Reid protested, but followed me as I stepped into her room. “She’s going to freak out.”
“Better than her being fucking dead.”
It was dark, with only the faint glow of the setting sun coming in through the windows. My eyes immediately went to the closed bathroom door. Our footsteps were silent on the plush carpet as I moved towards it.
That’s when I heard it. A sharp cry. Like a trapped animal.
“Violet?” I knocked, but the only response was more sobs.
I grasped the metal handle, but the lock caught. Of course, she’d locked it. I pounded on the wood again, louder this time.
“Can you let us in, little bloom?” All I could hear were her whimpers of pain. The worry tightened my chest. I looked at my brothers and I saw it all over their faces.
Fuck this. I gripped the knob tight and pulled, ripping it right off the door. It flew open.
Steam swirled around the room. It fogged the air, making it difficult to see. But the layout was the same as our. I made it to the shower without a problem.
Yanking back the curtain, I found her. Violet didn’t seem to notice us as the water beat down on her. Her knees pressed to her naked chest as she sat curled up on the tile floor. Her hand was still running a cloth over her body.
She wasn’t just washing herself. She was scrubbing at her skin, turning it red and raw. Or maybe it was the scorching heat of the shower. Tears flowed freely off her cheeks, mixing with the water as it circled down the drain.
I leaned forward, flicking the temperature to cool. I stuck my hand out, reaching for her. “Come on. Up.”
She didn’t acknowledge me until my fingers brushed her wrist. “No!” She jerked away as I tried to grab the washcloth. “I have to get clean!”
I caught her arm, stilling her movement. The cloth was tinged red with flecks of her skin on it. “You’re clean, little bloom.”
“No! No! No!” She shrieked, twisting until I was forced to let her go or hurt her. “I can still feel him.”
Her head fell back, and she looked up at me with vulnerable eyes so round and gorgeous I knew I’d give her anything she asked for. The green seemed brighter in the dim light. It was as if I could see into her soul. See all the broken pieces.
“Please.” Her voice lowered. The quiet whimper echoed off the tiles as she begged. “I have to get rid of him.”
I tucked a wet strand of hair behind her ear, keeping her attention on me. And because I couldn’t not touch her. She was like shattered glass. There was something memorizing in the cracks and splinters. “You’re hurting yourself.”
“I have to get clean.” The desperation in her words tore at my heart. “I have to make it go away.”
Another sob wrecked through her. I looked at my brothers, seeking their help. But they seemed just as confused as me. Both of them had stricken expressions on their faces.
There was only one thing I could think to do. One way to stop her from hurting.
I stepped into the shower. Water soaked my clothes, but I didn’t care. Violet’s gaze followed as I sunk to the floor behind her. Wrapping my arms around her body, I brought her back to my chest.
I crept my fingers towards her hands until I grasped the cloth. Her nails curled into the fabric. “He’s gone.”
Her grip loosened enough for me to pry the washcloth from her grasp. It made a wet splat as I tossed it aside. She continued to sob as I held her closer. I felt each tremor rush through her body. It stole the breath from my lungs. Her pain felt like my own.
I thought about the things people had said to me when my parents died. That it would be okay. That I’d move on. That the ache would go away.
None of it was true.
So I told her the only thing I knew. The one we could be sure of.
“It’s over, little bloom. We’ve got you now. He’ll never hurt anyone ever again.”