“Stop.”
“Killer in the-”
“Killer.”
“Did you eat?”
“Eat. Eat. It’s good.”
“Stop.”
CHAPTER THIRTY
BUNNY
Tucking the towel underneath my arms, I sit upright on Razor’s bed, tracking his disorderly, manic movement in the haze settling in his room. He set me down like he was detached from his soul and cupped his hands over his ears… He’s been murmuring and pacing since.
“Raze…”
“Stop… Stop.” He spins around, pressing into his head, his fingers taut in his hair and his eyes squeezed shut. “Stop… Stop, stop, stop.”
Catching how hard his chest is heaving, my heart starts slipping up my throat, climbing higher and higher with each four-letter word.
That same unsettling presence sinks into my wet skin, manifesting a chill across my pores. I flick over to the umbra oozing from the corner behind the door, keeping Razor’s pacing in my blurry peripheral, and the silhouette veiled in shadows, his milky eyes absorbing the moonlight andlocked on me like he was waiting for this moment, surrounds my body with rippling cold chills, a feverish sweat breaking out along the bridge of my nose.
“Stop… Stop… Stop! STOP!”
The hoarse eruption coming from Razor’s chest lurches my heart, jarring me into a tense jump that loosens my towel. Clutching his comforter on either side of my hips, I hold it tight, so tight it throbs my knuckles, gaping at the way Razor’s falling to his knees in the middle of the room and doubling over, like his head is one tick away from exploding.
Shakes pervade me, every muscle rattling uncontrollably, my stomach twisting. The shock driving my heart rate up puts me on a carousel, warping the shadowed shapes filling the room.
Scared to move. Scared of saying the wrong thing. I freeze.
It feels like I sit here for too long. Realistically, the steps thundering down the hall kicked off into motion the moment Razor yelled. But being helpless in a dire situation, freezing in fear when someone you love needs help—stops time.
The doorknob cranks into a twist and Cash barrels inside, letting in spears of yellow light before the overhead bulb is raining down in fluorescent bullets. “What happened?!”
“I-I-” My tongue sinks into the back of my throat, clogging it. I choke on air, trying to swallow the thick saliva and flailing my hands—unable to look away from Razor. “He j-just-”
“It’s okay,” Cash exhales, dropping to his knees by Razor’s head.
Xene runs in. I only know it’s him because he’s tripping over a snag in the carpet and eating the floor near Cash’s feet, his shaggy hair exploding like a bag of feathers within the blur.
“You fucking idiot!” Ora lunges over him, her outstretched hands forming to my knees, the alcohol on her breath slapping me awake as she squats down. “Are you okay?”
I nod, trying to hear what Cash is whispering to Razor, his gentle hand rubbing a pacifying line up and down his back, just firm enough to shift his shirt.
Duse, Gwen, and Aries are stopping in the door, and Xene is crawling up onto his knees to watch what’s happening. I know it’s not my fault, I didn’t cause a scene, but my chest is sinking over the fact this is becoming a huge spectacle.
I’m aware they’re not viewing for their entertainment. They’re concerned. There’s just… It’s, like, a bomb is fizzing in my sternum, sputtering irrational rage, convincing me I need to shoot up and clear the room.
I don’t. I control it. Inhaling deeply and accepting Ora’s hand in mine.
“He needs to be taking his medication, Bun,” Ora whispers, stroking her thumb along the back of my hand.
So… this is what his medication is for…
I didn’t know that. I didn’t know what he’d be medicated for other than, I don’t know, I guess slight anger issues.
