Page 26 of Need

She didn’t answer.

Sure she wasn’t going to fall, I let go of her arms and brought my hands up to her face, forcing her to look at me. “Number.”

Still nothing.

Then I noticed that her lips had started to move. No sound was coming out, but I finally realized that she was trying to say ‘red.’ My heart broke for her. I knew that her seeing Daren would not be good, but I had hoped her reaction wouldn’t be this bad.

With steady resolve, I took her into my arms and began whispering to her. Letting her know that she was safe. That he was gone. No one would hurt her. This was the first time she’d reached this level of panic since she’d been in my care, and so it took an unusually long amount of time to calm her. Finally, she began to settle down. Her breathing returned to normal and she was no longer trembling.

“He won’t hurt you, Brianna. I promise.”

She made no response other than to take hold of my jacket, pulling me closer. I held her for a few more minutes before telling her we were going to walk down the stairs. Still there was silence, but she stayed glued to my side as we walked slowly down the four flights it took to reach the lobby.

The main entrance to the hotel held a lot more people than the lobby area we’d just come from, and I felt her draw even closer, if that were possible. I tightened my grip on her waist and kissed the top of her head before crossing the short distance to the valet. Thankfully, the hotel had staffed extra valets for the evening so we didn’t have to wait long for our car.

I felt a movement from Brianna, subtle though it was, and glanced down at her as I helped her into the passenger side of my car. She wasn’t going into a panic attack as she had been upstairs, but she wasn’t relaxed either. The look on her face was almost... blank.

The young man who’d brought our car came up to ask if something was wrong since I hadn’t moved from my position. I quickly assured him that everything was fine and went to get into the car myself.

Brianna was quiet the entire ride home. She’d barely moved aside from blinking. Her lack of reaction was bothering me. I would rather have had her hysterical than as she was now.

I parked my car and walked around to help her from the vehicle. She took my offered hand almost as if she were a robot following programming. I held her close to my side and prayed that once we were in a familiar space she would come out of it.

Unfortunately, nothing changed once we walked through my door. If anything, she seemed to become more distant.

Taking her hand, I led her into her bedroom. A small light flickered in her eyes, but was just as quickly gone again.

I led her over beside her bed, and then went to get her something to change into. Reluctantly, I handed the clothes to her. Normally, I would have had no qualms about undressing her; however, given all of her trauma tonight, I felt it was best not to test her limits.

I lifted her chin with my index finger. Her eyes followed until they were looking into mine. Blank. Where had my Brianna gone?

“Go change and get ready for bed,” I said, nodding toward her bathroom. “I’ll wait here.” As soon as I let go of her chin, she slowly walked toward the bathroom and disappeared behind the door.

No longer able to see her, I pulled out my phone and dialed my assistant, Jamie. I tried not to disturb her on weekends, but it couldn’t be helped. She answered on the fourth ring and efficiently took down my instructions. Monday could not come soon enough.

Brianna

Numb. That was the only way to describe how I was feeling as I removed the purple gown from my body. I stood in front of the full-length mirror, but it almost felt like I wasn’t even there.

Habit was what drove me as I put on my nightclothes, washed my face, and brushed my teeth. There was no feeling as I scrubbed the make-up from my face or spread the mint toothpaste along my teeth and gums. They were just things. Actions. Nothing had meaning beyond doing what I had been told to do.

I walked slowly back into the room and came to a stop directly in front of... him. Him. Who was he? I thought I knew but...

It was just better not to think.

He turned down the covers and told me to lie down. I obeyed.

I stared up at the ceiling. There were tiny patterns. I’d never noticed before.

He sat down beside me on the bed. His fingertips brushed the side of my face. I heard him speaking to me, but nothing registered. Nothing made sense.

The bed shifted and then I felt arms come around me. He had joined me in the bed. I knew I should be concerned. Should do something. Say something. But I couldn’t.

He didn’t try to talk to me again. The only noise in the room besides our breathing was the slight sound his lips made as they brushed against my hair. It was meant to be comforting. I knew that. Somehow, I knew that. I just felt... nothing.

At some point, I must have fallen asleep, but I couldn’t remember the falling. The morning sunlight filtered in through the single window of my room. He was no longer there beside me. I listened closely, and could hear movement in the other room.

Where last night I had felt nothing, today I felt everything. I replayed Karl’s attack and reached up to feel my collar still in place.

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