Page 31 of Snitches and Serpents

I suck in more breaths. They never make it past my throat. Never make it all the way into my lungs.

The thought of that sends another flare of panic through me.

I burst into tears.

Gasping desperately, I try to force air into my lungs. But all I manage are rapid, shallow breaths.

My knees buckle.

Crashing down on the grass, I double over and brace my palms on the ground in front of me as I try desperately to breathe. But I can’t stop crying. And I can’t fucking breathe.

Another wave of searing panic slams into me.

I can’t breathe.

I can’t breathe.

I can’t breathe.

I’m starting to lose feeling in my hands. My entire arms are tingling. Prickling.

“Hey, hey, look at me,” a man’s worried voice suddenly comes from right beside me.

But I can’t look at him. I can’t even lift my head. My body shakes as I try and fail to get air all the way into my lungs.

Strong hands appear on my body. And then I’m hauled back and twisted around. I would’ve gasped if I’d had any breath left to do so.

Within seconds, I find myself straddling someone’s lap. Hands cup my cheeks, lifting my head up so that I’m no longer bent forward.

My vision swims, and I have to blink several times to get my eyes to focus.

When they do, the sight before me sends another spike of dread through me.

Tristan’s green eyes stare back at me.

He’s sitting with his back against the wall and his legs stretched out before him. I’m straddling his thighs, and he has slipped both hands into my hair, holding the sides of my head steady and forcing me to meet his eyes.

“Listen to me,” he says, his intense gaze locked on mine. “You’re having a panic attack.”

“I… can’t… breathe,” I manage to press out between short, shallow breaths.

“I know. You’re hyperventilating. Take a deep breath.”

“Can’t.”

“Then just take whatever breath you can and hold it.”

I try to take a deeper breath, but it gets stuck in my throat again, which makes panic crackle through me once more. I suck in another rapid breath.

“I said, take a breath and hold it,” Tristan orders, his voice pulsing with power. “You need to get your breathing under control.”

The force of his command cuts through the air and stuns me enough that I actually manage to close my mouth and hold the shallow breath I had manage to get into my throat.

“Good.” His eyes remain locked on mine as he gently strokes my temples with his thumbs. “Now, let it out.”

I hold his gaze as if it’s the only thing tethering me to this world. And then I slowly breathe out.

“Good.” He nods. “Do it again. Take a breath and hold it.”

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