Page 5 of The Broken Aztec Princesses

I could barely hear him asking if I was okay through the blood rushing in my ears. A part of me could recognize the words trying to help me, not hurt me, but a bigger part of me was too out of control to listen.

“Step the fuck away from her! You’re terrifying her!” I heard someone else’s voice from behind over the rushing of blood in my ears.

Something about the voice was comforting, and my racing heart started calming when I caught the smell of mesquite. I took a deep, gasping breath, and my eyes cleared enough to focus on a concerned pair of cinnamon-brown eyes looking at me.

“I didn’t do anything!” I heard from behind before footsteps receded.

“Violet? It’s okay. He’s gone. He won’t touch you.” Christopher's voice finally broke through the panic, and I let out a small sob of relief. “It’s just Derek. He’s a warrior and a good guy. He won’t touch you, okay? Can you take a deep breath?”

His tone was low and soothing, and he began taking deep breaths to show me what to do. Slowly, the panic receded, and I pulled him into a hug as I flashed back to the night he saved me.

“I’ll take you home, Violet. It’s okay.” I felt my body lifting, but before he could move, I shook my head. “Where do you need to go? Should I mind-link Alpha Cory?” he asked.

“Conference room. I need to calm down,” I managed to say. I didn’t want to ruin everyone’s night with my issues.

“Alright.”

Moments later, Christopher sat me down on the table, and it took me a moment longer before I was able to release him.

“Thank you,” I whispered, unable to look at him as shame started replacing every other feeling in my chest.

“Can I get you something?” he asked. “Or someone to help you?” I stared at his shoulder, unable to meet his eye and shook my head.

I could do this.I psyched myself up. I needed to do this for my family.

‘Bug? Are you okay?’Cory mind-linked me as Christopher and I stood in silence for goddess knew how many minutes.

‘I’m okay. I just needed a little breathing room,’I lied.

‘Do you want me to take you home?’

‘No. I’ll be there in a bit. I promise,’I answered.

‘Okay, but don’t push yourself so hard. You’ve already done a lot today.’

If he only knew.

‘Save me some dessert,’I replied and cut off the mind-link.

I looked up and finally met Christopher’s eyes.

“I’m sorry,” I told him weakly, but Christopher didn’t address my apology.

“What can I do to help?” he asked instead. I hesitated. I didn’t want to ask him for anything but at the same time...

“Can you stay here with me for a few minutes?” I didn’t want to be alone in a room that wasn’t mine.

Christopher grunted in response and sat down on the chair. I looked at my hands and played with my fingers, listening to my heart slow its beatings.

Occasionally, I snuck some glances at Christopher and wondered what he was thinking. He was a strong warrior, the son of two great warriors. His dad, Gabriel, was my mom’s personal guard for almost thirty years, from the day she came to Crescent Moon. Christopher’s mom, Brenda, was our guard, one of two after I was born. Christopher himself was one of Cory’s most trusted warriors. He was the one who found me in the room and killed the man that had been raping me when they stormed into the warehouse where I was being held.

What did he think of one of the Alpha’s children being unable to take the most basic physical contact without freaking out a year after I was kidnapped? Weak. That was what I was. I had always been the weakest one of my siblings.

Shaking my head at what Dr. Campbell would call self-deprecating thoughts, I took a deep breath and hopped off the table. Christopher stood up with me, and I gave him a wan smile.

“Thank you. I’m going back to dinner.” Christopher grunted in acknowledgement and followed as I left the conference room. “You don’t need to follow,” I told him, though in truth, I was relieved he was next to me.

“I was headed to dinner,” he answered me quietly.

---