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Think.
What could he do other than sit here, twiddling his fucking thumbs?
The thought came to him suddenly. Could he do it, though?
Then she cried out again.
“Baby girl?”
“Please don’t hurt me,” she whispered.
Like he ever fucking would. Even knowing she wasn’t in her right mind; the pain was real. Very real.
“It’s all right. I’d never hurt you. I’m going to try and get some help.”
He climbed off the beanbag, hating that she cried out again. He grabbed her phone from the holder, those things were actually fucking handy, then he moved into the playroom, thinking this call might upset her further.
He hit his name. It only rang three times.
“Twink? What’s wrong?” The alarm in Xavier’s voice was unmistakable.
“It’s me. Brick,” he said lamely.
“What’s the matter?” The worry in his voice grew. “Is Juliet ill? Injured?”
“No, man. No. Let me speak, huh?” His irritation stemmed more from worry than anything else. “I need your help. I don’t think she’s been sleeping, so I decided to stay on the sofa in the playroom. Woke up just now to her screams.”
“She’s having a nightmare?”
“Yeah, only thing is, she’s not waking up. I mean, I tried to talk to her, but she keeps telling me not to hurt her and when I reach for her, she shies away. Maybe I should leave her alone, but I just can’t. And I’m scared she’s going to hurt herself.”
“Night terrors. She gets them sometimes. When she’s really anxious about something.”
“Reuben,” he muttered.
“Has she heard from him lately? Has something changed?”
“He’s gone silent. We’re not sure what’s going on.”
“Okay. Did you turn on the light?”
Turn on the light. He was a fucking idiot.
“No. Christ. I’ll do that now.”
“No, wait,” Xavier said quickly. “That can actually make things worse. She’s got her nightlight, but turn the light on in the bathroom. You want to do it gradually, or she could get a real fright and hurt herself by accident.”
“Fuck. Fuck. She doesn’t know I’m here. She keeps telling me not to hurt her.”
“She’s out of it right now. Doesn’t know where she is. Nothing she says is at you,” Xavier reassured him.
He sucked in a breath. He knew that . . . but it was also reassuring to hear it as well.
“You’ve seen her like this before?” he asked.
“Sometimes, if she’s not doing too well, I’ll stay over. Hasn’t happened for a long time.”
“What would you normally do for her?” Brick asked.
