Page 14 of Requiem
“I think he’s right,” she says gently.
I close my eyes for a second. “I know,” I admit, even though it tastes bitter. I swallow, my hand lifting again before I stop it this time. “He almost fucking killed me.” The words feel unreal coming out of my mouth. Because the Jude I always knew wouldneverdo anything to hurt anyone.
Heather doesn’t flinch. “Exactly.”
Silence stretches between us for an agonizing moment.
“Adriana kept saying he’s gone,” I murmur. “Over and over.”
Heather doesn’t respond, and I get slightly annoyed. Because that silence allows me to stew in my stupid thoughts.
“What did Micah see?” I ask without really looking at her.
She hesitates. “He just said that it’s hard to recognize Jude. He’s out of it.”
I shake my head. “I should be the one to talk to him,” I add, more quietly now. “I know how to handle this. I can try to—”
“You can’t treat him like a patient, Emma.”
I turn to look at her.
Her expression softens. “You have to treat him like he’s the man you love,” she says quietly. “Not like he’s a problem you need to figure out.”
My fingers flex at my sides. “Do you think I’m too…clinical?” I ask.
She tilts her head, considering me. “You see people in patterns,” she says. “You take them apart so you can understand them.” A small pause. “That’s not a bad thing. But sometimes…people don’t need to be understood right away. They just need to be held together.”
A breath slips out of me, almost a laugh, even though there’s nothing funny about this. “Yeah,” I murmur. My gaze drifts toward the hallway again, toward where Micah disappeared, toward the stairs that lead down to him.
To my Jude.
“I’ll try something different,” I say, though I don’t quite know what that means yet. “But love isn’t always enough to bring someone back from the edge. Sometimes they need more than that. I’ve seen it too many times.”
Heather nods. “Then don’t choose one or the other.” She steps a little closer. “Just…meet him where he is. Not where youthinkhe should be. Not where he used to be.” Her eyes hold mine. “I’ve watched people shut down completely because everyone around them treated them like a problem.”
A beat.
“But I’ve also seen what happens when someone is just…there. No pressure or expectations. Just love, without trying to control how it looks.” She reaches out, brushing her fingers lightly against my arm. “He doesn’t need you to fix him right now, Emma. He needs you to remind him who he is when everything else is telling him he’s not that person anymore.”
My eyes burn hearing her say this to me. “Thank you, Heather.” I turn away before I can second-guess myself and step into the hallway, heading toward the bathroom. As I push the door open, movement catches in the corner of my eye. I slow, my gaze shifting downstairs to see Micah and Adriana heading outside. My jaw tightens instantly. A selfish, ugly part ofme wants to follow them. I want answers and someone to blame. Maybe I just want five fucking minutes alone with Adriana.
But none of that gets me closer to Jude. So I look away, and keep walking.
Chapter five
MICAH PRESCOTT
Even with the sun coming up, it’s cold as shit out here. But I figure it’s the best place to talk.
Adriana steps out quietly behind me, a slight look of dread on her face. The sliding door shuts with a soft click, leaving us out here alone with the sound of the river moving through the trees. It’s crazy how everything outside of me can be so calm, while my insides are twisting with anxiety.
I lower myself onto the steps just outside the door, the wood cold even through my sweatpants, and stare straight ahead at the river. Snow falls quietly, catching the rays of the morning sun. My gaze lands on the tree where I cried my soul out last night.
Adriana sits beside me, leaving a small gap between us. We both hold our mugs of coffee close, savoring the warmth. For a minute, neither of us says anything. Until I finally find my voice.
“You need to tell us what they did to him. Everyone is going to want to speak to you today.”
Adriana doesn’t answer right away.
