Page 41 of A Silence So Divine

“No, I never would have left her if I knew—if I thought—”A whimper catches in his throat and he digs the palms of his hands into his eyes. Grasping his shoulder, I give it a few squeezes in my attempt to offer comfort. I’m still pissed, but I haven’t seen him this upset in years.

“What happened to her?”he asks. Trepidation is clear on his face, and I know part of him doesn’t want to know the answer.

“One of the Brothers,”I say simply. He’s familiar enough with their doings, he’ll be able to fill in the blanks of why they would be after us.

His lips part, and his eyes grow round with worry.

“You said we were safe here,”he accuses, the sorrow evolving into rage. Good. That’s more manageable for me.

“We are,”I shoot back.“Someone must have stumbled across this place.”

Creed stands, and I take a step back to put some distance between us.

“Did they get away?”

Lies fill my head, and I have to bite the tip of my tongue to keep my face from giving anything away. For his whole life, I’ve fed my brother half truths and kept him hidden from the reality of what goes on around us. What goes on withme.

“They’re dead,”I offer, my molars grinding the inside of my cheeks.

If my brother looked stunned before, now he looks like he might lose consciousness.

“Dead?”He repeats. His eyes dart around the room, as if the man’s ghost might burst in. With recent events, that might not be too far fetched.

“You killed him?”The way he’s watching me makes me squirm, and I realize if Creed knew how many deaths were by my hand, he would despise me. Admitting to one to protect Eden is the very least of my crimes.

“Yes.”

“Good.”

The response shocks me, and I rear my head back an inch. Creed deflates and plops back into his seat. Resting his head in his hands, he takes a few shuddering breaths before asking his next question.

“How badly is she hurt? I’ll never forgive myself if she—”He pauses, swallowing hard and averting his gaze.“I’ll never forgive myself.”

“The blood wasn’t hers. She’s…”I struggle to find the right word.“scared.”

Creed nods, bringing his thumbnail to his mouth to gnaw on it.

“You should go see her.”

He huffs humorlessly at that.

“She shouldn’t want me near her.”

“That's not true,”I argue, brows knitting. Creed mirrors my expression.

“Isn’t it?”He says.“It’s my fault.”

Grabbing his untouched meal, he’s back on his feet and scraping it into the trash before placing the dishes in the sink. The hair on his head sticks up in all directions, and his shoulders are rigid with tension. Putting my own obstinateness aside, I choose not to push him.

“Fine. In the morning then.”

With a sigh, he nods.

And then he’s out the door, and I’m left alone, the tug of dread in my stomach my only company.

Seventeen

Eden