"Let's clean this mess up first." Brie said nervously, looking at me with worry and starting to dump dirty dishes into the sink.
"No. Now." I responded. Brie nodded quietly, walking passed me to the couch. Kaden's hand hovered for a moment like he wanted to take mine, but he walks by silently too, waiting for me to follow. Their attitudes have me worrying all over again.
"What is going on?" I demanded as I entered the living room. Kaden swallowed and then began.
"You know the 'bridge' I said existed between my brother and I through you? Or rather, that I had sort of accidentally made YOU the bridge between us?" Kaden asked and I nodded in reply, gritting my teeth. "Well, my brother was so sure his creatures were going to kill you the other night, so he sort of...left those connections open, and unguarded." This was too much information to process.
"Wait-wait... The other night? How long was I out? Unguarded? Does that mean that those creatures are gone from my head?" I stammered quickly.
"It's been a couple of days Rue." Brie quietly answered, causing me to immediately panic. What did that mean about the King's plans? How far behind were we? I could feel my breathing and heart rate skyrocketing and I felt the need to run NOW, to do something, anything. I turned in a circle, trying to concentrate on my surroundings and stop the panic attack from taking over. I had a momentary thought about Kaden and reached out blindly, beseechingly, but I didn't see him. Strong arms wrapped around me from behind, which instantly made me feel more trapped, until Kaden's cool hands grasped my arms and brought them against my chest in a hug, and the calm started seeping through me.
"I'm sorry for doing this without your permission Rue, we really need you to stay with us a little longer. Is it ok if I continue to help you stay calm?" Kaden asked. I nodded my head against his chest. Anything was better than one of my panic attacks. Kaden's voice rumbled through my head as he continued to speak.
"The good news is, yes, the creatures are gone. At least as far as I can tell." Kaden told me and I nodded again.
"And Kaden says it'll take the king a little time to draw all the energy he needs from the shoes, so we still have a little while to find him." Brie said brightly, but hesitantly. I nodded again, taking deep breaths.
"What even are those shoes?" I grumble. Kaden chuckles, the sound vibrating in his chest against the back of my head
"They're an old relic from the past. They were made to help facilitate our kind's travel between worlds, before we figured out how to do it on our own. There were many different kinds, but I guess this owner had a sense of humor. Or maybe it was just practical, since shoes are harder to lose than some object you have to carry around and keep track of. Who knows." Kaden replied.
"Ooookaaayyyy" I said, stretching the word out with a hint of skepticism.
"But, here's the thing Rue, the only way to locate my brother and those shoes now-is you..." Kaden told me, I could feel him tensing as if expecting an outburst from me. But he was underestimating his new and improved influence, the panic that had been building was now completely disconnected in my brain.
"Oh, ok." I replied, and was also surprised at how offhand the answer was. Kaden turned me around and looked into my eyes. I don't know what he saw, but he withdrew some of the pressure separating me from my anxiety.
"Do you understand Rue? We're going to have to use your connection to my brother to find him." Kaden reiterated.
"Yeah, I get it." The panic was still being held at bay, so I couldn't feel there was anything really wrong with the idea. Kaden withdrew a little more from my mind and the anxiety took a few steps closer.
"How dangerous is this going to be?" I asked Kaden with a frown.
"Well, at the moment my brother thinks you are dead, so he has no bothered to look for you or to send anyone after you. However, once we start tracking him, he will know..." Kaden paused.
"And will probably try to kill me again." I finished for him. Kaden nodded apologetically. I felt something snap in my mind as I nodded back, and then my knees let go and I crumpled to the floor.
Kaden still had a hold on my arms. I was in shut down mode, and could tell. My eyes unfocused and I couldn't bring myself around. I could feel Kaden scrambling around in my mind, trying to rebalance the overload, but it wasn't working. The two halves of my brain were at war, each trying to take control, and me-I was just stuck in the middle, walling myself up in a little corner, trying to ignore it all.
"Rue, Rue... You've gotta snap out of it now." Brie's voice. I dimly registered she was crouching in front of me. I tried to focus on her. "That a girl, Rue look at me. Rue honey, tell me what are five things you can see?" Brie continued murmuring to me. A grounding exercise, meant to make me focus on the here and now, not my anxiety. I wanted to yell at her that this was WAY beyond a simple anxiety attack, that this was...different... Kaden shushed her.
"She's shut me out, I can't get her to respond." He snarled through gritted teeth.
"Try something else." Brie urged.
"I don't know what else to try!" He exploded with exasperation. I squeezed my eyes shut and felt the tears begin to trail down my face.
"Oh honey!" Brie cried, gripping me in a hug. Kaden wrapped his arms around both of us.
"I'm so tired." I whispered and Kaden's voice reverberated in my ear as well as in my head.
"I know, I know."