Page 122 of Malachi
“What do you mean? What happened?” Naomi asked, worry marring her face.
“I kind of… lost it,” Gideon shrugged.
“That’s putting it lightly, bro,” Ollie scoffed, but there was more concern than judgment in his tone.
“Ruth’s father had a gun pointed at Levi. The Reverend had shot Elder Taylor and —”
“What?!” Ruth gasped.
“Yeah. Before he and the others left to go find you girls. Shot him straight in the head just for having the balls to stand up to him. Like it was nothing. Just boom…” Gideon trailed off.
“Jesus Christ,” Delilah swore under her breath.
“So, when Elder Shepherd had the gun pointed at Levi, I’d just had enough. So I spoke up. I mouthed off. And it worked. He turned the gun on me,” Gideon said, his eyes focused on the floor in front of him.
“I can’t believe my father…” Ruth trailed off, dropping her head into her hands with despair.
“He had the gun on you?” Naomi whispered.
“That’s putting it lightly. Gideon here actually stepped up to it, leaned into the damned muzzle of the gun like a madman,” Ollie admitted, effectively wedging Gideon directly under every wheel of the bus. Naomi turned to Gideon in shock.
“You fucking idiot,” she muttered, dropping her head into her hands as the weight of such a truth settled over her.
“Yeah, it was dumb. But it kept Levi alive,” Gideon defended himself. As fucked up as it was, he sounded much more in charge of himself than he had in that room. For that, I was immeasurably grateful.
“Eden, you killed the Reverend,” Delilah stated, as though the truth had just occurred to her.
“What?” Eden asked beside me. I turned to look at her, confusion written plainly over her face.
“You killed the Reverend,” Delilah repeated, looking at my wife in utter awe. I felt that same awe. My wife had done something so huge. But as the truth of that settled over me as well, another truth revealed itself.
She had killed a man.
That was something that irrevocably changed a person.
“I did?” Eden questioned in a whisper so small it was barely audible.
“You did, love. And it’s okay,” I reassured her, rubbing a hand over her back.
“Oh, God,” she whispered. “Oh, God!” She cried, beginning to rock back and forth on the sofa, her hands shaking by her sides. Her eyes flitted over the room as panic began to run off of her in waves.
“Hey, it’s okay, Eden,” Ruth said calmly, but it didn’t seem to calm her.
I pulled her back towards me. My hands cupped her face, forcing her eyes to mine.
“Inhale,” I commanded, my tone firm and unyielding. Still, she did not respond. “Inhale now, little bird,” I tried again. The sound of her unofficial honorific did the trick. Her eyes flew to mine, focusing for the first time as she gasped in an audible breath.
“Exhale.” My words were harsh, complete commands as I attempted to break through to her.
“I… I…” she muttered. I pressed my thumb to her lips, quieting her words.
“Exhale,” I reiterated. Her breath came out in a great whoosh of air. “Inhale… exhale. That’s it, little bird. One breath at a time.”
Time passed slowly as I guided her through the breathing exercise. My family stayed exactly where they were, offering silent support as she worked through her panic. She was going through an adrenaline crash, one we were all past due for.
Her breathing became more regular, her pulse under my fingertips on her neck slowed. As she came back down from panic, I spoke again.
“You did what you needed to do. You did the absolute right thing. You saved Talia. You saved our niece or nephew. You are a hero, Eden.” My words were firm, sharp against my lips as I spoke.
