When Breath Becomes Air Audiobook Novels & Stories

Those thoughts took away some of my pain and eventually, I heard him in my head pleading for me to breathe. “Breathe, little gem. Breathe. Deep breath, love.” I followed his motion lurching onto the air and taking some in as much as possible. “The first part will be over shortly. You are doing so well, little gem. I am proud of you.” I grasped onto the air as deep as I could. Deep long breath. Again and again but the air sacs in my lungs refused to accept the air and my eyes began to water at the amount of heat that was igniting inside me.

At irregular, unpredictable intervals—when the tension felt near the absolute breaking point, when I thought I might shatter from the strain or beg for mercy—he spoke without looking up, voice calm and probing, each word a fresh lash and lifeline. “Breathe now. Deep. Fill your lungs completely.” I inhaled greedily, desperately, chest expanding until the shirt pulled taut and painful. “Hold it. Count slowly to ten in your head. Feel the burn.” Lungs burned fiercely, vision spotting at the edges as I obeyed, wolf whining in protest. “Exhale. Slowly. Control every second of it.” Relief flooded me, bittersweet and brief, warred immediately with fresh tension as I awaited the next command.

He can hear things I can't. "Are you sure?" The words come out broken. Desperate. "I'm sure. Strong and steady. She's fine." She. I called the baby she. I don't even know if it's a girl. But somehow the pronoun stuck. "Breathe with me," Donovan says. "In through your nose. Hold. Out through your mouth." He demonstrates. Slow and exaggerated so I can follow. I try. The first breath catches. Stutters. But he keeps going and I keep trying and eventually my breathing starts to match his.

“Even if you do.” He let out a broken sound. “Don’t say that.” The light surged again. The world tilted. The circle blurred. “Her breath is fading!” someone cried. Kieran pressed his mouth close to my ear. “Breathe with me. Now. In. Hold. Out. Again.” I followed him, even as the air felt thin, like it had to travel a long way to reach me. “In,” he said. I pulled it in. “Out.” I let it go.

“Everything is so loud.” “Focus on breathing,” he says. His voice is quieter now, though still harsh. But for some reason, his volume doesn't hurt me. “Breathe in through your nose and out through your mouth. Come on, let me hear you.” He rests his jaw gently against my head, his arms tight around me. I shut my eyes and try to follow his lead. Breathe in. Breathe out. Breathe in. Breathe out. Breathe—

Slowly, deliberately, I inhaled and exhaled, hoping he would mimic me. At first, there was no response. His gaze remained distant, and his chest rose and fell erratically. But I didn’t stop. “You’re doing great,” I encouraged, offering a small, reassuring smile. “Just keep trying.” Gradually, almost imperceptibly at first, his breathing began to shift. The quick, shallow gasps slowed, becoming more measured as he started to match my rhythm. I continued to guide him, keeping my tone soft and consistent. “In through your nose,” I repeated gently, drawing in a long breath. “Out through your mouth.”

A gust of hot breath rushes at my ear, “Brooke, breathe. Come on, breathe with me. There's nothing to fear. Just inhale, and exhale. Do it with me, follow my rhythm. You can do this.” I try to do as he says. When he inhales, I feel the air move near my face, and I breathe in with him. My lungs scream with relief, and I feel the gust of his exhalation. I follow him as he breathes steadily. He murmurs in my ear, telling me I’m alright, that I’m safe, that nothing can harm me, and I believe him. As I continue breathing, the panic disappears, and the intensity of flitting memories in my head vanishes. The environment around me registered in my senses again, I can hear the flow of water and the r

Respecting the distance, or maybe just wary of the blast radius. "Breathe with me. In through your nose. Four counts. One. Two. Three. Four." I try. Fail. My chest is a tight knot that won't expand. "Again. Follow my voice. In—two—three—four. Hold—two—three—four. Out—two—three—four." I lock onto his voice. It’s steady. Clinical. I follow his rhythm. His control. Slowly, the room stops spinning. Air reaches the bottom of my lungs.

“You're safe. Just breathe with me, okay?” She inhales, exaggerated and deep, holding my gaze as she does it. Then she exhales, slow and steady. I try to copy her, but my chest is too tight. The air catches in my throat and panic seizes me again but Talia doesn’t let go. “Again. In through your nose.” I drag in a breath, shaky and uneven. “Good,” she soothes. “Now let it out. Slow, Audrey. Just like that.” My breath stutters as I force the air out.

My breath comes in frantic bursts, everything narrowing as I desperately struggle for air. A faint sound registers somewhere in my addled mind. Shortly, I start to hear footsteps approaching, but I can't tear myself from the desperate need for air. My hand flies to my chest, pounding against my burning chest as if it will force air in. Then, a touch settles in my lower back before a deep and soothing familiar voice cuts through my haze. "Breath, Heiress."