This Blood that Bonds Us (This Blood that Binds Us #4)

22. Twenty-Two

Twenty-Two

Kimberly

“Are you sure?” Aaron eyed me with a thin-lipped frown. It didn’t suit him.

He flinched away from a candle on a bookshelf next to his head. The shelves were lined to the ceilings in books with cracked spines, and the smell of parchment filled my senses.

I understood Aaron’s hesitation, but I was confident I was up for the task, whatever it might be.

Meeting Kilian again took me back to the church where everything began. I remembered it all. The smell of wax and cedar and the salt air tinging the saliva on my lips. Since we’d been trying to find The Legion, I’d thought of that day repeatedly, and the moment I couldn’t forget—Zach and Luke bursting through the church doors. They’d been prepared to die, even in my place as a practical stranger. “ I’m glad I met you ,” Luke had said. They both looked death in the face with a smile. In comparison, tapping into the queen’s power was easy.

Touching the cool blade of the dagger resting in my lap, I smiled at Aaron.

“Let’s do it.”

We weren’t alone. Halina, Dom, and Felix were scattered around the room in various fabric-lined chairs. I’d expected more pushback from them. I remembered their scowling faces back in Blackheart not that long ago, but everything had changed for them and for us. All that old resistance separating us was no longer important because we’d all lost people. We’d been only kids in their eyes before, and now we were important to them. With Thane, Will, and Skylar gone, their mission to kill the queen was all they had.

The time for games and laughing was over.

“I’m going to read over the phrase on the dagger as it’s listed in the text.”

“How long is this going to take?” Aaron’s knees were touching mine. He’d finally stopped pacing to take the chair beside me.

I hated to worry him. I wasn’t exactly thrilled with the unknown of Kilian’s plans either.

“It could take all night, or it may not be useful at all. I’m not certain the passages referencing the dagger are accurate. It will be trial and error. Ancient texts were created of the ritual during the first queen’s creation to document the discovery, but many of those passages are gone. There’s power in them, and The Family has gone great lengths to keep the information to themselves. Much of it has been destroyed by The Legion as well. But we were able to take these from the monastery during our last altercation. They have promise.”

“We should start then,” I said.

“Wait? How will she know if it’s working? What will it feel like?” Aaron said.

“I’m not sure. This is an experiment.”

“Okay, but what if it’s painful or something?”

“Aaron, we’re trying it regardless.” I squeezed his hand resting on his knee.

He nodded. “Whatever happens. I’m right here.”

His eyes sparkled with unending confidence, and I was sure I needed no other assurance than that.

Kilian wet his finger and flipped through a few pages while sitting on a desk a few feet in front of us.

I nodded, and a long string of words trickled from Kilian’s lips. It almost sounded like a song. Latin. I felt nothing other than the cold silver of the dagger.

“Should we take a break?” Dom asked after two in the morning.

We’d been there for hours wondering if it was possible the moon’s position in the sky had any bearing on the ritual, or even our proximity to them. But my new body didn’t falter or ache. It was strange how quickly I’d forgotten how pain and tiredness felt in the body. It made time pass quickly and without fuss.

Aaron rubbed my leg, awaiting my answer.

“Just a little longer.”

There wouldn’t be another moon like this for weeks, and time was precious. Too much time had already passed. If the twins were with The Family, there was no telling what was happening to them. I tried not to imagine it, but Luke’s panic attacks came to mind. His fear and inability to focus because of Her. The thought alone sent my heart aflutter.

We were missing something.

“Maybe it needs blood,” I said. “I mean, this entire thing is about blood.”

“Wait, is this not the exact same thing that created the queens? Is this Thing going to reach in and possess her?” Aaron asked.

“Good point,” I said.

“The entity—”

“Thought you said it was a demon.”

“Whatever its origin, I can guarantee it will not be able to harbor itself in your body. The text is clear about one thing. It must be a human woman. Kimberly has already been changed and taken on the entity in her body. She can’t be a vessel because she is no longer pure.”

Aaron shook his head and raked his fingers through his hair, clearly not believing Kilian. I didn’t trust Kilian, but if something happened to me, Aaron would bail and all of Kilian’s plans would be ruined. Which meant he thought it was a viable option.

I bit into my thumb and ran the blood along the blade. Aaron’s frown deepened.

Kilian spoke again in Latin. It sounded like all the other things he’d recited, yet this felt different. My hand was tingling.

Come closer.

I flinched.

The Thing in my head never spoke to me in the way Aaron had described it. A distinct voice. But this must have been what he’d been referring to.

“Are you okay?” Aaron said.

“Yes, keep going.”

Closer.

I wrapped my hand around the dagger, wincing at the slight sting as I gripped the sharp edges. Then there was a pulling sensation that turned into a sinking feeling. Like the floor was giving out and I was seconds away from falling.

And I did.

The world disappeared around me, and a strange weightlessness settled into my blood. Like my body was pumped full of helium, I fell into pure bliss.

And there was . . . nothing.

Nothing for me to fall into.

Nothing to feel. Everything was a void.

I wasn’t afraid it would swallow me. This place was safe for me. Even if I felt like someone was watching me.

Show me. I pushed, no longer feeling my hand on the dagger but knowing it was there.

Help me. Show me something.

It was hesitant. There was no way for me to know that. Nothing to see or physically assert, but I could feel the truth in my head like It was speaking, but it sounded more like . . . singing. Singing that was a low whisper in my ears.

Perhaps It wanted me to beg. I dug in harder.

Help me help him. I thought of Aaron’s face. His golden-blond hair and his warm eyes.

With that, a flash of light overwhelmed me. The brightest light I’d ever seen. Something that could only exist in a void.

And then I saw . . . Aaron running. Faster and faster. It was the view from the back of his head, and he didn’t turn back. At first, I thought he was being chased, but this was different. He was running toward something.

What did it mean? As soon as I contemplated it, the image morphed. My stomach grew sick. There was something I needed to see. A warning. No. Just a different path.

The bright light faded until I saw the Calem brothers. All four stood next to a large ornate throne dressed in all-black suits. Seated between them was the queen. Long white hair and piercing eyes. Presley was at Her feet pulling at the hem of Her silk gown to gain Her attention. Her head was inclined toward Luke, while he whispered something in Her ear and She ran Her fingers along his chin. On Her other side, hovering with a white-knuckled grip on the chair, was Zach. His expression was cold, unwavering, and devoid of any semblance of the person I knew. And then there was Aaron, my Aaron , holding Her hand and kneeling to kiss Her cheek.

The shock of it felt like a punch to the stomach. No. Worse. The worst thing I could imagine. Worse than death. With nothing but pure despair left for me, I willed the image to turn.

When I blinked again, I was on the floor surrounded. Aaron held me in his lap while caressing my head, and around him, everyone who’d been in the room was leaning over me. Cool, intoxicating relief washed over me as if I’d awakened from a nightmare.

“It worked,” I said.

“Step back,” Aaron said to the crowd surrounding us, with his eyes darkening.

I felt for his arm and rubbed it softly. He was still with me. Still mine.

“It’s okay. I’m fine. What happened?”

“Your eyes rolled back, and you stayed like that for a minute, then you just fell,” Aaron said.

I let him pull me up. The disorientation left as I got to my feet. A line settled between Aaron’s brows and dented his forehead.

“I’m okay. Really.”

At my words, he softened. He surveyed me with carefulness that brought a flush to my cheeks, as if there weren’t four other sets of eyes on us.

“Where did you go?” he asked.

“I was in this . . . strange nothing place. I couldn’t feel my body, but I felt something with me.”

“What did it feel like? Did it seem malicious?” Kilian asked.

“No. This was . . . neutral. Whatever it was, something watched me until I asked for Its help.”

I told them all the details while Aaron ushered me into a chair. Though I kept the details about the Calem brothers with Her to the minimum of what they needed to know. I didn’t want to think of it, especially the vacant admiration in all their eyes.

Aaron didn’t even flinch when I said it. His hand tightening in mine was the only indication he’d heard me.

“This is an amazing progression.” Kilian smiled from ear to ear and looked at Dom. “Do you feel any lingering effects?”

“No, I feel good. Should we try again?”

Aaron shook his head but awaited my response.

“I wouldn’t advise. I’m not sure of the side effects of tapping into Her power. Unfortunately, that means we won’t be able to try again for another month.”

Something cracked in Aaron’s expression—deep disappointment.

“But I wasn’t shown anything useful. What about the prophecy?” I asked, feeling the same disappointment, but it made my blood burn hotter.

“It might take time. This gave us a significant clue. There is still much we can do. We’ll train, form a plan of attack, and teach you both to fight. Will your brother be joining us?” Kilian asked.

Aaron and I shared a look. That was unlikely but not impossible. Presley’s distrust of The Legion ran deep, and my theory was because he was deeply loyal to his brothers. The kind of loyalty that even if Kilian could help us, he probably wouldn’t want the help. I didn’t agree, but I understood it.

“So a battle, then?” Felix’s eyes glowed with exhilaration, and he popped his knuckles.

“We’re ready,” Halina said.

Dom made eye contact with me and nodded.

“This is better than I’d hoped.” Kilian stood before us. I once thought him to be frail, but there was a newfound strength in his voice. “The end is near.”

I looked at the dagger sitting on the desk and felt the weight of his words. A battle is what it would take to get our family back together. In Blackheart, I’d thought Aaron and his brothers would have to fight alone and I’d be at the mercy to watch, but that silver dagger was our only true connection to the twins, and I would get everything out of it I could.