Page 136 of This Blood that Bonds Us

I wondered then if he trusted us to do this. Kilian stayed the same. We hadn’t grown closer, and I was okay with that. Aaron had told me what Kilian had gone through with his brother, and though it didn’t make me more inclined to trust or like him, I understood him more than I ever had.

Kilian lost his mind for love.

“Won’t this be giving Her exactly what She wants?”

“Yes.”

Kilian stared through me for a moment. There was more he couldn’t say. We’d agreed not to know the plan. I’d also agreed to a suicide mission, which was likely exactly what Kilian needed. Possibly. Maybe.

It didn’t matter. It wasn’t something I needed to figure out. I needed to trust Aaron and his dream.

“Okay.”

“You’re the only one who can perform the ritual.” Dom gave me an affirming nod.

“You’re confident you can remember the transcripts?” Kilian asked.

“Yes, I’ve been practicing and writing them out daily.”

It was imperative to learn the words on my own so I could tap back into the dagger’s power and distract the queen while Kilian’s men ambushed, whenever that would be. Because of Cecily, we discovered there was still power that could be tapped into during this moon cycle, but how strong it was, was still unknown.

“All right. I’m ready.” Felix hadn’t stopped swaying.

Halina interjected. “Me too. We’ll see you on the other side, then, Burns?

“I . . . my last name is Calem. No matter what happens, please remember me like that. Kimberly Calem.”

They nodded with reverence—Halina with a smile that reached her eyes, Dom loosened his shoulders, and even Felix met my eyeline and smirked—while Kilian bowed his head.

I couldn’t see the future, but I knew that was the last time I’d ever set eyes on them all together at the same time. With the dagger in hand, I walked onto the plane and toward the fate of the stars.

Sixty-Three

Aaron

Holy hell. I’d forgotten about the color green. Thick fields of green peppered with little dots of white passed by in the distance.

I was thankful for the information Kilian didn’t erase from my memory. The map of the castle was still there. I knew what to expect when the plane landed in Dublin, then we took another smaller plane to the far end of the island. It was all long rollinghills and farmhouses. We passed a town with colorful buildings and followed the road until the iron gate came into view.

Around it were trucks with their trailers filled with dirt and rock. There was a brief conversation with the man at the gate before the driver drove on. I caught a glimpse of a sign:

CLOSED – Attention Visitors and Residents: In order to maintain the island’s natural landscape, a coastal erosion control and land preservation project is underway.

All of a sudden, I really hated being alone.

My heartbeat thrummed in my ears as the car winded up the drive and a castle came into view. The gray of the stone matched the sky, and the only color, other than the hills, were the stained-glass windows.

“They know I’m coming, right?” I asked the driver as the door opened for me.

As soon as I said it, I saw him.

Zach strolled across the yard from a large set of burned hedges. His head hung low with a cropped haircut I didn’t recognize, but I’d know my brother anywhere.

“Zach.” His name caught in my throat.

I smiled. The relief ran over me in waves. He was alive. I’d made my way back to them. All those months of wondering and wishing were done.

He stopped in his tracks.