Page 144 of This Blood that Bonds Us

She placed Her hand on his cheek. “Whatever you want. I’m yours.”

Zach grabbed my shirt to drag me again.

“Wait, what about Luke?”

“He’s sworn himself to Presley’s side. Wherever he goes, Luke will stay. I guess I’m going to have to do the same to you now. Are you all right? After the blood.”

“Yeah, I feel . . . like I want more.” I thought back to the ravenous hunger I’d felt before. I’d have been consumed andovertaken if not for the bond Kimberly and I had broken. There was a little relief in the thought.Our opening worked.

“Get used to it.” Zach dragged me out the door.

Sixty-Five

Kimberly

I arrived at the harbor and the fresh scent of dead fish greeted me. The sun peeked through the clouds and a fresh drizzle of rain was soaking the boats and harbor signs. A plane ride to Dublin, then another long car ride over to the ferry was torture.Every minute I didn’t have eyes on the boys filled me with dread. I had a vise grip on my backpack strap, and with every step I took, it tightened.

It felt dangerous to have the dagger secured to my back, but Kilian must have some plan for it. Maybe he figured out something about it, like the proximity would weaken Her or something. There was a reason, but I reminded myself I didn’t need to figure it out. My job was to go to the island.

A boy greeted me with golden-blond curls and blue eyes. He had to have just turned eighteen. Not much younger than me.

“Kimberly.” His eyes widened like he was surprised to see me, and I wasn’t the least bit surprised he knew my name. “You came.”

“Were you expecting me?”

“She was. Maybe. She said it was likely you could show up today . . . or not at all. The ferry is closed to the public for now, but it’s open for you. My name’s Connell.”

He held out his hand for me to shake, and I did.

“Hi, Connell.”

His calm, cheerful demeanor caught me by surprise. His Irish accent was thick, indicating he must have been local. I briefly thought of what his life story must have been like to become a part of The Family, then resolved it was better I didn’t know.

I followed him onto a barren ferry. It was a large barge with windows, and seating inside and outside. He led me to the back of the ship, and I looked out along the water. There in the distance, the island sat among gray clouds. It was a relief seeing it, knowing all the people I cared about most were there.

“I, uh . . . I need to bite you,” he said.

“What?”

“I should technically just grab you and not give you a choice. This isn’t a choice because I have to, but it would be easier if youjust let me do it. I’m supposed to weaken you since you’re, uh . . . one of us.”

I checked we were out of view of any bystanders at the harbor.

“Okay.”

I held my arm for him, and he hesitated. I thought he was more nervous than me until he closed the distance between us and grabbed me to sink his teeth into my neck.

It hurt, but it was brief. I gripped the guardrail and counted my way through it. The intimacy of it made my skin crawl. He didn’t take everything. Just enough for me to feel human again. Which I didn’t mind so much.

“Sorry about that.” He pulled a handkerchief from the little pocket on his black blazer, and I used it to wipe the blood from my neck, with one hand still on the guardrail. If someone would have told me last spring that I’d be here, I would have never believed them. It was more unbelievable than vampires existing. I was in another country, far away from Blackheart—a place I thought I’d never leave, and I was going on account of someone else, sailing toward my fate that was more than likely my death. It felt good not to be running anymore and to finally face our problems head-on.

As I peered at the castle coming into view, a strange sense of doom and peace lingered. Like that place had waited for me my entire life. The thick green grass on the rolling hills and the stone wall high in the sky beckoned me forward, yearning to swallow me whole, but I wouldn’t be easy prey.

It was amazing how freeing it felt to be a dead girl walking.

When we reached the shore, Connell led me off the boat toward the castle that loomed in the distance. I recalled the map as I walked. There were two harbors on the island. One close to the castle that worked through the island’s tour service, and the other was reserved for merchant ship goods. A sparse forest covered a small portion of the grounds, and on the other side of the path, I spotted two black masses. One appeared to be old wood. A structure had burned to nothing but black ash and a few pieces of wood, and closer to the castle was a set of tall leafy hedges. As we walked around the path, most of the hedges were burned and charred. They surrounded a statue I couldn’t fully see. A vast expanse of gray ash marked the earth below the hedges.

“There was a fire a few days ago. Pretty wild. Really shook things up.” Connell’s soft voice made me jump.