Page 34 of This Blood that Bonds Us

“We need actual wounds,” I said, wiping the bit that had gotten in my eyes. “They’re going to check us when we walk in.”

“Right.” Aaron’s gaze lingered on my neck, and I swallowed, remembering that rush of heat as he bit into my skin. That, and the way I’d fisted my hands in his hair and pulled him to me. I’d wanted him to keep going.

I shook it from my mind.

We would not be having a replay of the car with Presley present.

“Got it.” Presley bit into his wrist, and black blood spilled into the snow like used oil.

Aaron and I shared a look and immediately did the same. I let the blood drain from my wrist like a faucet, and we used the fake blood to smear into our wounds, mixing it into a dark red.

“Not sure this is even believable,” Aaron said.

“We just need them to make the reports and then we disappear.”

“I don’t want to attract too much attention.” Aaron eyed me. “The wrong attention.”

The wrong attention, as in The Family coming to rip us apart. My stomach turned while they tore at their coats and left behind bites and fake blood. The Family had wanted them at one point. We needed to be careful.

“We won’t,” I said. “This will be enough for them to get a needle in my arm. Test vitals. We’ll be quick. I’m still holding out hope that The Family doesn’t want you and Presley at all.”

I hoped, but I wasn’t a fool. The twins could be enough. They were the ones specifically mentioned in the prophecy. Not that it made me feel better, but it would help if The Family weren’t looking for us too. Akira had tried to get the twins to come alone before he decidedhe wanted the set. That meant something was not set in stone with their prophecy. Something crucial was still up in the air regarding Aaron and Presley.

“Maybe we’ll get lucky.” Aaron winked.

I didn’t believe in that type of luck.

I ripped at my cardigan and bit into my arm again, higher on my bicep. Aaron watched me with a furrowed brow.

“Okay, that should do.” I was already feeling woozy.

“Alright, Kim, you know the drill by now,” Presley said.

I nodded, knowing exactly what was about to happen. Aaron picked me up bridal style and carried me toward the hospital.

Fifteen

Presley

“Please, we need help!” I yelled into the not-so-crowded lobby of the hospital. Alaska was a dead zone.

Chaos erupted around us. Nurses and doctors came rushing in. Mom held me up. She’d met us in the parking lot while we bloodied up, so we didn’t get it in her car.

“What happened?” one of the nurses asked as they immediately took Kimberly from Aaron’s arm.

He collapsed on the floor, taking a fake plastic plant with him. A mob of nurses surrounded him, and shouts echoed against the white walls.

Aaron might just take my Oscar.

They fumbled to get him up on a gurney, and I resolved to lean into my role harder. I groaned while holding my arm. The weakness in my limbs surprised me as I grabbed for my mother and slipped on the fake blood.

“I found them just off the side of the road by Mulberry Trail,” Mom said. “I’m a nurse.” I think I was able to stop the bleeding.”

“Vera?” one of the doctors said to Mom while trying to cover the wounds on my arm. “I remember you. Do you know them at all?”

“No. But may I come back with them?”

He nodded and pulled me to the back through some double doors into a room full of bright light and the smell of antiseptic and blood. A symphony of machines echoed, along with the rush of footsteps and wheels across the bare floor.