Page 61 of This Blood that Bonds Us

“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.

Twenty-Three

Presley

A fluffy blanket rested on my head while I watchedLion King 2—arguably the bestLion Kingmovie, and I’d fight anyone on that till the day I die, which, of course, would be never. Therefore, I’d win. Within thirty seconds of the opening song, Iwas crying. Luke and I used to watch the movie together over and over. I had a not-so-subtle obsession with Kovu—still do. I endlessly clicked the different tools on my fidget toy Mom picked up for me in town, and combined with the movie, it helped get my mind off things.

The fire had been burning all day long and the cold still crept into the cabin like the plague. How was that even possible?

The clock on my sad little flip phone told me how late it was, and Kim and Aaron weren’t home yet. I’d tried to get my mom to stay up with me, but she said she was too old to stay up past 9:00 p.m. I’d even made her extra strong coffee at 7:00 p.m. for her nightly drama. It didn’t work.

So it was just me, alone—again—and crying into my blanket that smelled like a fire pit.

The front door opened, and I jumped to my feet, wiping my eyes and turning off the television.

“Hey guys. Took ya long enough.”

“I heardLion King 2.” Aaron smiled as he helped Kimberly with her coat, then frowned. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing. Just listening to the beautiful song and lyrics and seeing Kiara be brought into the world.”

“Oh. Right.”

“Good. We can tell you all about it.” Kim sounded tired, and her hair was unusually frizzy.

“I’m surprised you both came back in one piece.”

Dude totally had a basement where he did freaky shit. No doubt about that. I tossed the throw pillows to the floor, and Kimberly and Aaron went to join me on the couch.

“Ah.” A sudden wave of pain sliced through me. It was quick at first, then it grew.

Aaron grabbed his chest too. “What the hell is that?”

That was usually the end of it, but this time, the pain grew. I gripped the edge of the couch as the pain slammed into me again and again. It was like a wave pushing and pulling me under.

One look at each other told me we knew the answer to that question.

Which brother was it? It had to be both. There was no way one of them could produce that much anguish at once. Gripping my stomach, I hunched over with a groan. I wished for the time when I felt only Aaron’s emotions and it was only nausea. It was better than feeling like I was put in a vat of hot oil.

“What can I do?” Kimberly looked between us frantically.

“Uh,” I spoke through gritted teeth, “sedate me maybe.”

I fell back into the couch, and Kimberly rubbed my back, and her heartbeat thrummed loudly in my ears. A nice distraction. Aaron braved through the pain with his head in hands.

Then it stopped, but I felt like I had a weighted vest strapped to my chest that was on fire. Somehow still tolerable.

I melted into the couch. “Uh, thank god.”

“Something happened,” Aaron said while Kimberly helped him to the couch.

“They need us. We have to go to them now.”

“We can’t go yet, Pres. We need time,” Aaron said. “We have to have a plan.”

“Well, the plan is taking too long already. It’s obvious something terrible is happening to them.”