Page 11 of This Blood That Breaks Us

Zach nodded.

“Follow my lead.” I tapped his shoulder, and we moved toward the front of the ship.

The other members bowed as we passed. I tried not to think about the foreign world I’d stepped into. One foot in front of the other, and one task at a time.

We found Ezra at the front of the ship texting.

“We want to see Will and Thane.”

“Why would I let you do that?”

“Because what will it hurt? Who knows what will happen when we get there. Maybe She’ll change Her mind,” I said.

“I’d rather you not get your hopes up.”

“Too late. Already up. Come on. I need to talk to Will. Please.”

Ezra always softened when I said please. He may be a master manipulator, but he’d been there for us growing up, and even if it was naive, I still felt that bond with him.

He stared at my brother. “Anything to say?”

Zach pretended to zip his mouth shut.

“Fine. You get five minutes.”

He walked us through a door that led to a small cargo hold under the ship.

“Say your goodbyes, all right?”

He left us and walked into a dimly lit room, and the swaying of the surging ocean caused me to grip the wall. It smelled of rust and fish.

“We’re there!” Thane exclaimed when we appeared.

“No, we’re not,” William groaned.

They were bound to the wall by chains. Shredded pieces of clothing littered the floor, and what was left on their bodies was soaked with black blood. Multiple bite marks on their arms and necks glistened in the dim, flickering lights of the ship.

“Come to take another hit at me?” William smiled through bloody teeth, and it disappeared when he saw us. “What are you two doing?”

“We came to tell you we’ve got your back and shit.” Zach sighed, with his hands in his pockets.

“We’re fucked, then.” Will smiled.

“Are we there? Or are we almost there? It can’t be much longer now.” Thane shook in his chains excitedly. “You two met Her. What’s She like?”

My heart sank. Whether it was Thane’s innocent expression or the fact he was attached to the hip with Presley and Aaron while in Blackheart, I didn’t know, but he reminded me of them. The fate we’d saved them from but not everyone.

“He’s been like that this whole time. I’m . . . I’m afraid they gave him too much blood to keep him from complaining. I’ve heard the stories and—”

“No. We can fix this,” I said.

“You don’t know that.”

“Come on, Will. I’m fine. You’ll see,” Thane whined.

“I do.” I crouched down in front of Will. “I promise. We’ll fix him.”

I had to keep going until they were all safe.