Page 90 of This Blood That Breaks Us

His fingers grazed the wall. “The Divine. She’s so close.”

“Will!” Thane gasped as he made his through the door. My brother came shortly after.

It was as we feared. She had to be doing this to him. But why? What purpose did it serve to make him like this? The queen I knew was different. She wouldn’t. At least, I didn’t want to think She would, but I knew better.

“This shit has got to stop.” Zach’s stone-cold glare washed through me.

Thane rubbed Will’s back and tried to get him to snap out of it, but he didn’t respond.

I grabbed Will by the arm and pulled him to his feet. “Come on.”

We walked him to the pond that now had a little duck family happily bobbing in and out of the water. Will was dead on his feet. His pupils were blown, and only darkness remained in his immovable gaze.

“Take me to Her. Please.”

“Look out at the pond. Smell the air. This is the same air your sister breathed. Remember the rainy winters and think of your house. You told me she got up early and tended to the chickens while you chopped the wood.”

Will’s stories about his life were brief, but those tiny bits of story made up a much bigger one. A brother who loved his little sister more than anything else, and that love was powerful andcouldn’t be stopped. In that moment, I had no doubt it was more powerful than the hold She had on him.

He groaned.

“I bet she named them too. Do you remember any of the names? Think really hard. You’re standing in the yard with an axe in your hand, and you hear the laughter of your sister as she corrals the chickens close by. You remember. You think you forgot that laugh or her smile, but you won’t ever forget because it’s so ingrained in you. It’s here.” I patted his chest. “Remember it. Fight for it.”

He closed his eyes and let out a long breath. “I can’t. It hurts. I want Her.”

I grabbed his hand and squeezed it like my brother had done for me many times. “It doesn’t matter. Focus. Remember your sister. The way she used to style her hair and the color of her clothes. The way she sneezed and the things she used to say the most.”

A tear rolled down his cheek, and when he opened his eyes again, they were a little lighter. “She had a chicken named Amelia. She loved that name. It was her favorite one. Fluffy and brown with wild feathers. It survived an animal attack, then she started keeping it in her room.”

“Sounds like something my brothers would do. They’d probably get along.” I smiled.

He finally looked at me, and I wondered if that’s how I looked to everyone else. Worn. His dark circles made every feature frail.

“Thanks.”

“We should go back to the room,” Thane said.

“No, I don’t want to go back in there. I’d rather sit here and have someone tell me about why we have ducks in the pond.”

“It has to be Her. She’s doing this,” Zach spat.

“Maybe I should ask Her about it. I could—”

“No. Not you,” Zach said.

“Why not? She’s the nicest to me.”

“Exactly. Let’s keep it that way,” Zach said while he pushed his shoulders back in solid defiance. “I’ll ask Her.”

“No. None of you bring it up,” Will said.

“Why not?” Thane said.

“Because what purpose would it serve? What could any of you do about it? All it’s going to do is give Her reason to fuck with us more. Leave it alone.”

Zach rolled his eyes. I could practically see his skin steaming in the cold breeze. Thane seemed to agree, and I did too, for now.

“It doesn’t matter. We’re going to get out of here soon.”