Page 91 of This Blood That Breaks Us

“Thane.” Zach’s tone startled me.

“What do you mean?” I asked.

“I think The Legion is coming. I heard Sirius mention talking to someone, and it confirms my theory. They’re using Will and I as bait.” Thane didn’t look at me, just my brother.

I thought about my moment with Cecily, where she’d begged me not to tell. She’d mentioned someone was coming and to not give up. This had to be what she was mentioning.

“They’ve convinced your brother of their plans,”She had said.

I turned to Zach. “You knew that was a possibility and didn’t tell me?”

“I was protecting you. Waiting till there was more information and keeping your head clean in case She went searching.”

I nodded and tried to ignore the heat flaring in my blood. He could feel it. The drop in my stomach.

“Don’t be mad. I didn’t want you to get your hopes up.”

“You just keep secrets from me now? You get to decide things and not tell me?”

“I’m sorry.”

“Both of you stop arguing and tell me about these fucking ducks,” Will said.

“I named mine Daisy,” Thane said.

“Of course you did.”

“It’s the one with the feather sticking out of its head. The little one behind the mom.”

Seeing Zach apologize made my chest ache and all the anger run out of me. I didn’t want to be mad at my brother. I understood, but I had to swallow the lump in my throat and ache in my chest to rejoin Will by the water.

I trusted my brother with my life. If he kept secrets from me, it was for good reason. Only, this one confirmed two things I wasn’t happy to accept. He didn’t believe The Legion coming to save us was a real possibility. And two—the worst one—he didn’t think I could handle it.

Twenty-Seven

Zach

“Just leave it.” Sorry, Will, not in my vocabulary.

In fairness, I did the thing Mom always told me to do. Despite being a believer, she told me specifically to let the sun set on my anger. That it was better formeto let myself sleep on my anger,or I’d simply go off. She was right. I wanted to hurt the queen less today than the day before.

It wasn’t enough to stop me completely. When I opened Her door, She was sitting at Her harp, softly strumming the strings. She didn’t even look up as I entered, and I chose not to bow despite the pull to Her.

“Are all of your gowns see-through? Do I need to tell Ezra to buy you some decent clothes?”

She wore a thin satin gown that gathered at Her ankles. If She were a normal girl, I’d say She looked like an angel. There was something angelic about the soft roundness of Her face, and Her fingers were carved like marble.

She ignored me, and I bit my cheek.

“I need to talk to you.”

“You can talk when you bow.”

“Are you serious?”

Her attention stayed on the delicate strings. My patience was thin and wouldn’t allow me the luxury of banter or pride. I did as She instructed and forced my knee to the hard floor.

“My apologies, Your Most High Greatness.”