Page 19 of This Blood That Breaks Us (This Blood That Binds Us, #3)

Sixteen

Luke

“Can I trust you to be good?” Ezra plucked a small hair from my suit and flicked it away.

The air was thick with the stench of salty dead fish. I nodded. It wasn’t like William and Thane could come with us to the mainland, but this would give us a great opportunity to explore some of those places Connell mentioned.

“We’re always good.” Zach threw his arm around me.

Ezra scoffed and stepped back to gawk at us.

“You both look like grown men.” The corner of his mouth tugged up. “Now, act like it. Show me I can trust you.”

His eyes lingered on my brother.

“Yes, Boss ,” Zach said sarcastically.

I smiled. One of my favorite things about my brother was that he didn’t expect me to smile, but he liked it when I did. There was no obligation to be happy. I smiled because it made him happy, and that made me happy too.

Ezra left us at the edge of the harbor, and we got into our town car. It was strange being off the island alone. I’d gone with Sirius and Ezra once, but now we were finally getting some real freedom.

“Hello!” I greeted the driver.

He didn’t speak a word and started driving. Zach and I shrugged. He would take us where we needed to go. The cliffs disappeared in the distance, and the rolling hills took their place. I wanted to appreciate the beauty, but I was too busy thinking of a way to get William and Thane in a car like this. To get them off the island and into a car would be challenging, but the hills were bare. Everyone we’d met so far had at least known about The Family. My guess was they’d have this whole place on alert. But if we could get them away from the castle, they could hide out there. Stay away from any small towns. It would be a short window. They had to feed, and that would alert everyone. We’d need to be quick.

My old confidence was coming back. We could do this.

Zach and I endured our car ride in silence, not daring to say anything in front of our driver, which would surely get back to Ezra. After fifteen minutes, rooftops appeared in the distance. The town was bigger than the little town on the island. Much bigger. I finally felt like I was returning to a little of my life. Still real and fighting.

“Meet at Mckinnely’s Pub at twelve sharp.”

“What’s the name?” Zach leaned over the seat.

“They’ll find you.”

Zach rolled his eyes. “Come on.”

I hesitated. “I’m sorry, sir. I don’t have any money.”

“Already paid, sir.”

Zach grabbed me by the collar and pulled me out of the car. His cigarette smoke greeted me first.

“Can I try one?”

That made him smile. “You hate cigarettes.”

“In high school. I’m a man now.”

“Fine.” He pulled one out of his pack and lit it for me.

I inhaled the smoke into my lungs. Ashy. Terrible. I took another puff, trying to hide my dissatisfaction.

“Look at you. Embracing your new persona.”

I inhaled again. “That’s me.”

The ash filled my throat, and I coughed.

We passed various shops. This town was more modern than the town on the island. It was odd seeing chain businesses I’d known from childhood. It felt like a lifetime away. The whole street was bustling and filled to the brim with people. It would be easy to slip into it and disappear. I thought of snatching a cellphone from a bystander’s hand, but who would I call? I didn’t have anyone’s number. No one was coming to save us. If we were going to get out of Ireland, we’d have to do it ourselves.

“Let’s go get information on the tunnels.”

“You want us to wade around in dirty water for days?”

“Yeah, if it gets us out of here. Think we can stop by one of those fancy historic places before the pub?”

“Fine,” Zach said, letting me lead the way through the crowd.

“Don’t you want us to get out of here?”

“Fuck yeah. But I’m worried about you.”

I stopped to look at him. “Me? Why me specifically?”

“Because you get your hopes up. And I don’t want to be picking you up off the floor if this goes poorly.”

“It won’t.” My chest ached.

“Ezra’s already on to us.”

“He’s always on to us. It can work. We can do this. I know we can. You’re okay with staying?”

“If it’s what needs to be done. If it keeps you from being hurt . . . yeah.”

I turned and started walking again. “I don’t need you to try to protect me like that.”

“A little ‘thank you, brother’ would suffice. If I don’t, no one else will. Someone’s gotta protect the one who’s protecting everyone else.”

“Yeah, but then what about you?”

“Eh, who cares about what happens to me?”

“Don’t joke like that. It’s not funny,” I said.

We reached the historic society. It was a tall two-story building made of red brick. Unsurprisingly, it was not as crowded as the other places in town. It had a large sign with calligraphy lettering.

“Come on, I’m hilarious.”

“Not even a little bit.” I pushed open the door to a modern lobby that smelled of potpourri.

Our steps echoed in the lobby, so we lowered our voices to a whisper.

“We’ve got ten minutes,” Zach said. “Let’s get a pamphlet and call it a day.”

I found my pamphlet easily, and happily waved it in Zach’s face.

“Wanna memorize the tunnel system with me?”

“No.”

“You need to learn too. Just in case the queen gets in my head again.”

“Hold up. Again? What do you know?” Zach’s tone caught looks from a few tourists.

“Nothing. It’s nothing. I let Her see everything with The Legion. She won’t if I don’t let Her.”

Zach furrowed a brow.

“Don’t give me that look.”

“Well, don’t talk about Her like she’s a friend. Like you think She’s somehow on our side. You can’t trust Her. Now I’m worried you’re letting your guard down around Her.”

“I’m not. My guard is fully up.”

“You don’t even have a guard to begin with.” He sighed. “Show me that pamphlet. It’s better if we both know the routes.”

We studied the pamphlet of a map that showed a vague route. Under the cobblestone bridge was an opening, and it led under a church on the other side of the city. If we could get out of this city, we might have a chance of getting out of Ireland. The five minutes was enough for me to memorize the routes and the street names. Memorization was my strong suit.

“I’ve already forgotten everything I just read,” Zach said as we stepped back onto the street.

It wasn’t his.

We arrived at the pub at exactly twelve o’clock where we met a man who was seemingly unimpressed with our presence. He was easy to charm and made small talk about the city. Something about meeting these clients didn’t sit right with me. Everyone seemed to respect Ezra and The Family, and they looked to Zach and me like we needed to earn that same level of trust. My previous thought was that The Family was only a drain on society and its resources, but they were bringing commerce and tourism to the area. The man explained his businesses in great detail and showed us the ones he owned around the harbor. These people relied on them.

Our meeting lasted about an hour, and Zach and I left to explore the rest of the city and get eyes on the entrance to the tunnel under the bridge.

In the middle of town, we stopped at an elegant display. A huge Christmas tree stood in the main walkway. Its green branches supported the weight of shiny bulbs, twinkling lights, and ornaments.

“It’s Christmas,” I murmured.

Pain sliced through my lungs and traveled up my throat, stinging my eyes. I placed a hand over my chest as if it would help. Unbearable emptiness hit me all at once, and I had to bend over and remind myself it was temporary. It felt like nausea. Like a burning ache that would never stop.

“Ow, fuck.” Zach reached to pinch the bridge of his nose. “Jesus, Luke.”

It was all of it. Zach’s and my normal pain coupled with the new, flaring with the bond at the same time. Zach was subtle with his pain, but it was easy to identify because it was like a hot knife in the chest. It always stung.

“Sorry.” I grabbed his shoulder and squeezed despite my own chest aching.

“Don’t apologize. Just wasn’t expecting it. But let’s try to coordinate next time. Only one of us is allowed to feel like shit at a time.”

“Yeah, noted.” I rubbed my chest.

The blood bond might be the thing to kill us. How had Ezra and Sirius tuned it all out? My own pain was bad enough. It was bearable in Blackheart, but here, where everything hurt all the time, I couldn’t bear it. I had to admit, it was nice to know I wasn’t the only one affected by sparkly Christmas ornaments.

“So, you do care?” I hit his shoulder as he straightened his jacket. “I thought you didn’t get feelings.”

“I don’t. Especially not about this. Not because of the stupid smell . . . or the memories.”

I didn’t need to be reminded. We’d always been together on Christmas. Even if Mom was working, the four of us would be together and cook her dinner and wait for gifts. We did it all. We baked cookies, hid little bottles of liquor in my brother’s stockings, and watched holiday movies. Presley loved a good Hallmark movie. He even got us matching pajamas to watch them in.

“I can’t be here. It’s too much.” I looked at my brother, pleading.

“Let’s go. Fuck this place and the holidays.”

I nodded as he put his arm around me and steered me away from the square.

Christmas was my favorite. Sarah’s too.

We left on the last boat out for the day, but when we arrived back on the island, I had my mind set on one place I needed to go.

“I have something I need to do.”

Zach followed me along the cobblestones to the old fountain Connell had shown me.

I reached into my pocket and grabbed my silver object. The only object I always kept on me. One of Sarah’s silver butterfly necklaces. The one she’d given me before she’d left for college. To remind me “to not forget to keep moving forward.” It was her favorite. The one her grandmother had given her. She loaned it to me, claiming I needed its luck more than her. I’d wished that were true.

I never thought I’d part with that necklace, but its luck could be enough to get us out.

“ Why do you like butterflies so much ?” I’d asked Sarah once in her bedroom. She had stars on her ceilings but paper butterflies that fluttered next to her window.

“They make me happy. Every time I see one in the garden, they make me want to run away with them. They’re free to roam wherever they wish. It’s full of possibilities.”

I rubbed the pendant between my thumb and index finger while Zach waited.

Don’t be afraid to dream. Don’t be afraid to believe in the best possible outcome. Please. Whoever is listening. Let this work. Let us go home. That’s all I want. For us to be together again.

I gave the necklace one final squeeze before chucking it into the murky water and watching it sink.

A singular glint of silver fell to the bottom of the basin.

“You good?” Zach said.

“Yeah, I’m good.”