Page 136 of This Blood That Breaks Us
They killed her. And I’d bet money I knew why. That glimmer of interest in my brother’s eyes came to mind. Luke never left her alone. I should have known. I should have stayed.
“They also said Ezra took him back to the castle in his car.”
Ezra. All my problems started and ended with that name. My chest ached for my brother. They’d done this to hurt him. All of that blood on his shirt . . .
They killed her in front of him and made him watch. My eyes stung at the thought. It had to be the bond filling me with all my brother’s sadness that he wasn’t feeling. Because I should have been vibrating with anger and adrenaline, but I had to fight the lump in my throat. Luke had been all alone. He needed me, and I hadn’t been there.
“Connell, I need you to go find my brother and follow him around. Make sure no one hurts him, and if you hear anymore talk, anything that would harm my brother, you need to tell me. But you don’t tell anyone about this. Not even Ezra or Sirius. You’re sworn to me.”
He nodded quickly. “Of course, sir. I’ll find him right away.”
I sighed when he left. Having Connell be my sworn would help me have eyes on my brother, and I trusted him before he was sworn to me.
Moving to the garden was my top priority. I needed to find Thane and ask about Will. Thane was hiding behind a hedge. Ibarely caught the curtail of his shirt as he disappeared toward the edge of the garden. He was headed for the cathedral.
“Thane!” I called in a whisper. No one else was around that I could tell, everyone was likely busy making up for all their lost work the day before.
Thane stopped, shifting his feet impatiently. “This is a bad time. Can I talk to you in a second?”
“Have you seen Will?”
“Not since this morning.”
“I can’t find him anywhere,” I said.
“I can help you look in a minute. But I have to go.”
“What, why?”
“Someone is coming! I told you it would happen and it’s happening. I heard whispers that said in two days’ time. I need to go see if I can catch anything else from The Guard and the queen’s meeting.”
“I’m The Guard, and I haven’t heard shit.”
“Oh right. Weird. They’re still keeping you in the dark?”
I ignored the obvious. “The Legion is coming?”
“Yes! I think so, that’s what I’m trying to find out. I’ll catch you later. I’ll come find you in your room.”
“Yeah, see you later.”
I didn’t know how to take in that new information. I hadn’t believed anyone was coming to save us, but if it were true . . .
First, I needed to find Will.
I caught the whiff of his scent in the soft wind, and as I turned the corner of the cobblestone in the garden, I spotted Will and Ezra disappearing into the maze. They were moving fast, because no matter how quickly I followed, I found myself at a dead end. I burst through the thick bushes to where I thought the middle of the maze was. Cussing at the thistles and dead leaves, I broke through the hedges and moved my way toward the center.
Ezra was waiting for me. Only, he was alone with a large marble statue I’d only been able to see from the top of the castle. It was a statue of a man with wings falling from the sky.
“What the fuck is this?” My mouth was dry despite the wetness of the foggy air.
“Follow me.”
Ezra touched the edge of the statue, and there was a soft clicking sound.
A hidden door creaked open, and Ezra disappeared inside. It had once been covered with green vine and thistle. It led down a deep corridor with zero light other than the flicker of a flame and glow at the bottom of the steps. I ran my fingers over the cobblestone and concrete on either side as I descended. Something bad was about to happen. I wanted to run the other way, but Will had to be down there somewhere.
There was a shuffling of feet in the dirt and a shaking of steel.
