“Ezra?”
“Seth! Help Seth!” he begged, not at all surprised to see me sitting there. I was up and at their door in a second, and Ezra let me through without hesitation.
Seth was upright, eyes wide, breathing hard.
“Help,” he managed to gasp, and I clambered over the bed and fell to my knees beside him. The mattress lay on the floor, wedged into a corner; the other a barrier between them and the door. They’d been sleeping in the same small space, and I reached out to touch the terrified kid.
His eyes were wide, panicked breath coming too fast, chest barely lifting before it fell again, fear tipping into a panic attack. Thunder cracked, and he yelped and grabbed for his brother.
“Seth,” I said, firm and loud, but not crowding him. I gripped his shoulders—not hard, just with enough pressure to anchor him. “Look at me.”
His gaze flicked, skidded, then locked onto mine.
“You’re here,” I said. “Reed Way. You’re safe. No one’s coming through that door. I won’t let them. Okay?”
His breathing didn’t slow.
“Count with me,” I ordered, keeping my voice level. “In for four. Hold. Out for four.”
He shook his head.
“I’ve got you,” I said. “You’re safe.”
I exaggerated my own breathing so he could follow it.
“One. Two. Three. Four.”
His shoulders trembled under my hands, but the next breath came deeper. Still shaky.. But deeper.
“Again,” I said.
There was movement behind me, and Ezra gasped, then clambered to sit next to his brother, holding him close. I didn’t have to turn to know it had to be Novak.
I focused on Seth, who was breathing fine now, soft and quiet, curled into his brother’s arms.
“We need him!” Ezra shouted at me and pointed, and I turned to check he was pointing at Novak. Lightning flashed,and it cut Novak into hard white lines—jeans, T-shirt, black jacket hanging open, boots planted.
“You killed them all,” Ezra said, exhausted.
“I did,” Novak said.
“We need you!” Ezra repeated, and he wasn’t making any sense. “You’re the one who goes in, kills Father Michael, and gets our brother and sister out.” Ezra’s voice flattened. Father Michael?SaintMichael? Ezra gripped my arm, shook his head, and pointed at Novak. “He can save Noah and Eden and kill anyone who tries to stop him.”
EIGHT
Novak
Ezra didn’t lookat Caleb when he said it.
He stared at me as thunder rolled overhead, rattling the windows. Seth flinched and pressed closer to his brother; fingers twisted into the back of Ezra’s shirt.
Caleb rose slowly from where he’d been crouched, putting himself between the boys and me without making it obvious. His shoulder brushed mine, and my breathing quickened. I moved away before it could register as anything other than random touch.
Or ask him to touch me again.
“Ezra—”
“They’re bad people just like the ones who bought us an’ you killed them!”
