Chapter 12

CHAPTER 12

“ W ell?” Logan said as he took in the large walk-in closet that had been turned into a cozy little nook.

“They’ve been fed,” Gray said as Logan took in everything from the battery-operated Christmas lights strung along the walls to the thick mattress that she’d asked for her that he’d been curious about pushed up against the back wall with an ungodly number of pillows, a down comforter, a battery-operated lantern, and dozens of books stacked neatly against the wall.

Nodding absently, Logan shifted his gaze back to that mattress as he asked, “How many chairs came with that dining room table that she ordered?”

“Eight,” Gray said as he moved to join him in the doorway.

“Any problems?” Logan asked, deciding to take a closer look at that mattress.

“She shouldn’t be here,” Gray said after a slight hesitation.

“And where should she be?” Logan asked as he grabbed hold of the thick mattress with one hand and pulled it up so that he could look underneath it.

Nothing.

“With the Sentinels,” Gray said as Logan used his hold on the mattress to pull it away from the wall and felt his lips twitch when he found what was left of the missing chair.

Shaking his head, Logan said, “Not until I remove my mark,” as he took in the small pile of crudely made stakes.

“They’re going to send her to the island whether you find a way to remove her mark or not. They’ll never trust her again.”

“Probably not,” Logan murmured as he reached over and picked up one of the stakes.

“She’s a distraction.”

“For who?” Logan asked, absently turning the stake over in his hand as he looked up and met the shifter’s silver gaze. Clenching his jaw tightly shut, Gray averted his gaze as Logan absently flipped the stake in his hand as he considered the shifter.

This wasn’t the time to fuck around.

Not when he was finally close to ending this, but even knowing that, Logan couldn’t make himself send her away. Everything that he did, every decision that he made, and every fucking moment for more than eight hundred years was focused on making the men who took Elizabeth from him pay, but now…

“She’s not going anywhere,” Logan said, tossing the stake in his hand one more time before he handed it to the shifter. “I want a camera in here within the hour,” Logan said as his gaze flickered to the battery-operated Christmas lights and lantern before adding, “And a light.”

“Anything else?” Gray asked, stepping out of the way so that Logan could walk past him.

“Get me Tomas,” Logan said, deciding that it was time to finally end this. With that, he followed Jill’s chain into the hallway, across the large living room, down the hallway and into the dining room that he was using as his office, where he found her waiting for him.

“We need to talk,” she said, making his lips twitch when he realized that another chair was missing.

“And what do we need to talk about?” Logan drawled as he made his way around the table and sat down across from her, beyond fucking amused. She wasn’t his first prisoner, but she was quickly becoming his favorite.

“Let’s start with the children,” Jill said, keeping her gaze locked on him as she gestured for him to get on with it.

“I believe we already discussed them,” Logan said, relaxing back against his chair.

“That’s not going to work for me,” she said, making his lips twitch.

“You’re a prisoner,” he reminded her. “I don’t give a damn what works for you.”

“You could always let me go,” Jill pointed out, blinking innocently at him.

“I could…” Logan said, letting his words trail off.

“But you’re not going to,” Jill finished for him.

“No, I’m not,” Logan said as he considered her. “But I’m willing to negotiate.”

“Negotiate what exactly?” Jill absently murmured as her attention shifted to the laptop he left at the end of the table.

“Your surrender,” he said, watching as her gaze shifted back to him.

“And what exactly am I surrendering?” Jill asked, watching him curiously.

“Well, that depends on what you want to talk about,” Logan said, absently drumming his fingertips against the freshly polished table.

“The same thing that I wanted to talk to you about before,” Jill said, placing her hand on the table to match the move.

“We finished that conversation,” Logan said, watching as she drummed neatly trimmed nails against the table, matching his cadence until he suddenly stopped.

“I’d like to revisit it,” Jill said as she kept her gaze locked with his. Absently nodding, Logan reached over and took her hand in his, noting the way that she went still seconds before she forced herself to relax. She was playing a game with him, one that he was more than willing to finish.

“I’m listening,” Logan said, gently wrapping his hand around hers and began absently caressing the back of her fingers with his thumb.

“Let’s start with the asshole,” she said, making his lips twitch.

“Gray’s in charge of the children,” Logan said, feeling himself relax with every swipe of his thumb over the back of her fingers.

“And he seems really thrilled about the position,” Jill said dryly.

“What else?” Logan asked as his gaze dropped to their hands.

“They’re children and need more than junk food to survive,” Jill pointed out.

“He gave them junk food?” Logan asked, his gaze flickering up to find her looking down at their hands.

“Enough to put a full-grown shifter into a diabetic coma,” Jill said, making his lips twitch as he dropped his gaze back to their hands and-

Nearly fucking groaned when she pulled her hand away so that she could take over. He watched as she ran her fingertips over his palm, tracing the scars that followed him into his immortality and found himself mesmerized by her touch. Two years ago, she’d nearly fucking destroyed him in that cell, leaving him with no choice but to wonder about all of those things that he’d lost that night in the alley only he wasn’t thinking about Elizabeth.

He thought about her, his angel, and he’d hated her for it.

“What happened here?” Jill murmured, taking her time running her fingertips along the scar that ran across his palm.

“I sliced my hand sharpening an ax when I was a boy,” Logan said, watching as she ran her fingertips over the scar that had taken him all night to sew.

“They’ve never had sugar before,” Jill murmured absently as she turned her attention to the thin scars that he’d earned from working with his hands.

“No, they haven’t,” Logan said, wondering why such a simple touch could leave him wanting something that he couldn’t have. “You want to be in charge of the children?”

“Yes,” Jill said with absolutely no hesitation as he reluctantly forced himself to pull his hand away.

“Then, I’ll see you tonight,” Logan said, pushing his chair back before he stood up.

“What exactly will I be doing tonight?” Jill asked, watching him as he stepped away from the table.

“Spending the night with me,” Logan said with a bored sigh.

“And why would I do that?”

“Because that’s my price.”