CHAPTER FORTY-FIVE

L ogan nursed his beer up at the bar, just staring at a bunch of nothing.

"Hey," Mack said, sitting down next to him. "You want to join us over there?"

Logan turned on his stool and saw all his friends at a table. Kurt, Madison, Ben, Anna, Alex, and Casey. Charlotte and Marcus. Oli and Piper. Callan and Virginia.

"I'm good. I'm heading out at sunset, so won't be here much longer." He took another big sip.

Mack sat down.

"Dude. I'm honestly sorry for how this has played out."

Logan nodded and took another sip.

He was sick of thinking about it all. Soon, it would be over.

"Yeah, I guess not every mate is the perfect match. I'm an assassin, what can I expect? Few women will look favorably on that. She got scared and ran."

And exposed their entire race.

Mack thanked the server as his drink arrived. "Trust me. I get that."

Logan turned and gave him a questioning look.

"I'm a hybrid. My life changed the moment I met Callan, and he infected us," Mack shared, then shook his head. "I've forgiven him and love my wolf, but there was someone."

Logan turned his whole body.

"Your mate?"

Mack shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe. But I can't tell her who and what I am. King's orders and all that."

"She human?"

"Vampire."

Logan slowly nodded and turned his body back toward the bar. "That sucks."

Keeping the hybrids confidential was even more important. Them and the super soldiers which no one had seen recently.

Who knew? They could have died.

That would be fucking sad.

If humans learned their DNA could be adapted, it would be a dangerous new world. No one knew exactly how the hybrids had come about, as all the BioZen data was with their enemies.

So he understood Mack's situation. He couldn't get close to someone who may or may not be his mate. That level of intimacy was far too dangerous right now.

"Yeah. It does." The hybrid sighed.

"Well..." Logan finished his drink and slammed it on the bar. "Best to keep away from chicks, honestly. Trust me. Mating is not worth the pain."

"I can't mate her. Trouble is, Ella's moving to Maine," Mack said.

Woah.

Logan stood and slid his phone into his pocket. The sun would be down soon, and he had to get ready. He wasn't sure how he was going to fare after this kill.

He'd never killed someone he loved before.

"Shit. Why?"

Mack scrubbed his face. "When the news broke out, she called me. I couldn't ignore the call. She's terrified. So I organized a place for her in town."

Damn.

"You're a good vamp, Mack. Even if I did want to break your neck a few times for flirting with my girl," Logan said, slapping him on the shoulder.

My girl.

Not my girl—my target.

Mack lifted his beer and took a long sip, his eyes never leaving his. "So, why are you on your way to kill her?"

What?

"Never said I was going to do that," Logan replied, pulling on his jacket.

"No. You didn't," Mack replied and when he turned, he saw all the senior warriors' eyes on him.

Fuck.

They knew.

Darren, head of tech from The Institute, had given him the coordinates a few hours ago, and he never expected the information to be shared.

The fucker.

Why were they protecting her?

He turned back to Mack. "Good luck with Ella."

Logan cast one last look at the warriors, then strode out of Max Bar. Twenty minutes later, he picked up his black overnight back and lifted it over his shoulder, walking toward the door.

Before he reached it, a soft knock sounded.

He stilled.

It was a female, but there was no way it could be Brooklyn.

Cursing, Logan pushed back the wishful feelings which had snuck up on him.

He dropped the bag on the floor and opened the door.

"Hi, Logan, sorry to just show up like this but I wanted to talk to you," Sage said, looking awkward.

She was tiny, and the way he towered over her made him step back. Sage took that as an invitation.

Shit.

"Sage, I'm heading out for a few days. Can it wait until I return?"

"Don't kill her," she said quickly.

Christ, does everyone fucking know?

Logan crossed his arm and let out a curse. "Sage. I can't discuss this."

"Just hear me out." She held out her hands.

"Why? She betrayed you just as much as me, almost." Logan shook his head in disbelief.

"I saw you both that day. I saw you together. Then Ari tells me Brooklyn is your mate." Her voice softened. "I've been there. Ari was terrified to trust me. But he did."

Which turned out vastly different for them, he wanted to tell her. Sage hadn't betrayed the entire vampire species.

She was human and had still helped them.

Helped Callan escape.

It was entirely different.

"You saw what happened. You saw Brooklyn on TV," Logan cried, waving out his arms. "How can you defend her?"

"If she's your mate, you cannot be without her." Sage slid her hands into her pockets. "I know you hate humans, but what Brooklyn did was to protect her race."

He wriggled his jaw and looked away defiantly.

"She saw us as a threat. She was protecting them, Logan." She pressed.

Fuck.

He didn't want to hear it. He didn't want to understand or forgive her.

"She didn't know what the army was planning. Brooklyn sat in one meeting overhearing the plans to destroy the mafia. Then you guys blow up the BioZen building right in front of her eyes. With people inside she'd worked with for years."

Goddamn it.

Stop talking.

"I don't want to hear it, Sage. She should have talked to me. Asked me. I could have told her we weren't about to go all Word War III on her and destroy her people."

Sage pressed her lips together and stayed silent for a long moment. "The point is, she showed an attribute you yourself value. Protection."

"I'm a killer."

"No. You're a protector." Sage frowned.

She was wrong.

He was a killer. End of story. There was no need to glamorize it. He'd come to grips with what he was a long time ago and wasn't apologetic.

Sure, he did it to protect the broader population. The exact opposite of what Brooklyn had done.

Even if his heart felt like it had been torn in two.

Even if he wasn't sure he wanted to live with her.

"How can you not be angry with her?" Logan snapped, glad Ari wasn't here.

"Because I know how scary it is when I was human. I was vulnerable and confused," Sage said. "She was very brave working with me. Dealing with you big buffoons all day long."

True. He'd gone out of his way to scare her.

Until he hadn't. Until those blue eyes and her lean curves had been too much and he'd given in to the urges he could no longer ignore.

Until he'd tasted her.

Those terrified eyes had excited him because it had been him scaring her. She was his. His to scare and protect and...

He'd never forget the day he'd found a way into the BioZen building, worried that Nikolay might be about to kill her. Terrified he'd lose her.

Now, she was wanted by millions of people. Some wanted to make her a saint.

Others wanted to kill her.

If he didn't kill her first, someone else would. Eventually. And probably not too long from now.

Fuck.

That wasn't okay...

"What she did was the opposite of what you hate about humans. She was trying to save people."

Logan's eyes lifted to Sage's.

"Her life is in danger," he growled.

"By you?" she asked tentatively.

"No," Logan said. Then he spun, lifted his bag, and teleported down to the parking garage.

Tossing his bag into the silver Audi, he jumped in, fired up the powerful engine, then pressed the gas and tore out the door.

Destination: New York City.