Page 93 of Poet & Protector

Ansel followed me to the sinks, casting anxious glances back at Mason. Mason had pushed himself away from the toilet and was sitting with his knees drawn up to his chest. He took slow sips of water.

“What did he mean?” Ansel asked me. “‘Now we know what changed’?”

“He meant Logan,” I answered. I tried to focus on the facts so I wouldn’t lose myself in rage or despair. “We saw Logan at Eden on Friday.”

“When?”

“When we were under the scaffolding.”

His eyes widened.

“Logan made it clear…” I had to stop when my chest constricted. A red wave of fury tried to flood my vision. I took a breath. Another. “Logan wants Mason.”

“Wants Mason?” Ansel stared at me, then glanced at Mason. “I don’t…you mean…you can’t mean…”

His voice trailed off as horror filled his eyes.

“He wants Mason the way Efron has Sabine,” I said quietly.

Ansel shook his head. “No. He can’t.”

“If what you said is true, and Logan is going to be the master of our pack,” I swallowed around the hard lump in my throat, “he can.”

“He told you this at Eden?” I could see Ansel mentally fighting my words, needing them to be a lie. “Are you sure that’s what he meant?”

It was Mason who answered. “We’re sure.”

I went to him, but he gave a little shake of his head when I offered my hand. He was barely holding it together. If I touched him, it would be that much harder.

Mason slowly stood and walked to one of the sinks. He turned on the faucet, rinsed out his mouth several times, and splashed his face. I grabbed a handful of paper towels and handed them to him.

As he was drying his face, he said to Ansel, “I’m sorry, An. Logan made his intentions very clear on Friday night.”

“Why are you sorry?” Ansel looked like he was going to cry. “This is my fault. I was the one who showed you that spot. It was my idea for you to sneak away.”

“No, Ansel.” Mason went to discard the used paper towels.

When he returned, he said, “None of this is on you. Logan happened to find us in the club, but what he’s planning…It’s not new.”

Ansel’s face crumpled with even more confusion and Mason sighed.

“Maybe I should have told you. Or Calla.” He shook his head. “No one knew. Not even Nev. I only told him after Logan cornered us.”

He cast me a guilty look.

“It’s okay,” I assured him. “I understand.”

“You knew Logan wanted this?” Ansel asked with disbelief. “For how long?”

“I wasn’t certain,” Mason replied. “It was more of a bad feeling. I hoped I was imagining it.”

“But you weren’t,” Ansel said.

“No.” Mason’s voice was strained, devoid of hope.

It was killing me.

“We can stop him,” Ansel insisted. “Calla won’t let Logan hurt you. She would never.”