Page 158 of Chaos At Second Sight

“I can’t believe Dad let her into the pack.” His voice came out flat as he finally stepped inside. “He always, always, falls for her tricks.”

I closed the door behind him. “Maybe…you could have just one conversation? Hear what she wants?”

Logan looked physically repulsed. “Never.”

I nudged him onto a stool—not as good as a ladder, but it almost put us at eye level. “I just want you safe.”

One blond eyebrow arched.

“She mentioned a…man coming after you.” Us.

“Magnus.” His answer was immediate. “He was there when Lucien killed Daniel. And did nothing.”

“But she sounded⁠—”

“Manipulative, crazy. Trust me, I know.”

Something told me Francisca had been telling the truth; the fear I’d glimpsed in her icy eyes had looked real.

“Still…” I took both of his hands. “That doesn’t justify how you treated your dad tonight.”

He tilted his head, narrowing his silver eyes. They glinted ferally in the kitchen light.

“No matter how you feel about Francisca, your father raised you the best he could. She hurt him too.”

“So? He let her hurt him. He’s weak when it comes to her!”

“Maybe.” I squeezed his hands. “The wrong love is still love to some people. She was his mate, after all.”

That shut him up and I used my chance.

“Here.” I slipped my phone from my pocket and held it out. “Call him.”

He opened his mouth.

“He needs you, Logan. After you left, he looked destroyed.” I still couldn’t forget Alpha Jonathan standing alone in that room seeming older. Smaller. Like a parent who had tried his best, wondering where he’d failed. “You and Bella are his world and now both of you are disappointed with him.” My throat tightened. “Family is precious. You hold on to them while you can, because one day there’ll be a last hug, a last laugh together, a last goodnight, and none of us get to choose when.”

Logan pulled me into his chest when tears started blurring my vision. “Little Ian’s doing better,” he murmured into my hair.

I nodded against him. “He is.” The surgery had gone better than anyone had dared hope. Grandma insisted it was because she’d prayed hard at every sunset and sunrise—when the Moon Goddess has a keener ear, according to her.

“Let’s go back to your pack now, Bunny Doc.” I blinked up at him. “To hug Ian.”

My heart swelled. This strong, sarcastic lycan was going to overload my system one day. Warning: mate sweetness exceeding recommended dosage.

“Not before you call Big Feet.”

“I can mind-link him,” he grumbled.

“No.” I climbed onto the kitchen stool next to him and folded my arms. “I want to hear you apologize.”

He stared at me for several long seconds before sighing. “Fine…but only because you’re asking me to do it.”

Good enough.

The call went better than I’d expected. Jonathan apologized for accepting Francisca into the pack without consulting Bella and Logan first, and Logan apologized in the most Logan way possible—without an actual I’m sorry. But somehow, they both knew they meant the same thing.

They agreed to discuss Francisca without anyone punching walls and Jonathan promised she’d stay in an isolated cabin under guard, far from the packhouse.