Chapter 235

Logan

The scene around us felt like something out of a movie—and a dark one, at that.

Devon writhed on the ground, moaning in pain now that my rain of punches had ended. Logan pulled me close, his deep blue eyes filled with worry as he looked over me. In the distance, the blue and red flashing of police lights illuminated the dark desert.

It was over; but in a way, it somehow felt as though it had only just begun.

Logan pulled me close and kissed me at first, his lips soft and tender against mine. I wanted to pinch myself. It felt like I was in a dream—somehow, Logan had made it to me just in time. The garage hadn’t blown up with him inside. We were safe, at least for now.

When Logan pulled away from our kiss, I was still reeling. The effects of the drug that Devon had injected me with still addled my brain, and it didn’t help any that both of my shoulders and my head were throbbing in agony now that I had escaped the harrowing situation.

“Are you okay? Are you hurt?” Logan whispered, his gaze searching mine for any sign of injury.

“I... I think so,” I managed, still reeling from the adrenaline and shock of it all. “My head…”

Logan nodded, not needing me to finish. He guided me over to his car and helped me lean against the side. His fingers probed my head, and then I winced.

“Nasty bump on your temple,” Logan said. “You dizzy or anything?”

I nodded, but the movement felt far away. I was too busy staring wide-eyed at Devon, who was still laying on the ground. His nose was almost definitely broken, and his face was covered in thick blood and mucus. My eyes then flickered down to my knuckles, which were stained red; although I wasn’t sure if it was my blood or his.

Either way, I had lost control. I had let my primal side take over completely during those first few moments of freedom, something that had never happened to me before. And I felt like shit for it, because at the end of the day, it wasn’t Devon who I was beating to a pulp in my mind.

It was Marina and Harry.

“I-I had to stop him, Logan,” I muttered as the police lights drew nearer. “He was going to—”

But before I could finish, the sound of approaching sirens cut through the night air. The blue and red lights filled the scene, blinding me. The police had arrived, and with them came the inevitable conclusion to this night’s madness.

As the cop cars skidded to a halt, kicking up clouds of dust, the officers jumped out, their guns drawn. Behind them, an ambulance pulled into view. A flurry of movement and commanding voices filled the air after that. Hands touched my face, my head, my knuckles. Something was wrapped around my shoulders, someone was asking me questions.

But I wasn’t listening. All of the voices sounded far away—all of them except for one.

The officers approached Devon cautiously, their eyes wary. He didn’t even try to escape. He knew that if he got up and tried to make a run for it, there was either a bullet or the edge of a cliff in store for him. Maybe both.

No, he didn’t try to run. He just put his hands up, his eyes locked onto mine through the swelling that had taken over his face.

“Ella, please, you have to understand,” Devon pleaded through a mouthful of broken teeth, his voice desperate as the officers handcuffed him. “I was just trying to protect you. I love you, Ella.”

His words fell on deaf ears. I felt nothing but disgust and betrayal as I watched them shove him into the back of a police car. The man I had once thought was a friend, someone I had almost begun to trust, was now just a stranger to me—a dangerous, delusional stranger.

“Ella?”

Logan’s voice caught my attention, pulling me out of my reverie. I turned, coming back to my senses, and realized that I was wrapped in a silver shock blanket and there were two EMT’s standing there, staring at me worriedly.

“Oh, uh… sorry,” I muttered, furrowing my brow. “What did you say?”

“Any injuries, Miss Morgan?” one of the EMT’s, a young woman about my age with pitch black hair and striking gray eyes, said.

I swallowed. “My head,” I managed. “And both shoulders. And he drugged me.”

“Do you know what kind of drug it was, Miss Morgan?”

“I don’t know, some kind of injection. It made my wolf sleep,” I said, then furrowed my brow again. “The garage.”

The EMT’s exchanged looks, and I swallowed again, coming to the realization that my throat was sore as hell from screaming all night. “The garage,” I clarified. “He said it’s filled with explosives. Set to blow as soon as anyone walks in.”

The two EMT’s looked at each other warily, and then another flurry of commotion surrounded me. I felt myself slipping away again, too focused on the sight of Devon being loaded into the back of a police car to hear what was being said. All I knew was that two cars peeled off, likely to wait for a SWAT team or some sort to disable the explosives.

But then, something else pulled my attention away. Two officers walked up to Logan; one of them was holding handcuffs.

“Good job, Mr. Barrett,” the officer holding the cuffs said. “Now, as we discussed…”

“Right,” Logan said. I watched in awe as he calmly extended his hands, allowing the officer to cuff him. My eyes widened as the handcuffs clicked shut, and another officer took Logan by the arm to lead them away.

“What’s this about?” I asked, blinking in confusion. “Logan, what’s—”

Logan turned to me, his expression calm but his eyes filled with an emotion I couldn’t quite place. “I’ll see you soon, Ella,” he said softly. “I love you. Remember that. Oh, and I may need a lawyer, if you don’t mind.”

“But Logan—” I started, but he was already being led away.

As I stood there, watching in stunned silence while the officer led Logan away and loaded him into a police car, the EMT’s caught my attention again. This night felt endless. “Come with us, Miss Morgan,” the kind female EMT said gently. “Let’s get you to the hospital to check those injuries.”

“But Logan,” I said, my voice shaking, “what’s happening to him?”

“Mr. Barrett led us on a high-speed chase through the whole city,” the officer who had cuffed him said. I turned to look at him, and there was a flicker of something that looked like remorse in his eyes. “I’m sorry, but the law is the law.”

As the officer spoke, I felt my heart flutter with a thousand different emotions. Confusion, betrayal, sadness, worry—but then my eyes flickered over to Logan, who was now looking out at me through the window of one of the cop cars, and those emotions softened instantly into something more smooth, more comforting.

Logan had put himself at risk for me. He had gotten himself arrested for me. In saving me, he had taken a massive hit and there was no telling where exactly this would go from here.

But one thing was for sure, and that trumped all else: we were alive, and we were going to be okay, and…

It was finally over, all thanks to this mobster who was now sitting in the back of a police car.