Chapter 244

Logan

I was enjoying the party, watching with a smile on my face as Clara, Ella, and Sarah exchanged stories, when the sound of my phone ringing suddenly cut through the lively atmosphere.

Pulling my phone out of my pocket, I felt my heart lurch in my chest. It was Hartman; I hadn’t heard from him in months. After Marina and Harry had taken off and Devon had been caught, I had paid Hartman for his help—even though our plan wound up being foiled—and that was the end of that.

But he had left with one final promise: to let me know immediately if he dug up any more information on Marina and Harry.

I stood almost immediately, garnering a look of concern from the nearby guests—especially Ella, whose blonde hair seemed to flicker with the light of the fire as her gray eyes stared up at me with confusion.

“Uh, sorry,” I managed, forcing a stiff smile. “I have to take this.”

Without another word, I slipped away from the patio and back inside, back into the warmth of the house. But I felt anything but warm. With my heart pounding in my chest, I turned down the hallway and slipped into the study that Ella and I shared.

It was a cozy room with two desks; each of us had ‘claimed’ one half of the room, but it was all cohesive. I stood in the middle now, though, staring down at my phone in my hand for a moment longer before I finally answered.

“Hello?” I answered, trying to keep my voice steady despite the fact that I felt as if I might explode.

“Logan.”

I swallowed. “Hartman,” I said softly, keeping my voice low so as not to be overheard. “To what do I owe the pleasure?”

“As I’m sure you’re aware, I’m not calling to chat,” came the gruff voice on the other end. “It’s done, Logan.”

“It’s… done?”

“The Italian mobster found them.”

I leaned against my desk, a strange sense of relief and a swirl of other emotions flooding through me all at once.

If the Italian mobster found them, then that could only mean one thing: they were dead. He had been out for blood after what they had done to his daughter. I didn’t want it to happen, but I had no choice. I did try finding them first, of course, thinking that maybe they could wind up behind bars before that happened, but it was too late.

“So,” I said, swallowing, “Marina and Harry, they’re… taken care of?”

Hartman paused before answering. “Yes,” he said. “They're in a foreign prison now. Forged IDs, passports, money laundering, the works. They’re looking at a very, very long time behind bars.”

My eyes widened slightly; this was news to me. “A foreign prison?” I found myself asking. “I thought they were… you know…”

Hartman chuckled. “Dead, you mean?” he asked. “No. Not yet, at least. He wanted to make them suffer first, make them beg. He’s got guys in that prison; guards. Their lives are gonna be so much of a living hell that they’ll be wishing for death.”

His words, although a small comfort, didn’t help much to allay my fears. Despite everything, I had only wanted them behind bars. Not tortured. Not dead, even though they hadn’t extended the same courtesy to my father.

“Hartman,” I managed, “can’t we just let them go to prison? Surely he doesn’t—”

“Hold on,” Hartman interrupted. “Are you implying that one of the biggest mobsters in all of Italy is going to listen to you when you ask him to let your conniving brother and his girl live out their lives behind bars? Comfortably?”

I exhaled deeply, my fingers drumming on the polished wood. Hartman was right; there was no changing this man’s mind, and if I tried, then it would only make it seem as though I sympathized and would just put a target on my back. No, Harry and Marina had done this to themselves when they had killed that girl. And after all they had done to me and to Ella, I didn’t owe them anything.

“Alright,” I breathed, changing the subject. “And the money?”

“Almost all squandered on boats, hotels, champagne, hookers, you name it,” he replied with a slight chuckle. “But that’s not your concern anymore, is it?”

I shook my head, even though I knew he couldn’t see me. “No, it isn’t. They made their choices.”

There was a brief silence on the line. “It’s not your fault, Logan,” Hartman finally said, his voice softening ever so slightly. “Whatever happens to those two now... that’s out of your hands. There’s no getting between an angry father and the fuckers who killed it daughter.”

Another pang of guilt struck me, even though I knew that Hartman was right. It was just that I had hoped to put all this behind me, to start over fresh with Ella. But the shadows of my past seemed to linger, casting long, dark fingers into my present.

“I understand,” I said quietly. “Thank you for letting me know.”

After hanging up, I stood there for a moment, digesting the news. It was over, or at least, this chapter was. Marina and Harry, the cause of so much pain and trouble, were finally facing the consequences of their actions.

But at what cost?

“You heard him,” my wolf said softly, his voice echoing in the back of my mind. “It’s not your fault. Their actions are just catching up to them, that’s all.”

“But I could have protected them,” I insisted. “If I had just acted quicker, if I had just done more, they could have been in a prison here instead. I never wanted this.”

“Remember what your mother wrote. To forgive. That’s what you can offer them now: forgiveness. Whatever else happens, well… that’s beyond your reach.”

The mention of my mother’s written words made a pang shoot through my chest. I still carried the key with me, and I slipped my hand into my pocket, feeling the cool metal there. I hadn’t opened the vault yet, but the key was a reminder.

My mother had been right. Forgive. Move on. But I didn’t have to forget, either.

I turned, intending to head back to the party, but stopped short all of a sudden. Ella was standing there, just around the corner, her eyes filled with a mix of concern and curiosity as she slowly stepped into the doorway.

Of course she had been listening. I couldn’t blame her.

“How much did you hear?” I asked, my voice a mix of worry and relief.

She stepped forward and wrapped her arms around me in a tight hug. “Enough,” she murmured. “Is everything okay?”

I nodded, returning her embrace. “Everything will be just fine,” I assured her, but the words felt heavier than I intended.

Ella pulled back slightly, looking up at me with those deep, understanding eyes. “You did what you had to do, Logan. Sometimes, there are no easy choices.”

Her words helped soothe the turmoil churning inside of me. I had stepped away from that life—many nights had been spent staying up late, speaking with Edrick on the phone, dissolving my illegal businesses and investing in more legal ones, although of course there were still many more nights to come—but the ripples of my past actions were still being felt.

Yet, here she was, standing with me, offering her unwavering support.

“Ella,” I began, searching for the words to explain the complexity of what I was feeling. “I never wanted any of this to touch you. I wanted to protect you from all of it. Even from the beginning.”

She touched my cheek gently, her gaze soft but firm. “I know, Logan. But we’re in this together, remember? For better or worse.”

A soft smile tugged at my lips, and I leaned down to kiss her gently. She tasted like pineapple upside down cake.

“For better or worse.”