Page 43 of Bound in Blood

And Logan was late.

3:58 AM

Mateo lifted his head and glanced at his brother. He wasn’t entirely sure which one of them was going to snap first, only that it was going to be very soon.

A car pulled up outside, its engine cutting off just as Mateo recognized it.

Alexei.

The front door opened before either of them could move. Logan stepped inside, smelling like cheap tequila and something sharper—like sweat, nerves, something Mateo couldn’t quite place. His hair was a mess, and his jacket was unzipped, hanging loose off his shoulders.

He startled when he saw them, green eyes flicking between them in genuine surprise.

“Jesus,” he breathed. “Were y’all juststanding herewaiting on me?”

Mateo and Marco both crossed their arms, jaws tight.

“You’re late,” Marco pointed out.

Mateo nodded his agreement.

Logan blinked, like he hadn’t expected an interrogation. “Yeah, uh… Alexei dropped me off,” he said, rubbing the back of his neck. “It’s a long story.”

Marco’s expression darkened. “Then you better start explaining now.”

Logan stiffened, and Mateo could feel the flicker of guilt through the bond before Logan even responded.

“We felt a spike of fear around closing time,” Mateo explained, trying to keep his voice even, “And then we gotradio silencefrom you for hours. Logan, I know you’re not used to depending on anyone, but youcan’tleave us in the dark like that.”

Logan hesitated. “I—” He sighed, running a hand nervously through his curls, “It wasn’t that big of a deal.”

Mateo raised a brow. “See, your mouth is saying one thing, but your emotions are telling a whole different story.”

Logan exhaled sharply, “Okay, fine. Y’know that rogue vampire Alexei told us about?”

“The one we spent hours looking for and couldn’t find?” Marco crossed his arms.

Logan stared down at his shoes nervously, “Yeah, well, he kind of… uh… found me?”

Mateo and Marco both went still.Found him?

Marco spoke first, voice sharp. “What do you mean, he found you?”

“Was helookingfor you?” Mateo added, “Jesus,tesoro, I was joking when you said you attract the paranormal, but?—”

“He wasn’t looking for me!” Logan replied, way too quickly. “He was feral. I was leaving the bar, and he was snacking on a homeless guy outside.” His fingers twitched at his sides, betraying his nerves, “It wasn’t like… he didn’tattackme, or anything.”

Mateo wasn’t entirely convinced. He stepped forward, eyes narrowing as he studied Logan’s face, like all the secrets would be revealed if he just looked a bit closer. “Then why are you panicking?”

Logan hesitated.Too long.

“Because I let him go. And I don’t want you to be mad at me.” He mumbled finally, refusing to look either of them in the eyes.

Mateo shared alookwith his brother.He let him go?

Mateo took a slow breath, forcing his voice to stay even, “You said he had just killed someone. Yousawthe corpse. Why did you let him go?”

Logan looked up, eyes shiny with unshed tears of frustration. “Because he lookedscared,Mateo! I don’t know. I looked at him, and I didn’t see some mean, ugly killer. I saw a terrified kidmy age.”He sniffled. “And I thought, what if that were me? What if you two had abandoned me after turning me and I was all alone and scared and wandering the streets?”